Favorite Holiday Movies: A Christmas Carol (1999)

My favorite holiday movie is A Christmas Carol. There have been many versions made from the classic Dickens' story, but a must-see adaptation is the 1999 version starring Patrick Stewart (X-Men, Star Trek: The Next Generation) as the miserly lead character, Ebenezer Scrooge. Keep reading this article and I'll tell you why this one is my favorite.

The subtleties of good acting are one thing that sets this version apart from its predecessors. Patrick Stewart takes the character of Ebenezer Scrooge and makes it his own. One scene that stands out takes place in the counting house when the two well-dressed gentlemen come to collect money for the poor and destitute. At first, Scrooge fears that they are relatives of Jacob Marley that have come to collect an inheritance. When the gentlemen explain their purpose, Bob Cratchit (played by Richard E. Grant) raises his eyebrows and quickly ducks back into his tiny room. Ebenezer Scrooge smirks and asks the gentlemen if they were new to the area. The two naïve, well-meaning charity workers are like innocent lambs before the lion. The dialogue, along with the facial expressions, really makes this scene work. I laughed myself at the thought of someone asking Scrooge for charity.

Bob Cratchit himself has a moment of boldness brought on by a visit from Scrooge's nephew, Fred. Scrooge asked Bob if he was another "Christmas lunatic" like Fred. Instead of cowering or answering in the affirmative, Bob Cratchit replies, "If you say so, Sir." He makes a stab at standing up to the establishment which is an underlying theme in Dickens' original story.

The tenacity with which Ebenezer Scrooge holds on to his miserly ways almost makes one feel sorry for him. As with real people, certain attitudes become such a part of us that we come to rely on them-like a crutch. As much as Scrooge wanted to change, his fear of the unknown kept him from it all those years. This portrayal of Ebenezer Scrooge adds a more human component instead of just a satiric representation of what was wrong with the government of nineteenth-century England.

The use of digital special effects brings to life the scenes with Scrooge and Marley and Scrooge and the three Spirits. A tradition of mine is to read A Christmas Carol every holiday season. I love the wordy language and political undertones of the story. Charles Dickens is one of my favorite authors. I imagine how certain passages from the book would appear in real life. Because of the digital enhancements, this version is the closest to my imagination. I did find the scene with the doorknocker morphing into Jacob Marley's ghost a bit cheesy, but all in all, the special effects work.

This 1999 version of A Christmas Carol elevates Dickens' theme of social injustice to a level that anybody can identify with. The Cratchit family were poster children for the common man but they didn't let the system rob them of the one thing that was theirs alone-their dignity. They survived in spite of social pressures as did nephew Fred who Scrooge also considered "poor".

I recommend this movie for anyone who likes the story of Ebenezer Scrooge and upbeat endings. Rent a copy to see it without commercial interruptions which ruin the dramatic moments.