Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Albert K

  
  "A Christmas Carol". When I was little, I remember watching the rehash of the classic story, Muppets style. Wow, freaking hated it. For someone that doesn't follow up with traditional stories very well, "A Christmas Carol" was a surprising and delightful view… More
  "A Christmas Carol". When I was little, I remember watching the rehash of the classic story, Muppets style. Wow, freaking hated it. For someone that doesn't follow up with traditional stories very well, "A Christmas Carol" was a surprising and delightful view on the Christian faith through secular eyes. This ain't a movie for kids; I'd be scared to death by some of these scenes if I were young. The animation: Top-notch. The script: Sharp and fitting. It's not the overall package that had me convinced -- it was the message behind the movie. Good and entertaining time, but just don't think kids will enjoy this for its dialogue and character-driven.

• Directors C

  
  The long awaited disney re-telling of the Dickens Classic is as dark as it is thrilling. The CGI graphics and performances are as good in equal measure in this very favourable modern disney film.

• Michael E

  
  Overall, this is probably one of the most beautifully creepy and interesting Christmas films of all time, and one of the best renditions of the story ever told. Though people have disliked the film and it wasn't completely loved by Critics, I rather enjoy the film, and I think… More
  Overall, this is probably one of the most beautifully creepy and interesting Christmas films of all time, and one of the best renditions of the story ever told. Though people have disliked the film and it wasn't completely loved by Critics, I rather enjoy the film, and I think its a perfect film to watch at this time of year. Though it isn't a film I would show to someone below 13! Its good to show to adults and people who enjoy the book and others who love Zemeckis animated films

• Spencer S

  
  People are far too nice to this retelling of A Christmas Carol, originally penned by Charles Dickens. There are two main reasons I find this film disheartening. The first is the animation. Every time I try to speak about my grievances with this film and I cut to how awful I found the… More
  People are far too nice to this retelling of A Christmas Carol, originally penned by Charles Dickens. There are two main reasons I find this film disheartening. The first is the animation. Every time I try to speak about my grievances with this film and I cut to how awful I found the animation people cringe and tell me it's a newer technology, and that the acting was superb because of the choices they made with the styling of this film. Then I stare at them plainly and say, "Humbug!" It almost makes me uncomfortable when I watch this because even though it was all done by actors, there are some sections that are unrealistic such as the dancing scenes, when the children play, and any event that has characters moving about in ways that were obviously added for effect. If they had made the whole film completely animated that would have come through better. Although this irks me, I truly enjoyed the acting, and the amazing effects, which would probably have been better in 3D, but were still interesting. At times I was actually scared by aspects of this film, with all the ghouls, ghosts, rats, and other supernatural oddities. That's a part of the second problem I have with this film: it's so obviously not a kid's film. It has the animation of a kid's film, Jim Carrey is there for the enjoyment of children, and it was made by Disney, the holy roller of kiddie entertainment, but this is not for kids. The scenes with the terrifying spectors would have wet the pants of some children, possibly scarring them forever, much like Pinocchio did for me when I was a youngling. Carrey doesn't try too hard to be a merry fool and lead kids on in thinking that he's going to be a frivolous like in The Grinch until the very end, when he uses light humor and physically comedy. I enjoyed this as a whole because it was imaginative, scary, thoughtful, and used great dialogue adapted from the actual book. The acting was spectacular and though my favorite adaptation is the Mickey Mouse version, I really liked the way Disney handled some of this.

• Melvin W

  
  Ebenezer Scrooge: If I could work my will, every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart!  "What if you had but a single night to get your life right?"… More
  Ebenezer Scrooge: If I could work my will, every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart!  "What if you had but a single night to get your life right?" After Robert Zemeckis' first Christmas motion capture animation, Polar Express; he would go on to one up it with A Christmas Carol. Polar Express was great, and this is magnificent. Zemeckis' film is easily my favorite adaption of Charles Dickens that I have seen. The film looks amazing and is the most entertaining adaption you could see. It's dark just like it should be because Scrooge is a dark character.  As fun as the film is, what really sets it apart is the visuals. They are amazing. Zemeckis isn't afraid to show them off either. Over the credits we fly around the city, look in windows and hover above buildings. During the film, we fly with Scrooge through doors and up to the moon. Everything looks top notch, from the characters to the buildings to the clothing. I just don't think it could look any better. The acting is also very good. Jim Carey and Gary Oldman take on the majority of the roles and they both sound great and also look the part very well. Carey moves from one Christmas downer(Grinch) to the other(Scrooge) like he was born to play the Christmas hater. Gary Oldman plays Bob Crachit and Tiny Tim, but he also plays the spirit of Marley. In just this film, he shows off his amazing range as an actor, that has been shown frequently in a career filled with performances ranging from Dracula to Harvey Dent.  Those who dislike this are sure to look at it as too over the top for their liking. It is over the top, with the voice of Jim Carey and endless flight scenes. If you've seen the Polar Express, but not this, think of the train roller coaster scene. It's like that, but it occurs much more often. I for one, really enjoyed the over the top way in which the story was presented. I had a lot of fun watching a shrunken Scrooge skating on an icicle while sliding down a building. I liked listening to Carey over do most of his dialogue, which actually fits in this performance. A Christmas Carol has become one of my favorite Christmas films, possibly only behind It's a Wonderful Life. This has definitely become mandatory Christmas viewing. It is a visual masterpiece  and just a stunning piece of filmmaking period. Ebenezer Scrooge: I'm light as a feather! Merry as a schoolboy! 

