A Christmas Carol
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Metascore
55 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 32 Critics What's this?

User Score
7.3 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 97 Ratings

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0 out of 10
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  • Starring: Colin Firth, Gary Oldman, Jim Carrey
  • Summary: Disney's A Christmas Carol, a multi-sensory thrill ride re-envisioned by Robert Zemeckis, captures the fantastical essence of the classic Dickens tale in a groundbreaking 3-D motion picture event. Ebenezer Scrooge begins the Christmas holiday with his usual miserly contempt, barking at his faithful clerk and his cheery nephew. But when the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come take him on an eye-opening journey revealing truths Old Scrooge is reluctant to face, he must open his heart to undo years of ill will before it's too late. (Walt Disney Pictures)… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 32
  3. Negative: 2 out of 32
  1. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    100
    An exhilarating visual experience and proves for the third time he's (Zemeck) is one of the few directors who knows what he's doing with 3-D.
  2. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: Keith Uhlich
    80
    The unspoken theme underlying Dickens’s prose--that the money-grubbing Ebenezer is conversing with semblances of his own self--finds near-perfect cinematic expression through Carrey’s efforts.
  3. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Joe Neumaier
    60
    Like a dime-store holiday card, this Christmas Carol is well-crafted but artless, detailed but lacking soul.
  4. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Betsy Sharkey
    30
    What are in very short supply, though, are the central chords of Dickens' carol: Crachit's generous spirit, Tiny Tim's sad plight, Scrooge's emotional arc as he finds his humanity. Oh, the scenes are there amid the action, but they are fleeting. By the time A Christmas Carol finishes piling its many shiny presents with their many bells and whistles under the tree, there's no room left for tears for Tiny Tim. Bah humbug indeed.

See all 32 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 38
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 38
  3. Negative: 6 out of 38
  1. Zilcell
    10
    I have heard the story of A Christmas Carol numerous times, but this adaption of the story is the greatest by far. It is darker than you would expect.
  2. grandpajoe6191
    8
    "A Christmas Carol" is a exhilarating Christmas movie that joyful remakes the original book into a marvelous interpretation.
  3. WriteFilmLive21
    7
    Considering it's probably the most cinematically-adapted story in history, any new treatment of "A Christmas Carol" might easily be overlooked due to sheer exhaustion. By now, we've all got our favorite versions, and most of them really are pretty much the same. Still, Robert Zemeckis's high-flying rendition of Dickens' immortal tale is easily one to add to the list of seasonal viewings - it's colorful, it's wild, it's fun, it's heartfelt. There's several small things in this version - such as Scrooge walking in on the simile game at the end - that give it some strong marks in my book, and just the amount of fun Zemeckis has with the animation and story while still staying faithful gives it plenty of its own identity. Carrey's performance as the penny-pinching humbug is actually quite convincing, and is likely my second-favorite treatment of the character to date, and the design of the ghost of Christmas future is really cool and unique. It's just a lot of fun to watch, and a very solid treatment. What else can I say? God bless the Christmas Carols, every one.… Expand
  4. AlexB.
    0
    I would have walked after the film revealed the hoorible ghost of christmas past if my sister had not treated us. It had such a light voice and a lisp that you couldn't hear a word it said. The animation was redundent and with so few actors playing so many different characters, kids where getting confused whether they were the same person in different suits. Jim Carey and Gary Oldman have fun but i'm afraid thats all who will. Robert Zemekis needs to give up on this medium of film making because it's getting a bit old. I only hope that Peter Jackson and Steven Speilberg don't screw up Tin Tin with the same technology.… Expand

See all 38 User Reviews

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