| Author |
Message |
|
xiayun
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 3:41 pm
Posts: 25109
Location: San Mateo, CA
|
 A Christmas Carol (2009) A Christmas Carol Quote: A Christmas Carol (also known as Disney's A Christmas Carol) is a 2009 film adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 story of the same name. The film is written and directed by Robert Zemeckis, and stars Jim Carrey in a multitude of roles, including Ebenezer Scrooge as a young, middle-aged, and old man, and three of the ghosts who haunt Scrooge.
The 3-D film was produced through the process of performance capture, a technique Zemeckis has previously used in his films The Polar Express (2004) and Beowulf (2007).
A Christmas Carol began filming in February 2008, and was released on November 3, 2009 by Walt Disney Pictures. It received its world premiere in London, coinciding with the switching on of the annual Oxford Street and Regent Street Christmas lights, which in 2009 had a Dickens theme.
The film was released in Disney Digital 3-D and IMAX 3-D. It is also Disney's third retelling of A Christmas Carol in 26 years, having released Mickey's Christmas Carol in 1983 (using the in-house Mickey Mouse & Donald Duck characters, as well as anthropormorphized characters from some of the animated Disney films) and later distributing The Muppet Christmas Carol for Jim Henson Productions in 1992, with Disney later acquiring the rights to The Muppets from Jim Henson Productions. The film also marks Jim Carrey's first role in a Disney film.
_________________Recent watched movies: American Hustle - B+ Inside Llewyn Davis - B Before Midnight - A 12 Years a Slave - A- The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - A- My thoughts on box office
|
| Fri Nov 06, 2009 1:28 pm |
 
|
|
|
David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
Posts: 34865
Location: Maryland
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) I loved it. Perhaps the most -entertaining- film I've seen this year. Jim Carrey is terrific as Scrooge (his performance is easily on par with Alastair Sim's) and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Yet to Come. And the visuals are beyond words--I saw it in 3D, but I imagine even the 2D presentation will have many jaws dropping. I especially loved the design of the Ghost of Christmas Past, a disembodied, floating candle. The film may be a bit too intense for less courageous children--it doesn't shy away from the scarier and sadder parts of the classic Dickens story--but the overwhelming joy of the final reel should calm them down and win them over. I was in tears.  I've always loved the story of Scrooge and his Christmas redemption and Zemeckis has given audiences a brilliant, faithful, and oft-stunning new version; a merry gift, indeeed. A_________________   1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
|
| Sat Nov 07, 2009 1:54 pm |
|
|
|
Goktor Who
Angels & Demons
Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 6:27 pm
Posts: 235
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Gunslinger wrote: I've always loved the story of Scrooge and his Christmas redemption and Zemeckis has given audiences a brilliant, faithful, and oft-stunning new version; a merry gift, indeeed. It was enormously faithful, and the film deserves much credit for that. Fezziwig's ball, for instance, was very similar to the one shown in the illustrations from the original edition of Dickens's novel (even down to the fiddler being on a sort of wooden podium and the design of Fezziwig himself). A lot (all?) of the dialogue was repeated verbatim from the source text, and fanciful details like the fiery Ghost of Christmas Past and his conical metal cap (based on a old-fashioned candle extinquisher) are all there in the original book. I'd have to re-read it to see what bits were innovations on the part of the film makers. I didn't like it quite as much as you  and thought it had a mixture of pros and cons. Full review to follow when I have time. I might even link to the original illustrations, if I can, since some of them really drive home the relationship with the source material.
|
| Sat Nov 07, 2009 8:30 pm |
|
|
|
MovieDude
Where will you be?
Joined: Tue Dec 21, 2004 4:50 am
Posts: 11675
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) . Due to mo-cap's strengths and weaknesses, the cinematography is jaw dropping (the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge on a 13 minute single take throughout his past that is certainly on par with Children of Men's 7 minute climactic one take set piece) and the production design exquisite. Zemeckis has come a long way on getting human faces right. It helps that here he's going for exaggerated features rather than photorealism. Still, the emotional arc of Scrooge rings less true than the majestic visual thrills.
