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in" an assignment. This ghost seems bored in his scenes and it just doesn't work - The ghosts are here for a purpose, and this ghost doesn't seem to interested in the task. When he sits down at the Crtachit house, he seems tired.

The use of language is updated a bit too much; part of the charm of an old story is to tell it in the language of the time, so when a line like "You'll keep your Christmas by losing your situation" is changed to "losing your job," well, I just don't like it. Two other examples: The famous exchange when Scrooge asks the boy to go buy the turkey: "Walk-Er!" / "No, I'm in Earnest!" replaced with "Your joshing." "No, no, no." And when Scrooge sends the turkey to Bob: "He shant know who sent it," has been changed to, "He won't know who it's from." The original prose is pure poetry; keep the dialog the way Dickens wrote it (although for the most part they do).

Finally, it's not a bad thing, just kept bugging me. The Ghost of Christmas Part (Joel Gray) is perfectly cast and believable in the role (and true to the original story as well) but his face is so heavily made up in white makeup that I kept comparing him to Data in Star Trek. Every now and then I thought Scrooge would turn to the ghost and say, "Mr. Data, exit Holodeck."

Special Effects: As Jacob Marley departs, Scrooge looks out his window to see hundreds of glowing spirits trying (and failing) to help people. It's a powerful image. The huge funnel cloud that carries the Ghost of Christmas present and Scrooge is a great effect. The lighthouse they visit looks a little fake. The scenes of Scrooge walking through walls are well done. The image of Christmas Present and Scrooge atop the coal mine is iconic. The glow around Ghost of the Past is very well done and a nice touch. The image of Scrooge falling atop his own dead bosy and plunging into the abyss is powerful.

Summary: A terrific film shot on a TV budget but still capturing the essence of the classic story, expanding the tale in interesting ways, and the most perfect casting of Scrooge, ever. A must for Christmas.

Learn more about this author, Robert Gillis.
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