This motion-capture animated adaptation is a real Christmas cracker.
Comment
11/05/09
Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009)
55
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:148
Fresh:81
Rotten:67
Average Rating:5.9/10
Consensus: Robert Zemeckis' 3-D animated take on the Dickens classic tries hard, but its dazzling special effects distract from an array of fine performances from Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman.
Genre: Childrens
US Box Office: $30,051,075
Synopsis: Director Robert Zemeckis (THE POLAR EXPRESS) continues to work his holiday magic with A CHRISTMAS CAROL. This 3-D adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic will use the motion capture technology... [More]
Starring: Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Reviews for Disney's A Christmas Carol
Top CriticEnough elements of Dickens's story remain for a viewer to be refreshed by Scrooge's change of heart, and to be moved by his rediscovery of the Christmas spirit that climaxes the story.
11/05/09
Top CriticAgainst the odds, this Disney version, written and directed by Robert Zemeckis, could be the best adaptation to date of the story.
11/04/09
Top CriticEven as [Zemeckis] uses the 3D process to turn A Christmas Carol into a rollercoaster ride through a solidly built fantasy world, he never forgets that at bottom the tale is an awful warning about how egoism and greed can destroy your humanity.
11/04/09
Top CriticThere are nightmarish images, ghostly themes and a feeling that it might be a bit much for kids, but it's a touching film with visuals that will blow your mind. It's a trip.
11/03/09
Top CriticConceptually brilliant with mind-blowing special effects, but who is the intended audience of this visual extravaganza? Certainly not children: the content is far too dark with haunting imagery that could provoke nightmares for impressionable youngsters
11/02/09
Top CriticThe biggest surprise... is that it isn't absolutely dreadful. Perfectly pointless, maybe, but not dreadful.
11/09/09
The 3-D motion-capture version runs through the motions, except for one detail: It's visually beautiful.
11/09/09
'My next project is to motion capture some hair and comb it over my 3D scalp,' said Zemeckis.
11/08/09
Robert Zemeckis seeks to answer the one question still remaining about the Dickens classic: What would the story look like if it were cast with figures from Madame Tussauds?
11/08/09
Those who enjoy virtual roller-coaster rides and long falls from high places are encouraged to attend.
11/08/09
As a dedicated fan of Charles Dickens' works, I also am a dedicated fan of several versions of his classic "A Christmas Carol."
11/07/09
Hold onto your mug of warm apple cider. This newest, action-packed version of A Christmas Carol could get a little bumpy.
11/07/09
An exquisitely crafted visual experience.
11/07/09
Seeming spawned from some ghoulish dream I felt nothing warm or symbolic of a tradition from this film.
11/07/09
Are the less than perfectly executed bits supposed to set off the truly terrific ones, or are the truly terrific ones supposed to distract the viewing audience from the bits that go clunk in the night?
11/07/09
...we never experience that moment when Scrooge's heart melts. He seems already changed the moment Marley leaves him.
11/07/09
Yes %u2014 I am giving A Christmas Carol a high rating. It is technical perfection and brilliantly done. However, it is too much Zemeckis, too much Carrey. Not enough Dickens.
11/07/09
Writer-director Robert Zemeckis follows Charles Dickens' 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, so closely that he even makes the same error the author made with the first edition of the book.
11/06/09
You don't need glasses -- 3-D or otherwise -- to see that this holiday release is too diluted for adults, too frightening for children, and too tiresome for just about everybody.
11/06/09
Latest News for Disney's A Christmas Carol
November 08, 2009:
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Christmas Carol Tops, Precious Rocks
This weekend Moviegoers powered Jim Carrey's holiday kidpic A Christmas Carol to a number one opening but some fans remained stingy preventing the Disney 3D toon from meeting... More...
November 05, 2009:
Critics Consensus: A Christmas Carol Dazzles But Disappoints
This week at the movies, we've got some modern-day Dickens (Disney's A Christmas Carol, starring Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman); a button-pushing thriller (The Box, starring... More...
November 04, 2009:
Ho-ho-horror! 10 Scary Christmas Movies
This week's eerie mo-cap rendering of the ghostly, dark Dickens morality tale 'A Christmas Carol' from director Robert Zemeckis is far from being the only yuletide movie where... More...
October 26, 2009:
Disney Goes All Out for A Christmas Carol 
You'd think having Jim Carrey, Robert Zemeckis, and several million dollars' worth of mo-cap eye candy would sell itself, but Disney isn't taking any chances with its new... More...
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