What is the best tv or movie version of Dicken's "A Christmas Carol"

[FSogol]

Asking for a friend.

[Adsos Letter]

1. Always enjoyed the one with George C. Scott as Scrooge.

And the Muppet one was always a hit around here.

[Sinistrous]

2. I second the vote for the George C. Scott version,

however Patrick Stewart is also magnificent in the role of Scrooge.

[Paladin]

3. "Scrooge" (1951), with Alastair Sim in the title role.

No other version comes close, as far as I'm concerned; we watch it every year.

[trc]

8. My favorite version as well.

And, if you watch carefully you will spot a man in dark glasses in the mirror when Scrooge is looking at himself in the morning. I think he is wearing a sport coat and carrying a clip board... but it has been a long time since I watched the film.

[pressbox69]

39. I think it's the director.

[bluestarone]

11. yep

our favorite too

[solara]

18. Definitely agree

The moment when he realizes he isn't dead after all and starts to giggle..well, that is one of the best acting moments ever..

[SoCalMusicLover]

19. Yep, The Classic nt

[aka-chmeee]

20. No contest IMO

As a confused Santa, I always watch "Polar Express" and Alastair Sim's "Scrooge" before my first outing. Polar Express to reinforce my conviction that Santa doesn't have to be a buffoon and Scrooge to set the mood.
(confused is wife's description....Says I look like Santa but act like Scrooge. But what the hell? I'm atheist!)

[rurallib]

21. Been the favorite in our house for a long time.

[JenniferJuniper]

31. Hands down - Sim is Scrooge

anyone else is a poser.

[stopbush]

32. Agreed. No other version comes close to Sim.

IMO, the George C Scott version is the worst.

[GoneOffShore]

43. That is the definitive version.

Well, with the exception of the 20th century sound man who shows up in the mirror on Christmas morning.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. I still cry at "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol".

[irisblue]

15. MrMagoo is on youtube now.....

I love this one.

[Lindsay]

26. I love that one.

The music is Broadway quality.

I started a tiny business making Christmas ornaments, and called it "Razzleberry Dressing," of course.

[Freddie]

30. Me too

Saw it first when I was a little kid and was not familiar with the story. Mr. Magoo is still the “real” Christmas Carol for me. And the one with George C. Scott.

[Dave Starsky]

5. Muppet Christmas Carol

But the 1982 George C. Scott version is right up there, too.

[irisblue]

16. I love both of these choices.

[Phentex]

24. That's my vote!

Thanks for posting it.

[Dave Starsky]

25. The beauty of The Muppet Christmas Carol...

Is that you can watch it with the little kids in your family and you will ALL love it. The adults in the room get more out of it than the kids do, but everyone benefits, overall.

Kermit the Frog plays Bob Cratchit. And as ridiculous as it sounds, that puppet's performance will break your heart.

[muntrv]

6. The one with George C. Scott as Scrooge.

[Mz Pip]

7. Another vote for George C. Scott n/t

[rainy]

9. Mr. McGoo's version of course!

[jpak]

37. Yup - scared the shit out of me

[Floyd R. Turbo]

10. Scrooged

[FSogol]

12. Sorry, but that's actually a terrible verision and possibly Bill Murray's worst film.

Murray totally phoned it in and the director decided that Murry was so funny that he should just ad-lib it.

The late Roger Ebert said it best:

This sequence is the strangest in the film. The words are there, but the heart is lacking. Murray stands center stage and rants and raves about the spirit of Christmas, but it’s not an inspiring speech and certainly not a funny one. It sounds more desperate than anything else, and it continues at embarrassing length. It looks like an on-screen breakdown.

Finally, he demands a miracle, and his secretary’s little tyke is dragged forward to demonstrate that he can actually speak at last. Then the entire cast and crew line up behind Murray to sing of Christmas cheer, and I can’t remember when I’ve seen anything along these lines that was more forced and depressing.

