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Rating:  -
This is an amazing rendition of the classic "A Christmas Carol" story, with an incredible performance from Michael Caine. Every time I watch it, as an adult, I get something new out of it. And the old version, with the sad song included, was enough to make a grown man cry (a true Grinch-like story that happened at my house!).
I, too, am wistfully wishing that Disney would release a ***COMPLETE***, WIDESCREEN version of this incredible classic. I bet they'd be shocked at how many copies they would sell!
I am a grown woman, not a kid, and this is my very FAVORITE Christmas movie! Maybe the sad song is a bit TOO sad for some children, at certain times, in certain situations, but that's what the fast forward button is for! And if Disney were really smart, they would just add an option so that one could either play the movie WITH that chapter or WITHOUT that chapter. Simple solution!
I'm hoping that the people at Disney will read this review, and understand that the ADULTS are clamoring for this film -- it's not just for the kids!
Rating:  -
"Christmas is a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely" --Charles Dickens.
Attempting to celebrate Christmas without watching at least ONE adaptation of this Dickens classic is a bit like trying to play snooker in black and white. Each year I try to watch one 'serious' adaptation (usually the 1951 Alastair Sim classic) and also one parody. Of the latter, the 1992 Muppet production tops the list. Michael Caine is Scrooge, while Kermit the frog is Bob Cratchett and Gonzo plays Charles Dickens. I dislike most musicals. It's often stated that Bollywood is the complete reverse of the Roger & Hammerstein / Gilbert & Sullivan musicals because in India it's the dialogue that's woeful and music that's good. The Muppet Christmas Carol is in a league of its own and actually excels at both! The soundtrack includes "Bless us All", "One More Sleep till Christmas" and the wonderfully festive "It Feels Like Christmas". Here, the songs ENRICH the story rather than interrupt it.
Dickens's haunting tale and the countless movies it's inspired are not just for children. Christmas joy is, in the words of Ella Fitzgerald, "for kids from 1 to 92". This is genuine 'family' entertainment... "For it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child himself"
Rating: -
100 Snazzes on the 100 point Snazz-o-Scale. Perfection!
Please note this is my review on the movie itself, not any of it's Home Video Releases. I see there is much disappointment about the DVDs. I have it on good old VHS, which still works and still has "Love is Gone."
A Muppet Christmas Carol is a superb adaption of the Dicken's Classic. Michael Caine plays Ebenezer Scrooge. There are a few other humans, particularly Scrooge's nephew Fred, but almost all the other cast are played by Muppets. Kermit the Frog plays the ever suffering Cratchit, Miss Piggy is his loving wife. In a stroke of genius, though it's a small part, Fozzie the Bear plays Scrooge's old employer Fozziwig, who runs a Rubber Chicken Factory. Statler and Waldorf are Scrooge's deceased business partners, the Marleys. Sam the Eagle, Professor Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker, Animal, and many others make appearances. The Ghosts are played by original Muppets. Past is a small child-like creature, glowing with his hair and gowns billowing in an unseen wind. Future is a huge dark shrouded creature with no face and long arms. The Ghost of Christmas Present is a wonderfully fun giant, who can change size at will, ages as Christmas passes, and in a very unique turn is absent minded because he is so consumed with the "Now" of Christmas.
"So this is Bob Cratchit's house?" Scrooge asks.
"Who told you that?" the Ghost of Christmas Present asks in astonishment.
"You just did," Scrooge replies.
"Hm! Well I'm usually reliable!"
But the best part of all is Gonzo the Great plays Charles Dickens himself. Rizzo the Rat accompanies him, mostly for the food. But as Dickens, Gonzo quotes the book almost word for word at times and acts as an omniscient narrator. I know of no other Christmas Carol that features Dickens himself in it, even if he is furry and purple, and this a superb development.
-The music is great and the songs are a lot of fun. The songs are better and more enjoyable than Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol and catchier than Scrooge, the big budget version. The special effects are astonishing. When the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come takes Scrooge into the future, the scene swirls into a tunnel and London forms around the two - a phenomenal effect. And when you think about it, almost every scene is a special effect, because there are Muppeteers operating the Muppets, or perhaps visuals or robotics. Add to that rain, snow, live animals such as a horse or a chicken, and it must have been an incredible undertaking.
-London itself looks astonishing; snow covered houses, street lamps, bricked pavement, activity everywhere, the buildings themselves are all stylized with hardly a straight line among them.
-Children will love the Muppets, songs, and humor. Adults will love the Muppets, songs, and humor as well! And everyone will love the great Christmas sentiments.
"Nice story, Mister Dickens," Rizzo the Rat says at the end.
"Thanks" Gonzo replies. "If you like that, you should try the book."
-A superb sentiment.
Rating:  -
Happy with the product when it arrived, but it arrived a week after the scheduled time.
Rating: -
My all-time favorite Christmas movie. It's my favorite version of the Christmas Carol--forget "live" actors. And the Scrooge in this one is the best of any I've seen.
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