This is A Christmas Carol: The Ride. Emotionally hollow but visually stunning, which to this Jew is a more honest depiction of Christmas than all that hooey about Christmas Day healing all familial wounds.
|
| Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:35 pm |
|
|
|
Magic Mike
Wallflower
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 4:53 am
Posts: 35245
Location: Minnesota
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) How is the 3D?
|
| Thu Nov 12, 2009 10:56 pm |
|
|
|
zingy
College Boy Z
Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 8:40 pm
Posts: 36662
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Pretty great. The 3D works here really well, especially with the snow throughout the film.
|
| Sun Nov 15, 2009 12:07 pm |
|
|
|
David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
Posts: 34865
Location: Maryland
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Mike wrote: How is the 3D? It's very nice. It's definitely more of the gives-the-image-incredible-depth variety (as opposed to the popping-out-of-the-screen-every-five-seconds variety), which may disappoint certain people, but I was enormously impressed. It helps the film is a visual treat anyway, with the ornate, shadowy rooms and snowy London streets. _________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
|
| Sun Nov 15, 2009 2:15 pm |
|
|
|
tina_als_girl
Cream of the Crop
Joined: Sun May 15, 2005 3:43 pm
Posts: 2252
Location: Wellsville, MO
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Personally, I prefer the "gives-the-image-incredibly-depth" 3D to the "popping-out-of-the-screen-every-five-seconds" 3D. For me, the whole idea of watching in 3D is to feel immersed; no need for making things come out at you all the time.
Joy
|
| Sun Nov 15, 2009 4:01 pm |
|
|
|
David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
Posts: 34865
Location: Maryland
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) tina_als_girl wrote: Personally, I prefer the "gives-the-image-incredibly-depth" 3D to the "popping-out-of-the-screen-every-five-seconds" 3D. For me, the whole idea of watching in 3D is to feel immersed; no need for making things come out at you all the time.
Joy Oh, I agree, but there are definitely people who are disappointed when they see a 3D presentation and it's not constant "pop-out" sight gags. _________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
|
| Mon Nov 16, 2009 12:33 am |
|
|
|
jmovies
Let's Call It A Bromance
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2007 7:22 pm
Posts: 12333
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Robert Zemeckis makes another wonderful hit with A Christmas Carol. The animation is wonderfully done (even in 2D which is what I saw it in) and the story is rich and doesn't lag one bit. Jim Carrey is nearly unerecgonizable once the animation has been added into the film and the performance he does is awesome. The story is a bit too dark for kids evenm with the PG rating but its one of the best Christmas films of the past few years. Can't wait for Robert's next. ***1/2
|
| Sat Nov 21, 2009 11:45 am |
|
|
|
Magic Mike
Wallflower
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 4:53 am
Posts: 35245
Location: Minnesota
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) I like that it's not really "pop out at you sight gags." I mean, those can be fun in a regular movie, but an animated one doesn't really need it. I plan on seeing this soon and am really excited about seeing the snow and such. I love snow and snowy settings. I'm hoping it will get me in the Christmas spirit.
|
| Tue Nov 24, 2009 8:02 pm |
|
|
|
Magic Mike
Wallflower
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 4:53 am
Posts: 35245
Location: Minnesota
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Fantastic 3D animation, but I just couldn't get into the movie at all. Maybe it's because I'm not big on animated movies to begin with. I still expected to enjoy this more, but I was kind of bored.
Grade: 5/10 ( C )
For comparison, I gave THE POLAR EXPRESS a B.
|
| Wed Dec 02, 2009 1:30 am |
|
|
|
_axiom
The Wall
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 10:50 am
Posts: 16163
Location: Croatia
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) 7/10 -> B-
A very faithful adaptation of Dickens' classic, maybe even a bit too faithful for its own good. It's an enjoyable movie, I always liked the story even if it has one of the sappiest happy ends ever. The animation is especially wonderful here.
|
| Thu Dec 17, 2009 11:47 am |
|
|
|
Johnny Dollar
The Lubitsch Touch
Joined: Thu Jul 21, 2005 5:48 pm
Posts: 11019
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Apparently Zemeckis felt that the major problems with previous adaptations of the story were
A) They weren't loud enough
and
B) They didn't feature any chase scenes
Well he sure fixed that!
It was shitty, and frequently embarassing...I'm looking at you, Ghost of Christmas Past!
_________________
k
|
| Fri Dec 18, 2009 2:59 am |
|
|
|
BK
Forum General
Joined: Sun May 13, 2007 8:30 am
Posts: 7041
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Eh. I didn't like Carrey's performance at all. It ruined the film for me.
I couldn't get into Scrooge with the voice sounding like an uneducated buffoon.
I don't know how faithful it was but the story just didn't connect with me at all. Were we supposed to feel merry after the change he's found? He just wanted to avoid death is the way it came out and that is not at all a happy ending or a lesson learned.
