Speaking of unsettling daytime movies, I wonder what time do they usually broadcast Scrooged? The first visitation (which replaces the classic Jacob Marley scene with a golf playing booze swilling TV executive) is kinda disturbing, even if the full on zombie effects are clearly being played for laughs. Later there's a poor guy who's found frozen to death in the sewers, which is just bleak in ways that can't really be made into a joke. It gets the message across effectively I suppose. Ebenezer Scrooge might have been replaced by Frank Cross but the material is all pretty much still here despite the modern day spin and the meta parts of the story.
As a film the first half when Frank (Bill Murray) gets to be a total jerk to everyone is the strongest part. He's a cartoonish but believably scummy guy fuelled by callous ambition and little else. It slowly becomes less effective when the Ghost of Christmas Present shows up and the slapstick starts to creep in, but there's still a lot of fun stuff overall. The real problem is that the opening gag (who doesn't want to see The Day The Reindeer Died) is just impossible to beat, they put themselves at a disadvantage. But the past Christmas Future and Past scenes which all work well, and it's always good to see Karen Allen outside of Raiders. Overall though... the best take on this story is still the one with Kermit the Frog.
Movie Rating: 3/5
Christmas Rating: Richard Donner (3/5)
Festive Moment: 'Charles Dickens would have wanted to see her nipples!'
I guess I'm starting to move into all the familiar festive viewings as things go on here. But at least that means we can cover a decent John Landis comedy, and one with a pre let's-play-everyone Eddie Murphy. There's a lot of simple but effective class comedy in Trading Places with the prince and pauper style swap going on, and some of the visual gags like the judgemental portrait gallery are wonderful. Elsewhere it's about what you'd expect from a film where the two leads are being directed effectively, and the inclusion of Denholm Elliot is just an extra treat. The first act has a lot of the best dialogue as as con artist Billy-Ray Valentine (Murphy) finds himself caught out and thrown behind bars, before the scheme of two scheming old geezers starts to unfold.
It starts to fall a part a bit once the big Wall Street plan at the end comes along, and there's a subplot involving a New Years Eve train party and a caged gorilla that really outstays its welcome. The whole stock exchange plot pushes it away from being essential Xmas viewing, and there's too much information crammed into the finale few scenes. What does all this buying and selling mean? I'm still not entirely clear. But what the heck, it still mostly fits the bill and has plenty of laughs from the likes of Dan Akroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis at their peak. I guess it's Merry New Year for everyone involved.
Movie Rating: 4/5
Christmas Rating: Clarence Beakes (2/5)
Festive Moment: Salmon and the worst ever Santa beard
In a rare break from the previously established format I will totally cheat here and include this Christmas special. I reserve the right to write whatever nonsense I feel is appropriate here after all. This seasonal outing for Rowan Atkinson's acidic anti-character stands alone from the other episodes, but still includes sequences taken from the earlier Elizabethan and Georgian period shows. It's never quite as good as those two classic seasons (which get included here as dream sequences or ghostly visions) but it has a lot of good moments since the writing is still great.
Plus it has to be said that the idea of the original Charles Dickens story being done in reverse is a master-stroke. The kind, generous man realising he could benefit from being cruel is pretty good spin on things after his true character was so well established. All of the usual suspects return as characters they've played or in new roles (such as Miriam Margolyes as Queen Victoria) which keeps the variety act tone going. In general it's kind of uneven but includes just enough acerbic quips and mean spirited retorts to make it essential annual viewing.
Episode Rating: 3/5
Christmas Rating: Robbie Coltrane (3/5)
Festive Moment: 'Ill-conceived love I should warn you, is like a Christmas cracker. One massively disappointing bang and the novelty soon wears off'
Time for some animation with Tokyo Godfathers. While I was never a massive fan of the likes of Paprika or Millennium Actress this is by far the best of Satoshi Kon's efforts -- for any time of year. Those others of course showed his great skill and imagination as a storyteller, but this is the one that manages to cram in the charm, tragedy and character depth I often crave and it pushes the whole film to new levels. All the weird cuts and odd narrative moments he likes to include are still present and correct of course, and it builds into a magical experience. At the same time this is often a dark, melancholy and more down to earth story, resulting in an immediately effective contrast.
A band of mismatched homeless people struggling with their demons might not seem like the obvious choice for Yuletide viewing, but the themes of family ties, charity and making up for bad past decisions all firmly fall in line with many other seasonal classics. The idea of coincidences driving the plot forward instead of just being contrived or awkward also makes for interesting viewing. Since they're central to the story it never becomes over done, and the weird sense of humour on display is often compelling. The bleaker elements provide some sombre moments that flesh things out but never become too morbid, and overall it's a rounded story full of oddball humour, character drama and genuine humanity. A true animated gem.
Movie Rating: 5/5
Christmas Rating: Uncle Bag (4/5)
Festive Moment: Saved by an angel
