A Christmas Carol (2009)
Hollywood director Robert Zemeckis gives ye olde worlde England a spit and polish in this CGI 3D version of Dickens' classic tale
Adaptations of 'A Christmas Carol' are only as good as their Scrooge. Alas, Jim Carrey, as the voice of Ebenezer Not-So-Good (plus visiting ghosts), never shines as brightly as the CGI streets of London and that means we're left with a rather characterless adaptation. On the upside, director Robert Zemeckis shows some restraint with the latest motion capture technology, using it as a reference rather than a blueprint and avoiding that horrific embalming effect on his actors which made The Polar Express so uncomfortable to watch. However, the addition of 3D is over-egging the pudding, because aside from a few drifting snowflakes, it doesn't draw you into the story. Jim Carrey is unrecognisable as Scrooge. He affects a good English accent and brings the right amount of crotchety quiver, but he also seems stifled by the formality. Zemeckis might have saved a lot of money and achieved the same result (or an even better one) by employing a member of the RSC. The look of Scrooge is vaguely reminiscent of the latex mask Carrey wore to play Lemony Snicket, but there is little else to identify with. He does get a few chuckles though, including a neat opening scene where Scrooge filches the coins from the eyes of his dead business partner Jacob Marley. Gary Oldman is suitably creepy in that role, returning in the form of a ghost to warn Scrooge that he must change his miserly ways. Oldman adopts a reedier tone to play Scrooge's underpaid clerk Bob Cratchit and his facial features are prominent with that character, though he does end up looking more like Eddie Marsan. Cratchit is, of course, a family man whose youngest son Tiny Tim may not live to see another Christmas. On the eve, Scrooge grudgingly gives him permission to take the day off and retires to his own dilapidated mansion where, he realises, he is not alone. Marley does his scary bit (though Zemeckis can't resist popping the tension with slapstick humour) before Scrooge is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past (also Carrey). As in Dickens' book, he takes the shape of a flaming candle to show Scrooge the shadows of his gloomy childhood. Zemeckis also takes this opportunity to throw in a rooftop flying sequence ? la The Snowman and yet (perhaps because it was an afterthought) he fails to exploit the 3D effect. The Ghost of Christmas Present is a much jollier fellow (Carrey yet again) though he puts Scrooge on a downer by revealing the extent of Tiny Tim's illness. It is the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come (a silent, hooded reaper) that puts the fear of God into the old man when he reveals that Tim is not the only one who mightn't live to see the New Year. Zemeckis tries to liven up this desperately dark situation with a good old-fashioned horse-and-cart chase and that actually serves to slow the story down. Except for a few Hollywood stunts, this is a faithful adaptation and yet Zemeckis only occasionally captures the right tone. When Scrooge finally sees the light, it isn't as rousing as it should be because he has already brightened up the darker passages of the story. Visually, it's also disappointing. Though the human characters aren't quite as spooky as the living dead aboard The Polar Express (except for a bloated-looking Colin Firth as Scrooge's nephew), the best performance capture technology still cannot reflect the glint in an actor's eye. And the eyes, after all, are the windows of the soul. Verdict This Hollywood adaptation is as glossy as Christmas wrapping paper and just as disposable. |