The animation was creepy and I enjoyed Polar Express 6 years ago. Pacing fell a little off, scenes felt forced, it just didn't work for me.
I must say Gary Oldman voicing Cratchit and his son was fantastic, two different voices of different age, wow.
Carrey did well when he wasn't playing the miserly protagonist/antagonist.
_________________
Calls
Ghost Rider + Clash of the Titans = 2x Wrath of the Titans + Ghost Rider 2
Lorax over Despicable Me
Men in Black 3 Under 100m
Madagascar 3 Under 100m
Rise of the Guardians over 250m
|
| Sun Aug 08, 2010 11:05 am |
|
|
|
Algren
now we know
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:31 pm
Posts: 68341
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) A Christmas Carol
I've just watched this as it's Christmas and all. Well, what a lovely film. It's almost perfection. Zemeckis is a true master. Jim Carrey should have won some awards for this if he didn't. He plays about 7 roles and all of them are fantastic. I laughed, I was in awe at the effects, I was into the story (even though I've seen it annually since childhood), I just adored it. This is how to make a Christmas movie, or any CGI movie aimed at kids, in fact.
Each ghost has its benefits. I enjoyed each one, and they were all brilliantly played by Carrey. Gary Oldman as well, he gives a wonderful performance as a few characters. Colin Firth is also memorable. It's the effects, and how they characterize the actors so well, it's simply amazing. Kids are so lucky today to get such spectacles for their imagination.
They created a 19th century London and I think that was wonderful to see. I only wish i saw it on the big screen. It would have been well worth the admission price.
A
_________________STOP UIGHUR GENOCIDE IN XINJIANG
FIGHT FOR TAIWAN INDEPENDENCE
FREE TIBET
LIBERATE HONG KONG
BOYCOTT MADE IN CHINA
|
| Wed Dec 26, 2012 5:21 am |
|
|
|
nghtvsn
Extraordinary
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2005 7:13 pm
Posts: 11016
Location: Warren Theatre Oklahoma
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) I was watching this on the disney channel the 24th and I thought it was pretty good. The effects were cool except for maybe Christmas Present. I thought Carey was good as well.
_________________
2009 World of KJ Fantasy Football World Champion
Team MVP : Peyton Manning : Record 11-5 : Points 2669.00
[b]FREE KORRGAN
45TH PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.A. DONALD J. TRUMP
#MAGA #KAG!
10,000 post achieved on - Posted: Wed May 16, 2018 7:49 pm
|
| Thu Dec 27, 2012 12:21 am |
|
|
|
Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) B
I drove for almost an hour today to catch a showing of this. I have seen it back when it was released in 2009 and left with mixed feelings and for some random reason I really wanted to see it again on the big screen. The story doesn't pack as much of an emotional punch as it should and as far as Zemeckis' mo-cap-films go, this ranks below The Polar Express and Beowulf to me. That being said, I forgot how utterly stunning the visuals and the 3D were. The tracking scene through London at the beginning of the film is simply amazing.
_________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
|
| Wed Dec 24, 2014 1:32 pm |
|
|
|
David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
Posts: 34865
Location: Maryland
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) I still love it. Might, in fact, be my favorite Zemeckis film. So magical and well-realized.
_________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
|
| Wed Dec 24, 2014 3:27 pm |
|
|
|
Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Better than Back to the Future or Who framed Roger Rabbit? C'mon.
_________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
|
| Wed Dec 24, 2014 3:28 pm |
|
|
|
David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
Posts: 34865
Location: Maryland
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) My second favorite is neither of those, but Cast Away.
_________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
|
| Wed Dec 24, 2014 3:50 pm |
|
|
|
Steve
Indiana Jones IV
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 12:09 pm
Posts: 1890
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) Dr. Lecter wrote: Better than Back to the Future or Who framed Roger Rabbit? C'mon. Contact! I've never seen his Christmas Carol (sorry review thread) and never will, these movies creep me out. N (for naught gonna see it)
_________________
how am I not myself?
|
| Wed Dec 24, 2014 6:35 pm |
|
|
|
stuffp
Keeping it Light
Joined: Wed Apr 08, 2015 8:06 am
Posts: 11627
Location: Bright Falls
|
Re: A Christmas Carol (2009) I'm generally not really into Christmas (films), and only watched it just now. It's good, a classic story that's well adapted with this cgi-animated version. A very good role from Carrey, the cast in general is nice too. Zemeckis simply has a knack for delivering quality films.
B
|
| Sun Jan 02, 2022 12:05 am |
|
|
