A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story
Published December 15, 2024
Film info
- Title A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story
- Director Adam Penford
- Year 2022
- Run time 1hr 44m
- Genres Drama, Fantasy
- Tagline Charles Dickens' classic winter ghost story
It’s a cold Christmas Eve and mean-spirited miser Ebenezer Scrooge has an unexpected visit from the spirit of his former business partner Jacob Marley. Bound in chains as punishment for a lifetime of greed, the unearthly figure explains it isn’t too late for Scrooge to change his miserly ways in order to escape the same fate, but first, he’ll have to face three more eerie encounters. Filmed at the Alexander Palace Theatre, London.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 2:03 | “Goodnight Mr Scrooge, Mr Marley, a Merry…” long pause. |
| 3:04 | Never seen this early in Scrooge’s life, it’s like origin story time. |
| 6:43 | Nicholas Farrell is great, a good casting choice here. |
| 8:46 | Yay, shouting Good Afternoon as an insult! |
| 15:39 | “Until I don’t know what o’clock.” Love that as a phrase. |
| 19:43 | Does it say Stage Door? That’s weird. |
| 26:41 | The ghosts look good, simple but effective. |
| 34:08 | Mark Gatiss is earning his money today. Three characters and counting. |
| 40:21 | “Business don’t take a holiday.” Grammar does though, it seems. |
| 1:01:32 | Always love Fred, he’s such a joyous and amiable thing. |
| 1:06:31 | Puppetry on stage is always mixed but those creepy ghost ones are great. |
| 1:10:42 | Great costume and character work to have so few playing so many. |
| 1:15:53 | They celebrate without knowing the next creditor… I’d be nervous. |
| 1:22:39 | I do like that he doesn’t get an answer to whether it’s set in stone or not but still resolves to change. |
| 1:32:22 | People can change, of course, but to turn on a sixpence like that, overnight, must be very unsettling for those around him. |
| 1:40:45 | Excellent twist! |
Thoughts
I really liked this, it was very faithful to the text and had a great spooky vibe all the way through, without going too far with it. The acting was great and some of the more emotional moments were really very moving. The actors playing the ghosts were great and as noted above Nicholas Farrell really captured the essence of Scrooge and portrayed him perfectly. The only detraction for me was that, whilst I’m used to actors playing multiple parts no problem, the ghosts were so iconic that seeing them in other roles was unsettling and distracting. But otherwise, a great performance.
Rating: 4 / 5
