Our family followed our Thanksgiving weekend tradition of going to the movies... and this afternoon it was Disney's A Christmas Carol, in 3-D. Here are a few thoughts about this movie, impressions of mine from a few different angles.
1. The CGI is really incredible, particularly when depicting anything non-human. The apparitions were really cool and I would rank the three Christmas ghosts in the following order: First - Christmas Present (a jovial Irishman), Second - Christmas Past (a wispy, Scottish-sounding sprite), and pulling in the rear was Christmas Future (cool effects during this act but the ghost itself was a detail-less shadow). I give the "non-human" caveat because for however great CGI is, there is something about human CGI forms that is so obviously without life. There's a barrier there that keeps me from truly appreciating the work and effort that's put into adding emotion to the human characters. A case in point, I think Scrooge's transformation was less apparent than it should have been. His change of heart was overshadowed by all the eye-candy that was infused into the story. All that said, watching in 3-D is awesome. I think this was my most enjoyable 3-D experience.
2. I'll admit it's been a long time since I've read Dickens himself, but judging from the use of language in this movie, I'm sure this version of the Carol is the most faithful to the language of the text in a generation. If you're a sucker for thoughtful phrase construction and excellent word imagery, this is a great drama. Which leads me to a third, perhaps off-putting point.
3. It seems this was a movie that struggled with its primary goals. When I see CGI I immediately think "kids." Our kids had a great time flying with Ebenezer through London haunts, but there were only a few humorous moments. The dialog was WAY above the levels of my 4th and 1st graders. The basic message of the movie is unmistakable as always, but there's a conflict there with the over-the-top animation, mixed with olde English. As a final note, if I were sitting at the table with the "how do we rate this movie" committee, I would edge closer to PG-13 for graphic imagery. There were a few scenes that were real nail-biters especially for my 7-year-old.
It was a fast-paced movie, very enjoyable, but somewhat conflicted, IMHO.
