A Christmas Carol

The wretched life of a disagreeable old man is forever altered one haunted Christmas Eve...

Charles Dickens' wonderful Yuletide story, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, is given the full MGM deluxe treatment in this superior Holiday film. The production values & acting are both excellent, with just enough sentiment to appeal to the tenderhearted, and with liberal doses of horror & hilarity stirred into the mix, until, like a fine Christmas punch, the result appeals to all.

The film's rather short running time keeps the action moving along briskly, with one famous & beloved episode after another coming alive before the viewer's eyes.

Reginald Owen, in his best film role, is perfect as the grasping, clutching, tightfisted, covetous old sinner, Ebenezer Scrooge. Replacing the ailing - and highly respected - Lionel Barrymore, Owen makes the part his own, revealing the old miser's misery & heartache, making the part thoroughly human. When he rejoices in his spiritual regeneration at the climax, so do we.

The roles of Bob Cratchit, Scrooge's amiable clerk & Fred, Scrooge's friendly nephew, are both fleshed out more fully than in other versions. The acting skills of Gene Lockhart & Barry MacKay turn them into something very memorable.

Special mention should also be made of Leo G. Carroll as Marley's morose Ghost; Lionel Braham as an impressively jolly Ghost of Christmas Present; and Kathleen Lockhart & Terry Kilburn as Mrs. Cratchit & Tiny Tim. All add fine brushstrokes to the overall picture.

Movie mavens will recognize Billy Bevan as an officer of the Watch; Forrester Harvey as an ebullient Fezziwig; Halliwell Hobbes as a jolly Vicar; and young June Lockhart, in her film debut, as Belinda Cratchit - all uncredited.

There's just something about this one that, while not close to being the most faithful it nonetheless remains my favorite of all the many film versions of Dicken's Christmas Carol.

I guess it's those old classic MGM production values. It's Gene Lockhart's sometimes cowed, sometimes impish, sometimes heroic & joy-filled Bob Cratchett.

And it's definitely the way Reginald Owen turns Scrooge around far earlier than the other productions. I get so tired of seeing that rotten old Scrooge stay rotten until ten minutes before the film ends, when, poof, he sees the light & is miraculously transformed form the meanest man in the world to the nicest. Here, Owen's Scrooge begins to turn fairly quick, and I enjoy that - it really makes him so much easier to root for.

Every time I see it I'm reminded about how marvelous & truly important Franz Waxman's score is to this version. It's delightfully bouncy & upbeat when it's called for & dark forboding during the grim scenes. It's wonderful; dead-on perfect.

For me, it's far and away the most entertaining version. Sit back for its brief 69 minutes, watch and enjoy.

How refreshing to see Reginald Owen as star of a movie. So what if he was the last minute replacement for Lionel Barrymore. I have read earlier comments for this movie, and I will give you my take.

I first saw Reginald Owen in "Mary Poppins", playing Admiral Boom, a character whom I thought was insanely crazy. I realized, many years later, that Owen was a very intelligent actor who had carried many a movie, mostly in character settings. Indeed, in "Poppins", Owen played along with all the craziness in the story.

In "A Christmas Carol", Owen plays Ebenezer Scrooge, essaying the lead part well. How refreshing, indeed. As an acting student, I noticed how Scrooge's forehead "old-age makeup" resembled that of what I was taught last summer in a theatre stage makeup class at The Ohio State University. There is that liquid latex (that has dried, of course) with just enough wrinkle to make his face give the hint of elderliness, whereas in real life Owen was only 51 years old.

As for Lionel Barrymore, I glean from my studies of the Barrymores that if they had made enough money on the stage they would never have "gone Hollywood", like they did. I think they had long ago sold out to the moneyed establishment. Definitely a lucky break for Reginald Owen, who for most of his career played the-glue character parts or second leads. Admiral Boom is certainly "an aside" in Mary Poppins.

