Movie Review: Disney's A Christmas Carol

Robert Zemeckis, the writer, director and producer, uses what he learned from making The Polar Express and Beowulf to bring us this visually impressive but very dark 3-D version of Dickens, A Christmas Carol. To accomplish this, he uses his favorite; performance-capture technology. Briefly, the actors work on an empty sound stage and are covered with sensors. The digital cameras record the performance and that information is used when the sets and costumes are filled in later with 3-D animation. The overall effect is a stunning hybrid of animation and real life. Jim Carrey is outrageously perfect as the voice of Ebeneezer Scrooge (throughout all his ages - boy, teen, young and old man). He also provides the voices for The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future. He shows a lot of restraint which I personally appreciated. It's no secret, he has a tendency to over-act (do ya think). Gary Oldman, Bob Hoskins, Robin Wright Penn all do a great job. Parts of the movie are an awe-inspiring virtual reality ride as Scrooge is taken on his whirlwind tour through time flying high over landscapes and through old Victorian cityscape's. And I loved sitting in the middle of a snowfall which the new and improved 3-D technology creates flawlessly. But...the movie is pretty scary, especially in the beginning. Marley's ghost, with his unhinged jaw and 3-D chains rattling right in front of your face, may prove a bit too terrifying for young children (and some grownups). And The Ghost of Christmas Present has this very frightening, very loud and protracted laugh that is simply too creepy (and unnecessary). But more disappointing, the movie never quite reaches the emotional impact that many of the older versions do. Even the Muppet version was more touching. I didn't cry once and I don't think I have ever seen A Christmas Carol without crying. I'm beginning to wonder if performance-capture technology, for all its artfulness, takes something away from a good story. Maybe the problem is, it can capture "motion" but it can not capture "emotion". I remember thinking the same thing when I walked out of The Polar Express and Beowulf. I would have rather seen a Pixar type animated film or a regular movie with real actors. A Christmas Carol is a classic, indestructible story that never gets old but it does get a little lost in this very flashy retelling. I'm glad I saw it but I'm having a hard time recommending it.