One of the earliest cinematic adaptations of Charles Dickens’ immortal classic, MGM’s 1938 A Christmas Carol has all the magic of the season. Reginald Owen is cast as Scrooge and does and extraordinary job, really conveying the change that the character goes through. The actor who plays Tiny Tim, on the other hand, is dreadful; poisoning every scene he’s in (which are mercifully few). The special effects and costumes are well-done, especially for the ghosts; which have an ethereal quality to them. Also, the film does a good job at streamlining the plot to meet its rather short runtime (just over an hour). A Christmas Carol may not be a perfect adaptation, but it captures spirit of the novel exceptionally.
This is one of the best versions.
Shout by Jim222001VIP 6BlockedParent2020-12-22T23:39:44Z— updated 2020-12-28T16:37:46Z
Improvises here and there and it works. I never realized how funny some of the changes are. Like Cratchit’s wife hiding in the closet from Scrooge. Or her thinking the kids were in danger from Scrooge in the end.
The Cratchit family ate a little too good on Christmas in this version though. Scrooge fired Bob and even took some of his earnings for a new hat. Yet, he happily can afford a feast for his family.