Who payed the critics

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

... with beautiful animation, thought the style is probably not in every ones taste. But every frame is worth an artistic analysis, so much details are present. The timing and pacing could be a bit more rounded down, but it is very quick and only has 25 minutes where other version need at least an hour or two to present the whole story. But sadly the dub isn't too good I fear, the acting is a bit wooden at times and I wish it had some bigger names behind it to give Scrooge and the spirits their voices. It is fine for the most part, but it could be much better. Anyway, it it worth your time, and at least to watch it once, if not multiple times.

as letter from a good friend. as web of a fisherman. as drawing of a child. this short version was seed of a revolution. for its science to remember the Christmas deep beauty. for the honest way to present a well-known story. and for the grace of each line. so, each new watching is an event. out of definitions or nice words but really touching. its charm is special. because it is a form of remember. without great ambitions only to be a hello for the people in middle of little daily circles. sure, the implication of great actors is important. but theirs voices are part of game. because, like flavor of a flower or taste of a food from childhood, this film makes difference.

A Christmas Carol (1971)*** (out of 4)Animated version of the Charles Dickens' tale about the mean-spirited Scrooge who is visited by three ghosts who will try to teach him the right way to live. While this isn't the greatest version of the story that I've seen, those such as myself who enjoy watching different versions should enjoy it. I think the main interest here is that Alastair Sim does the vocal work of Scrooge. Most fans consider his performance from the 1951 film to be the greatest ever so getting to hear him do another version of it was quite nice. He does a very good job with the vocal work and Michael Redgrave also does a fine job with the narration. The animation here is quite good throughout and I really enjoyed the more simple, laid back approach. There's nothing in the animation that's going to jump off the screen at you but I thought it fit the story and the pacing quite well. Another benefit is that there's really not any downtime in the film as the screenplay pretty much sticks to the high points of the story and go to them without any smaller pieces sticking together. As an example, as soon as Scrooge is done with the first ghost he immediately goes to the second without there being any time between the two. A Christmas CAROL hits the best parts of the story and manages to keep its heart and message in place.

This is the best animated version of the hoary old Dickens tale ever brought to the screen. This is no assembly-line cartoon; this is a Victorian lithograph brought to life. Splendid artwork, dizzying camera angles, magnificent and painstaking animation at its best. There are master craftsmen at work here; no shortcuts or sloppy work. The only criticism I could make of it is that it's too short. I sure wish that Santa had given them an unlimited budget to work with. Probably not suitable for younger children, as some of the images are a little terrifying (the children under the robe of the second spirit send chills up my spine every time I see it). I first saw it on PBS back in 1972, I think, and it has haunted me ever since. I was fortunate enough to find a copy on eBay, and it was as good as I had remembered from 30 years back. It's a rotten shame that it's been neglected by the networks ("A Christmas Story" and "Miracle on 34th Street" are great films, but they flog them to death every Christmas). If you want to get in the Christmas spirit, do yourself a favor and beg, borrow or steal a copy of this film.