The Muppet Christmas Carol

There are certainly one or two toe-tappers in this enjoyable Muppetisation of the immortal Charles Dickens tale of Christmas humbug and redemption. "Gonzo" adopts the role of the author/narrator and guides us through this (pretty heavily) abridged version of the story as Michael Caine's arch-miser "Ebenezer Scrooge" is visited by the three kindly spirits on Christmas morning - each trying to point to the errors of his ways and to encourage him to engage a little more with the Christmas spirit. To be honest, I am not a fan of puppets - and these ones never worked for me on television when I was young. This film does, however, deliver well. A combination of very gentle comedy, a strong and emotional story and a star who was certainly up for joining in, all combine well to offer an engaging and colourful take on the story without descending into too much sentiment that ends, fittingly, outside the east London branch of Mickelwhite’s. Paul Williams has composed some frequently poignant lyrics for the "Scrooge", "Bless Us All" and "It Feels Like Christmas" numbers and, mercifully, the more irritating "Kermit" and "Miss Piggy" characters actually feature quite sparingly as that huge turkey in the butcher in the next street gets ever closer to finding a generous buyer. Good fun to watch.

EVERYONE TAKES IT SO SERIOUSLY, at least every human. The Muppets don't, but the humans act like they are living in a world without Muppets, they act like they are doing the most serious version of a Christmas Carol as they possibly can...

... and it works. It really works. It's a Muppets movie with Shakespeare quality acting... which makes it one of my favorite adaptations of A Christmas Carol. It's deadly serious and hysterical. It's well acted, it looks brilliant...

.... AND THE SONG IS STILL CUT!!!! Which is a shame, because it's one of those songs that brings a tear to your eye, and, as far as I know, is only available in one addition, and it wasn't the one I just streamed.

It breaks the heart, but who cares, it is still well played, well acted, beautiful, funny, and heart warming, and that is what it should be... for a Muppets film.

I loved it as a child, and I love it today