• Randy T

  
  Traditional and reverent to the spirit Dickens intended.

• KJ P

  
  "Disney's A Christmas Carol" is definitely not meant for kids, but that is the main reason why it was made, for a family to cuddle around a fireplace and watch a nice christmas movie with their families. This may have a great story hidden somewhere, but it chooses far… More
  "Disney's A Christmas Carol" is definitely not meant for kids, but that is the main reason why it was made, for a family to cuddle around a fireplace and watch a nice christmas movie with their families. This may have a great story hidden somewhere, but it chooses far too many boring plot points of the classic tale to focus on, and I almost fell asleep a few times during my viewing. Jim Carrey's performance as Ebenezer Scrooge is great, as is all his christmas roles, but the fact that it will not interest kids and that some images even freaked me out, is definitely not a good outcome. Disney needs to stay out of christmas movies and focus on what they know how to do best. I am not sure why they chose to make such a dark and odd film for kids, but as we follow scrooge through his progressively worse past, we begin to feel for the character and hope it all works out for him. The story is told pretty well, there is no doubt about that, but it's been done too many time and this time is far to boring to keep me interested. Will I ever watch it again? Maybe, but it will not be with my family, when they are looking for a great family christmas movie. This was a big disappointment in my opinion!

• Brad W

  
  A Christmas Carol is probably my favorite retelling of the story ever, and this is because that I always wanted it to be the perfect animated film. The story is great, they retell it almost perfectly and I was never bored. The animation was perfection, they use technology that just… More
  A Christmas Carol is probably my favorite retelling of the story ever, and this is because that I always wanted it to be the perfect animated film. The story is great, they retell it almost perfectly and I was never bored. The animation was perfection, they use technology that just makes it so much better. A Christmas Carol is one of the best christmas films ever made, Robert Zemeckis, you never dissappoint.

• Unknown H

  
  How many remakes of Dickens' book have we had to endure now? In my personal opinion (which is what these reviews are supposedly about) I have never seen a movie adaptation of the book (with the exception of The Muppets A Christmas Carol) that has managed to capture an ounce of… More
  How many remakes of Dickens' book have we had to endure now? In my personal opinion (which is what these reviews are supposedly about) I have never seen a movie adaptation of the book (with the exception of The Muppets A Christmas Carol) that has managed to capture an ounce of the raw emotive power of the original text and this washout was no different. Tiring.

• Chris W

  
  With a story as well known and adapted as this one, after a while, with each new version, it simply comes down to how each new take differs from the rest in form, content, and presentation, ie what sets it apart from the rest and makes it worthwhile of existence. In the case of this… More
  With a story as well known and adapted as this one, after a while, with each new version, it simply comes down to how each new take differs from the rest in form, content, and presentation, ie what sets it apart from the rest and makes it worthwhile of existence. In the case of this version (the latest but not last), what we get is the basic story, told quite faithfully (save for a few moments here and there) but done in the computer animated motion capture style that has become the trend of the msot recent films from director Robert Zemeckis. It was also presented in 3D, but I saw it in conventional 2D. Despite seeing it that way, I could tell that some parts would have been pretty effective with the added dimension. This is a terrific looking film, and the animation is very fluid and pretty realistic. It's got a great cast, and, even thoguh they all do a really good job, this film is undeniably carried by Jim Carrey as Scrooge. He has his moments of "typical Jim Carrey" but for the most part he plays it straight and does a good job. As stated above, the film does follow the book pretty closely and faithfully, but moments of departure (Scrooge shrinking for example) are fun and thankfully don't diminish the original work much if at all. Unlike some adaptations, this one thankfully doesn't take a proverbial whiz all over the grave of the original author. The way this film is shot is well done, and the technology is really something, but I'm getting a bit tired of it, especially with it being used so frequently as of late by Zemeckis. I think it's time for him to move on before this overstays its welcome and stops working for him. It's been said that if you've seen one type or variation of something, then you've seen them all. While that does apply to an extent here, this is still pretty entertaining, and has a great sense of atmosphere. It's maybe too intense for really small kids, but I think this will be a good (mostly) family friendly version of a classic story about the true meaning of Christmas.

