Christmas movies aren't a must-do thing for me. Still, every year we see a number of them. Elf (2003) and White Christmas (1954) are my wife's favorites (I like them too) and always take priority. I'm a big fan of It's a Wonderful Life (1946), though we don't watch it annually. We've done Die Hard (1988) on Christmas Eve a bunch of years in a row now, which started as a joke but is becoming a fun tradition. (I know Die Hard isn't actually a Christmas movie, it just takes place on Christmas Eve. Fwiw it actually released in July.)
As with all things movies, it's fun to always be on the lookout for more. And I may have a new Christmas favorite: the Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) which I saw for the first time recently. Besides Sesame Street as a kid, I've never really been into the Muppets and I'm only now realizing the error. So far I've only watched two of their movies, the original Muppet Movie (1979) and now the adapted Christmas Carol. After loving both, I'll be watching more and appreciate that all are on Disney+. Movin' right along.
A Christmas Carol is a special story. A classic from Charles Dickens, its messages are timeless. Though we're well beyond dismal early 19th century England (beginning of the Victorian era), today Christmas is still about being with loved ones and generosity to the people around you. Or it should be anyway. What makes the story so effective is the idea it's never too late or too steep a climb to change your course and gain redemption. Dickens novella was influential in the prominence of the Christmas holiday and the way we celebrate it, and so it endures.
There's a little bit of extra significance to me. In elementary school, the best teacher of my formative years selected me to play Scrooge in a class production. I doubt I was all that great an actor, but I remember enjoying doing it and I've loved the story ever since. She gave me a nice edition of the book and signed it as well. I've held onto it to this day and should read it more often. Maybe that can become a new tradition as our kids get older.
For the most part, the movie adaptations haven't impressed me. And there are quite a few. According to my bookkeeping on IMDB, I've seen the ones starring Seymour Hicks (1935), Alastair Sim (1951), Albert Finney (1970), and George C Scott (1984). Of these more straight-forward versions I'm pretty sure I liked the one with Finney the most, probably because it was a musical. It's been others with more creative, and comedic, ways of re-telling that have worked the best. First with Bill Murray in Scrooged (1988), a must see if you haven't already. Now with the Muppets.
The Muppets take is so good, blending their typical humor with a still heartfelt and genuinely joyful telling of the tale. It starts out darker than I expected. Michael Caine (he's come up a lot lately), who throughout plays everything perfectly straight, is especially grim even for the Scrooge character. As he meets the Marleys and the ghosts he grows and transforms in spectacular fashion. The mixture of human and Muppet characters, the music and conversation, humor and seriousness, is perfectly balanced (as all things should be). Even though there's slapstick, sarcastic deadpan and other bits, it's still emotional and hits on everything that the Christmas Carol should. I loved it. Plus the original songs are great.
Yeah, it's definitely the new favorite and one I already want to rewatch. You should see it too.
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