What went wrong here? I have no idea. The chemistry must have been bad from the start. Or perhaps the material was simply intractable. One problem is that Murray frequently interjects one-liners that are at right-angles to the material, blocking the flow of the story. He gives the impression, at those moments, that he is seeking to distance himself from the film, but a story like this works only if it seems to believe in itself.

You can’t bad-mouth “A Christmas Carol” all the way through and then expect us to believe the good cheer at the end. In his studies of Dickens in preparation for this role, Murray seems to have read only as far as “Bah! Humbug!”

Ebert's entire review here:

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/scrooged-1988

[Floyd R. Turbo]

13. Yeah! Well, you know! Thats like his opinion man!

[FSogol]

17. LOL.

[irisblue]

14. Dave Starsky & no hypocrisy have 3 excellent choices. nt

[LanternWaste]

22. Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney is my favorite. nt

Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney is my favorite.

[Paladin]

40. Next to the 1951 movie (mentioned up-thread), the 1970 musical is my second favorite.

Very well done.

[Docreed2003]

23. Mickeys A Christmas Carol...

Not because I think it’s the best, although it’s nostolgic for me because I remember when it aired originally and it seemed like such a big deal as a kid, but because no one else has mentioned it!

[FSogol]

34. I would agree that it is the best animated version, but perhaps I should compare it to the Magoo

version.

[Glorfindel]

27. The George C. Scott version, hands-down

followed closely by "Scrooged" with Bill Murray. The first one I remember seeing was the Alastair Sims version when I was a little boy. That one scared me!

[Phoenix61]

28. Love the musical version with Albert Finney

Especially enjoy when he sings "Thank you very much."

[50 Shades Of Blue]

29. For me it's the 1938 movie with Roland Young as Scrooge.

I love Roland Young in anything.

Close second is a tie among the Mr. Magoo, Alistair Sims, and Muppets versions.

[NNadir]

33. Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol.

Lovely music, quite beautiful.

As a child, I recorded the songs on a cheap tape recorder (using the microphone held up to the black and white tv speaker) and listened to that tape all year long.

After many decades decades I still remember it.

"Winter was warm, summer soft that year, the winter was warm...
...and all my dreams are there, wrapped up somewhere, in summer dreams..."

[pressbox69]

41. Beautiful songs.

Jane Kean from the Honeymooners. Jack Cassidy played Cratchit.

[mia]

35. The Man Who Invented Christmas

Storyline
In 1843, the celebrated British novelist, Charles Dickens, is at a low point in his career with three flops behind him and his family expenses piling up at home. Determined to recover, Dickens decides to write a Christmas story and self-publish it in less than two months. As Dickens labors writing on such short notice, his estranged father and mother come to bunk with him. Still haunted by painful memories of his father ruining his childhood by his financial irresponsibly, Dickens develops a writer's block which seems to have no solution. As such, Dickens must face his personal demons epitomized through his characters, especially in his imagined conversations with Ebenezer Scrooge. Now with a looming deadline, Dickens struggles for inspiration against his frustrations and his characters' opinions in a literary challenge creating a classic tale that would define the essential soul of modern Christmas.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6225520/

[FSogol]

36. I started a thread on that in the movies group

https://www.democraticunderground.com/12702710

Excellent book (by Les Standiford) also.

[mia]

38. Thank you!

The owner of our local book store helped to make it happen. Hope it's a great success!

https://www.npr.org/2017/11/27/566005492/booksellers-foray-into-hollywood-is-a-dickens-of-a-tale

[pressbox69]

42. The Alastair Sim version

is the best and Magoo is the best musical version. I wish someone would try to turn it into a live staged musical. Part of the reason I love the 1951 version is because my Dad had to watch it every year. He swore that when it was first released, Scrooged bumped down his stairs one at a time on Christmas morning but that scene was cut on TV. I can't find anything about such a scene although I've searched for years. Has anyone else heard of this deleted scene?