• Sergio G

  
  Ok. Call me a sentimetalist, but I love this classic movie. It doesn't matter how many times Hollywood bring it again and again. Before this movie I still had ranked teh George C. Scott version as the best adaptation. Is great. But computers has made everything so fantastic and… More
  Ok. Call me a sentimetalist, but I love this classic movie. It doesn't matter how many times Hollywood bring it again and again. Before this movie I still had ranked teh George C. Scott version as the best adaptation. Is great. But computers has made everything so fantastic and impressive that blows out your mind. Great work of Jim Carrey. This is 3D quality.

• Conner R

  
  Robert Zemeckis has certainly created the single greatest interpretation of A Christmas Carol. When you consider how many there have been, that's quite an achievement. A lot of the praise should be owed to Jim Carrey, who gives a Tour-de-force as Scrooge. No one has ever played… More
  Robert Zemeckis has certainly created the single greatest interpretation of A Christmas Carol. When you consider how many there have been, that's quite an achievement. A lot of the praise should be owed to Jim Carrey, who gives a Tour-de-force as Scrooge. No one has ever played the part even close to his degree of kookiness and brilliance. Motion capture has only made his rubberface even more useful and given his humor more power. Now we all know the story, but it's the execution that's really great here. This manages to give all those jokes, touching moments and morality lessons new meaning. I've never seen the story as a visual extravaganza, but Robert Zemeckis did it flawlessly. I'm not saying this is the end all, say all of holiday movies, but it's a true classic in every way.

• Cynthia S

  
  This was probably the darkest version of "A Christmas Carol" that I have ever seen. I know the story always has ghosts, so it's always a little dark, but for an animated movie, it wasn't as kid-friendly as I expected. I was expecting it to be funny, since Jim Carey… More
  This was probably the darkest version of "A Christmas Carol" that I have ever seen. I know the story always has ghosts, so it's always a little dark, but for an animated movie, it wasn't as kid-friendly as I expected. I was expecting it to be funny, since Jim Carey is in it. It was still a pretty good movie, but parents should know that it's probably a little too creepy/scary for toddlers. Wait until your kids are school-age to let them watch it, or watch it yourself first to judge for yourself if it would scare them.

• Derek D

  
  Disney's CGI retelling of the Dicken's classic starring the voices of Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman. I like how some of the characters actually did look like their feal-life counterparts, but the film itself was a bit too dark and sometimes scary to truly be a kids movie. Film… More
  Disney's CGI retelling of the Dicken's classic starring the voices of Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman. I like how some of the characters actually did look like their feal-life counterparts, but the film itself was a bit too dark and sometimes scary to truly be a kids movie. Film adaptions of this story seemingly number somewhere in the thousands and there's nothing that makes this one stand out from the rest of them than the slickness.

• Gordon A

  
  Thinly veiled amusement ride dressed up as a film. Curious mixture of child pleasing 3D thrills and spills and authentic Dickens dialogue they won't understand (presumably meant to appeal to their parents inbetween the endless chase sequences).

• Carlos M

  
  As for adapting a classic story that has been told so many times, this is an impressively well-done motion capture animation with a very fine performance by Jim Carrey. Even so, it would have been a lot better if Zemeckis had left out some of the annoying rollercoaster ride moments.

• Alexis N

  
  there are some really scary parts, not for kids under 10 or for the under 10 trapped in the body of a 20 something year old girl!

• Phil H

  
  I'm wondering why Zemeckis is so interested in these fully motion captured cgi films, first we had the awful 'Polar Express' then 'Beowulf' which was slightly better and now this, another version of Dickens Christmas ghostie story, I guess you gotta expect new… More
  I'm wondering why Zemeckis is so interested in these fully motion captured cgi films, first we had the awful 'Polar Express' then 'Beowulf' which was slightly better and now this, another version of Dickens Christmas ghostie story, I guess you gotta expect new versions every other year or so 'sigh'. I have heard this looks great in 3D, I have not seen it in 3D so I can't comment, as for 2D its good but nothing special, the voices in use are a good selection, Hoskins is of course perfect as is Oldman, Elwes and Penn I'm not so sure about where as Carrey is actually not bad, but not great either. The creators deemed it wise to make the characters appear like the stars so unfortunately we have Scrooge looking like an aged Carrey haha which kinda makes it feel like a stupid Carrey film, luckily Carrey does perform sensibly. It looks nice, very sharp and crisp but the motion capture cgi is still horrible and spooky to be honest, it would have looked so much nicer with 'regular' cgi characters. Its also quite scary in places for kids with afew jumpy moments which actually added to the atmosphere nicely but not good for the very young. A nice tale looking very rich and glossy but its also kinda dull and boring as we all know the story backwards by now, the best version for me is still The Muppet Christmas Carol :)

• Dead A

  
  Not that bad.

• Candy R

  
  This is brilliant in 3d. Charles Dicken's novel tells of Scrooge who only cares about money. He is haunted by ghosts of his past, present and future. Voiced by Jim Carrey. Some of the ghosts might be too scarey for young children.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings