BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

rkhen First, disclosure: I'm a giant Dickens fan, scholar of his life and work, and total Charles Dickens fanboy geek all the way around. This movie is NOT a version or update of Dickens' 'Christmas Carol'. It's written as if the writers had never heard of the Dickens story, were handed a one-paragraph summary of the plot, and told "Go!" And everything about it works. I especially like the way they improved on some of the weaknesses of the Dickens story. Just three examples: Slade stays gruff, socially awkward, and highly competent after his transformation, instead of becoming a loony old fool, which is fakey. He quotes business theory to justify his actions, as if it were a religion. Also typical of real-life Scrooges. And -- skirting spoilers -- the changes he makes in his life afterward are much more uplifting and realistic. He's just much, much more interesting than Scrooge. (Sorry, Chuck!) I could go on. These writers do Dickens better than Dickens. The 1930s New England setting is brilliant; the small town works better than London (which comes off like a small town in the Dickens story, but it's not.) And, gosh Henry Winkler is outstanding! A young actor, playing "old" in a ton of make-up, and totally believable. Anyway, I won't rave on. Like many other reviewers here, I say, Give it a try! I'm astonished to see this movie get two stars in TV listings and hear commentators in the media sneer about it, like it's the dumbest Dickens "adaptation" ever. First, it's not; I could write a book about the total crap passing for "Dickens'" Christmas Carol. And second, it's not. As in "not Dickens". It's a little bit better, and a whole lot fresh.

boll-weavil The attractions of setting an adaptation of A Christmas Carol during the Great Depression are obvious as it allows the messages behind the immediate storyline to be driven home in the same direct way as Dickens managed when attempting to mitigate the harshness of Victorian utilitarian philosophy.However, the success of this film doesn't lie in capitalising on this parallel.For me, it comes more in the excellent script, characterisations and great moments.I believe a really good adaptation should contain moments to take you to the very bottom of your soul - maybe to even question what you're not doing more of that you could be. In this, the film succeeds very well.There are some genuinely dark moments - eg the Ghost of Christmas Future's pointing at Scrooge's forgotten headstone and telling Scrooge that no one even remembers him "That is the only real death" Indeed that ghost, given a rare speaking part, never seems convinced that he will give Scrooge another chance after all and that uncertainty adds weight to the performance. (It can also be comic - what would the miser think at being confronted with a spirit dressed in a seventies disco outfit. That is truly scary !) All the scenes with the Cratchit family (the Thatchers as they are called here) are much more understated than the original and this makes the whole thing easier to accept.Henry Winkler makes a good jump from his role of The Fonz. Like Finney, one of the few other younger men to take the older role as well, he overdoes the tottering about a bit but generally its an assured performance.This isn't the greatest film adaptation but it joins a select group of others that does justice to the original concept in adapting it for another era.

davidleslie1001 Oh dear, take the title of a Charles Dickens classic and insert the word 'American' so that you can take every liberty possible with the story. Only a passing resemblance to the original story, some very unconvincing ghosts and characters that, to be honest, you don't care about. If Slade had difficulty in identifying each o the ghosts, from his dead partner through to Christmas past, present and future, then he has an easier job than the viewer. None of the characters resemble in any way any characters in the book, there are no revelations and little, if any, emotion.Having looked at the past, present and future, why would Slade (Scrooge) bother having a redemption? The worst version of this story that I have ever seen.

Jnissico This is one of my top three Christmas movies of all time! I have a lot of friends who, after watching this for the first time, go net surfing to see if they can find it. (Is is very hard to locate!) The overall storyline is basically from the Dickens version but the setting in the depression era and the changes to the life events of the characters add a great twist to the plot. Henry Winker is great as "Mr Slade" and the supporting cast, although mostly unknown, do a really great job too. My only wish is that someone would re-edit this. Since it is a "made for TV" production, the commercial break points are evident and distracting. Add this to your Christmas movie list, you won't be disappointed! Three thumbs up! (OK, OK, two thumbs and a big toe ;)