In "A Christmas Carol", I noticed that "Tiny Tim" was played by the boy who played "Colley" in "Goodbye, Mr. Chips". So what if the actor was too old. He conveyed the spirit of the story. He was a good actor.

The Lockharts were great, especially Gene as Bob Cratchit. Lockhart also played the double roles of The Starkeeper and The Graduation Speaker in "Carousel", as an older man, and certainly always a rotund one. Indeed, it was other actors supporting Reginald Owen this time, not the other way 'round.

The Ghost of Christmas Present was well made up and costumed. I liked his hair and beautiful robes -- the robes reminded me of the fur-trimmed outfits of modern Santa Clauses. He did a good job showing Ebenezer Scrooge the error of his ways.

All, it was a heartwarming story about how a wretchedly selfish individual gets shown the error of his ways, and is given a chance to right his self-centered existence. A charming holiday season movie to watch.

More that sixty years after it was made, MGM's 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol" still ranks as one of the best adaptations of the Dickens classic ever.

First, there's that terrific cast. Lionel Barrymore was to have played Ebeneezer Scrooge, when the accident that confined him to a wheelchair prevented it. Reginald Owen, whose career in US films alone spanned more than 40 years, was given the part, and, if not as vivid a Scrooge as Alistair Sim, he is more than up to the task. Terry Kilburn (The little boy who said "Goodbye, Mr. Chips!" the following year) goes perhaps a bit overboard with the cute stuff as Tiny Tim, but at least he tries. Gene and Kathleen Lockhart (And daughter June, making her film debut at 12) make as good a pair of Cratchits as you will ever see, with Gene Lockhart underplaying more than was usually his wont. Barry McKay and Lynne Carver (The latter perhaps best remembered as "Dr. Kildare's" girlfriend during the '40's) add just the right spirit as Scrooge's nephew, Fred, and his fiancee, respectively. And, speaking of spirits, there's Leo G. Carroll as probably the out-and-out spookiest Marley's Ghost there ever was, and Ann Rutherford (That's Polly Benedict to you "Andy Hardy" fans!) as probably the loveliest Ghost of Christmas Past.

Atmospherically, the movie is as comfortable and heartwarming as an old Christmas card. As a director, Edwin L. Marin was, frankly, a hack, and, as such, usually handed a lot of forgettable "B" properties at MGM. With "Christmas Carol," though, he redeems himself. One wonders, though, if executive producer Joseph L. Manckiewicz wasn't responsible for at least some of the directing chores, as well. Hugo Butler's screenplay captures the feel of it all perfectly, and Franz Waxman's score is one of his best.

A rare treat all around. Don't miss it. But do not, under any circumstances, see the colorized version. The black-and-white play of light and shadow in this film is essential to its' atmosphere.

Incidentally, there's a substantial article, including an interview with June Lockhart, on this film in the book "AMC Presents the Great Christmas Movies."

In the Nineteenth Century, in London, the bitter, greedy and cranky Ebenezer Scrooge (Reginald Owen) hates Christmas and people. He runs his business exploiting his employee Bob Cratchit (Gene Lockhart) and spends unfriendly treatment to his nephew Fred (Barry MacKay) and acquaintances.

In the Christmas Eve, he is visited by the doomed chained ghost of his former partner Jacob Marley (Leo G. Carroll), who died seven years ago and tells him that three spirits would visit him that night. The first one, the spirit of past Christmas, recalls his happy childhood and coming of age; the spirit of the present Christmas shows him the poor situation of Bob's family and the happiness of Fred and his fiancée Bessy; and the spirit of future Christmas shows his fate. Scrooge finds that life is good and finds redemption changing thoughts about Christmas, Bob, tiny Tim, his nephew and people in general.

"A Christmas Carol" is one of the most beautiful Christmas tales in the cinema. I do not recall how many adaptations of one of the most known Charles Dickens' short story I have seen but this 1938 is also wonderful. I do not have much more to say but recommend this magnificent family entertainment. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Um Conto de Natal" ("A Christmas Tale")