A splendidly mounted and visually imaginative animated 3D version of the classic novel.
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11/06/09
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Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009)
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Reviews Counted:143
Fresh:78
Rotten:65
Average Rating:5.9/10
Consensus: Robert Zemeckis' 3-D animated take on the Dickens classic tries hard, but its dazzling special effects distract from an array of fine performances from Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman.
Rated: PG [See Full Rating]
Genre: Childrens
Theatrical Release:04-11-2009
Synopsis: Director Robert Zemeckis (THE POLAR EXPRESS) continues to work his holiday magic with A CHRISTMAS CAROL. This 3-D adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic will use the motion capture technology... [More]
Starring: Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Reviews for Disney's A Christmas Carol
Cinematographer Robert Presley and the design team provide many instances of graphical triumph, influenced by silent cinema.
11/06/09
Top CriticThis Hollywood adaptation is as glossy as Christmas wrapping paper and just as disposable.
11/06/09
Top CriticA Christmas Carol should be as cosy and familiar as piping-hot tea and buttered, toasted crumpets, not a brain-battering sensory assault that feels like downing tequila shots on a rollercoaster.
11/06/09
Top CriticThere is a weird lack of passion here, almost condescension, a sense that Scrooge's agonised moral journey into his past is potentially pretty dull, and so Zemeckis is always livening things up by whooshing the old miser excitingly through the night sky.
11/06/09
Top CriticZemeckis has succeeded is transforming a staid and over-familiar story into a rip-roaring and viscerally powerful special effects chase-movie.
11/06/09
The whizzing pyrotechnics aren't quite enough to make this a Christmas classic.
11/06/09
A Christmas Carol is certainly set to win the nation’s attention. With all this hype, we’d hoped for something a bit more special.
11/06/09
It is an experience, being stunning to look at – and you’ll only get the full effect from seeing it on the big screen, rather than waiting for the DVD.
11/06/09
Sometimes the richness of the visual banquet threatens to leave viewers with Christmas afternoon indigestion yet never stops you feeling hungry for more.
11/06/09
If you want an entertaining period piece, you could do a lot worse than attend Robert Zemeckis' A Christmas Carol.
11/06/09
A near-perfect blend of looks and heart.
11/06/09
The use of 3-D leaves the not unpleasant sensation that snow is gently falling throughout the entire cinema. A respectable, high-tech stab at an old favourite but the Alastair Sim version remains the best.
11/06/09
Full of Christmas cheer this is not.
11/06/09
Dickens purists can stay away. Others can feel free to sample the rollicking aerial views of Victorian London, the droll and scary elasticity of Carrey.
11/06/09
Scores high on swooping visuals and meticulous draughtsmanship.
11/06/09
At its best, this revamp gets the eerie oppressiveness of London fog and Marley’s rattling chains just right -- we all know the moral, but Zemeckis does remind us what a spine-chilling yarn it is.
11/06/09
Top CriticUnfortunately, as good as the animation is, it never quite manages to bring any of the characters to life and the film fails to connect on an emotional level as a result.
11/06/09
The quintessential Christmas classic gets yet another movie incarnation with this visually impressive version from effects wizard Zemeckis. For most of us, all the surprises here are visual, and it's well worth seeing in 3D.
11/06/09
As a movie to get you in the Christmas spirit, A Christmas Carol does its job nicely.
11/06/09
Latest News for Disney's A Christmas Carol
November 05, 2009:
Critics Consensus: A Christmas Carol Dazzles But Disappoints
This week at the movies, we've got some modern-day Dickens (Disney's A Christmas Carol, starring Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman); a button-pushing thriller (The Box, starring... More...
November 04, 2009:
Ho-ho-horror! 10 Scary Christmas Movies
This week's eerie mo-cap rendering of the ghostly, dark Dickens morality tale 'A Christmas Carol' from director Robert Zemeckis is far from being the only yuletide movie where... More...
October 26, 2009:
Disney Goes All Out for A Christmas Carol 
You'd think having Jim Carrey, Robert Zemeckis, and several million dollars' worth of mo-cap eye candy would sell itself, but Disney isn't taking any chances with its new... More...
October 18, 2009:
Win Tickets to the Sydney Premiere of A Christmas Carol
'Tis almost that season again, and to celebrate, Rotten Tomatoes and Disney are giving you the chance to be at the Sydney IMAX premiere of A Christmas Carol
, the latest in 3-D... More...
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