Countless tales have been retold and reinterpreted but "A Christmas Carol" more than most on film, on television and on screen. "Well, all good stories deserve embellishment," Gandalf tells Bilbo in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" but, at its core, an embellished story is true in meaning and intent of the original story.
Steven Knight's take on "A Christmas Carol" presents an Ebenezer Scrooge whose actions align with those of a sociopath, a man whose actions as an adult were forged by a miserable childhood and who finds pleasure only inflicting misery upon others.
And that is ultimately the biggest failing of this adaptation. While we can sympathize with a man who was neglected and forgotten by his father and sexually abused by the headmaster of his school as a child, it is impossible to sympathize with a man who is presented as having no redeeming values.
The Scrooge of the novella and various film and television adaptations present a man who has lost his way but is not entirely lost, from his love for his sister to falling in love with Belle and the love and respect he had for Fezziwig. Even by allowing Cratchit to take Christmas as a paid holiday present a man who is not entirely lost.
The transformation of Scrooge by the end of this film seems unlikely and rings hollow as we've watched the story of his life unfold over the course of three hours. We can't help but feel that he doesn't deserve our sympathy or a chance at redemption but deserves the scorn of both the living and the dead. Marley would seem to agree, saving Scrooge not from his self but saving Scrooge to save himself.
A grim, missed opportunity.
Steven Knight's take on "A Christmas Carol" presents an Ebenezer Scrooge whose actions align with those of a sociopath, a man whose actions as an adult were forged by a miserable childhood and who finds pleasure only inflicting misery upon others.
And that is ultimately the biggest failing of this adaptation. While we can sympathize with a man who was neglected and forgotten by his father and sexually abused by the headmaster of his school as a child, it is impossible to sympathize with a man who is presented as having no redeeming values.
The Scrooge of the novella and various film and television adaptations present a man who has lost his way but is not entirely lost, from his love for his sister to falling in love with Belle and the love and respect he had for Fezziwig. Even by allowing Cratchit to take Christmas as a paid holiday present a man who is not entirely lost.
The transformation of Scrooge by the end of this film seems unlikely and rings hollow as we've watched the story of his life unfold over the course of three hours. We can't help but feel that he doesn't deserve our sympathy or a chance at redemption but deserves the scorn of both the living and the dead. Marley would seem to agree, saving Scrooge not from his self but saving Scrooge to save himself.
A grim, missed opportunity.