The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

The journey that led to Charles Dickens' creation of "A Christmas Carol," a timeless tale that would redefine Christmas.

Director:

Bharat Nalluri

Writers:

Susan Coyne, Les Standiford (based on "The Man Who Invented Christmas" by)

Stars:

Dan Stevens, Mark Schrier, Patrick Joseph Byrnes

1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dan Stevens	...	Charles Dickens
Mark Schrier	...	Presenter
Patrick Joseph Byrnes	...	Stage Manager
Miriam Margolyes	...	Mrs. Fisk
Morfydd Clark	...	Kate Dickens
Justin Edwards	...	John Forster / Ghost of Christmas Present
Cosimo Fusco	...	Signor Mazzini (as Cosimo Massimo Fusco)
Jasper Hughes Cotter	...	Walter Dickens (as Jasper Hughes-Cotter)
James Heffernan	...	Charley Dickens
Aleah Lennon	...	Mamie Dickens
Ella Mai Delaney	...	Katey Dickens
Donna Marie Sludds	...	Maid
David McSavage	...	Hall
Ian McNeice	...	Chapman
Miles Jupp	...	Thackeray

Storyline

In 1843, the celebrated British novelist, Charles Dickens, is at a low point in his career with three flops behind him and his family expenses piling up at home. Determined to recover, Dickens decides to write a Christmas story and self-publish it in less than two months. As Dickens labors writing on such short notice, his estranged father and mother come to bunk with him. Still haunted by painful memories of his father ruining his childhood by his financial irresponsibility, Dickens develops a writer's block which seems to have no solution. As such, Dickens must face his personal demons epitomized through his characters, especially in his imagined conversations with Ebenezer Scrooge. Now with a looming deadline, Dickens struggles for inspiration against his frustrations and his characters' opinions in a literary challenge creating a classic tale that would define the essential soul of modern Christmas.

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Plot Keywords:

writing | author | christmas | self publishing | inspiration | 

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Taglines:

Based on the inspiring true story.

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements and some mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

Ireland Canada

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

22 November 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

O Homem Que Inventou o Natal

Filming Locations:

Ireland

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,353,297, 26 November 2017, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$5,676,486, 25 January 2018

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mazur / Kaplan Company, The Mob Film Company, Ingenious Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bill Paterson and Miriam Margolyes have both appeared in adaptations of Little Dorrit, one of Charles Dickens' later works. Paterson as Mr. Meagles appeared in the 2008 BBC miniseries adaptation, while Margolyes as Flora Finching appeared in the 1987 adaptation.

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Goofs

In the movie, Tara, the Dickens' children's nanny is seen by Charles Dickens to be carrying a copy of 'Varney the Vampire', which was a popular 'Penny Dreadful' weekly cheap publication popular in the Victorian era. This was suggested as a part of the inspiration behind A Christmas Carol possibly because of the spectral associations and the idea for the visits of the ghosts of Marley and Christmas past and present and yet to come. A Christmas Carol was written and published in 1843, but Varney the Vampire was not actually first published until 1845.

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Quotes

Tara: [after Dickens reads the part where Tiny Tim dies] NO!
Scrooge: Rude.
Tara: Is Tiny Tim dead?
Scrooge: Well of coarse he is, imbecile.
Charles Dickens: He was very ill.
Scrooge: You can't save every child in London.
Charles Dickens: And the family has no money for a doctor.
Tara: Then Scrooge must save him!
Scrooge: ME?
Scrooge: He wouldn't...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Loway and Mr. Hand: The Loway and Mr. Hand Easter Special (Mini Movie) (2018)

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Soundtracks

Yankee Doodle Dandy
Performed by The Band of the Royal British Legion

User Reviews

A Fresh Perspective on the Classic Story

By 1843 Charles Dickens (Dan Stevens) was a successful author known around the world, however he was in a funk. His last three books were flops and he was broke and well into debt. Out of ideas he is up against the wire knowing another flop could very well kill his career. When inspiration finally strikes, he is forced to publish the book himself because no publisher wants to do a Christmas book and he has to finish in just six weeks in order to release before Christmas.

When Dickens is writing, he sees his characters in the room with him and talks to them to develop the character. This is best done with his conversations with Scrooge (Christopher Plummer) a character he created as an amalgamation of London's snobby elite who helps he learn about himself as he writes. The story also dives into Dickens early life, especially his relationship with his father (Jonathan Pryce), which helps the viewer understand what drove and inspired Dickens.

This is definitely a movie that assumes familiarity with A Christmas Carol, since it constantly references the story. The title is also a misnomer of sorts, there is no real perspective as to what Christmas was like before A Christmas Carol. And while Dickens did shape a new form of Christmas, it is not the Christmas that is celebrated today. Dickens' Christmas was focused on charitable giving and coming together with loved ones, that Christmas has been lost for a while in favor of a more consumerist Christmas.