T&K's XMas (2022) Advent Calendar: Day 15 - Scrooge

 1970, d. Ronald Neame - Hollywood Suite

A Christmas Carol is such well-mined territory, and in 45 years of life I've seen countless interpretations of it such that sitting down for even this highly recommended 1970s, musical interpretation of it seemed an arduous task. The songs don't carry the plot forward so much as extend the scenes to a "get on with it" length.  I mean, we all know where this is going after all, let's just get there and get this over with, shall we?

But something happens by the time the ghost of Jacob Marley shows up, the production reveals itself to be an exquisitely detailed (not lavish, because it still feels dirty and grimy like coal burning London of 1870) and rather inspired production, with Albert Finney's hunched and snarled Scrooge somehow feeling both cartoonish and grounded in real emotion. When Alec Guinness' Marley shows up, the film works itself out with a brilliant mix of practical and visual effects trickery that seem huge for a sci-fi or fantasy movie of the era, nevermind a 1970s Christmas musical (but then musicals were the superhero movies of the 60's, bloated and expensive).

So while I still wish the film were maybe a half hour shorter, I adore the production of it...it is the most wondrous of the Christmas Carols without feeling too overblown. It balances its fantastical with reality masterfully. By the end, Scrooge's turn feels earned (not sudden, or against character like so many other interpretations and derivatives) and it is so rewarding. Heck, I even didn't mind the songs... maybe I even liked a few. No humbugs here.