The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Brian Henson

Writers (WGA):

Charles Dickens (novel)
Jerry Juhl (screenplay)

Release Date:

11 December 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Music

Plot:

The Muppet characters tell their version of the classic tale of an old and bitter miser's redemption on Christmas Eve.

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | The Muppets | Ghost | Redemption | Christmas Eve

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Michael Caine	...	Ebenezer Scrooge
Dave Goelz	...	The Great Gonzo as Charles Dickens / Robert Marley / Dr. Bunsen Honeydew / Betina Cratchit / Rat / Zoot (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Donald Austen	...	Ghost of Christmas Present (performer) / Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (performer)
David Alan Barclay	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice) (as David Barclay)
Robbie Barnett	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)
Meredith Braun	...	Belle
Fergus Brazier	...	Boy #2
Marcus Clarke	...	Puppeteer (voice)
Raymond Coulthard	...	Young Scrooge
Sue Dacre	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)
Geoff Felix	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)
Jessica Fox	...	Ghost of Christmas Past (voice)
Anthony Hamblin	...	Boy #1
William Todd Jones	...	Ghost of Christmas Past / Additional Muppets
Steven Mackintosh	...	Fred, Scrooge's Nephew
Russell Martin	...	Young Scrooge
Kristopher Milnes	...	Young Scrooge
Nigel Plaskitt	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)
Karen Prell	...	Ghost of Christmas Past (performer) / Additional Muppets (voice)
Mike Quinn	...	Pig Gentleman / Undertaker (voice)
Tim Rose	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)
Edward Sanders	...	Young Scrooge
Theo Sanders	...	Young Scrooge
David Shaw Parker	...	Old Joe (voice)
Reginald Turner	...	Michael Caine's double
Robert Tygner	...	Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (performer) / Ghost of Christmas Past (performer) / Turkey / Additional Muppets (uncredited) (voice)
Robin Weaver	...	Clara
Simon Williamson	...	Additional Muppet Performer (voice)

Runtime:

85 min | USA:89 min (video version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:G | Iceland:L | Australia:G | Finland:S | Germany:o.Al. | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:U | USA:G

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

Jim Henson Company, The

Trivia:

In the film's first scene, there is a shop sign that reads "Duncan & Kenworthy". Producer Duncan Kenworthy was one of the creators of Jim Henson's "Fraggle Rock" (1983).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Scrooge is lighting the lamp to perform a search of the house, it is obvious that the lamp is an electric light.

Quotes:

Rizzo the Rat: There are two things in life I hate-heights and jumping from them.
Gonzo: Come on, I'll catch you.
Rizzo the Rat: God save my little broken body.
[Jumps and falls to the ground. He looks at Gonzo]
Gonzo: Missed.
Rizzo the Rat: Oh wait- I forgot my jellybeans.
[Slides through the bars to retrieve them, and joins Gonzo back on the other side, who is staring at him]
Rizzo the Rat: What?
Gonzo: You can fit through those bars?
Rizzo the Rat: Yeah.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Muppet Christmas Carol: Frogs, Pigs and Humbug - Unwrapping a New Holiday Classic (2002) (V)

Soundtrack:

One More Sleep Till Christmas

One of the must-see holiday classics

While the 1951 Alistair Sim version of A Christmas Carol is the most faithful to the original Dickens story, A Muppet Christmas Carol possesses heart, whimsey, and a joy that is so very much lacking in our evermore commercialized holiday season. Michael Caine's performance as Scrooge easily surpasses those of Reginald Owen (1938), George C. Scott (1984) and Patrick Stewart (2001). There is a more genuine degree of transformation and redemption in his characterization than has often been portrayed. This makes the story a truly wonderful experience both for adults as well as for children.

The use of the Muppets in the various roles makes for a lively film experience. Statler and Waldorf as Jacob & Robert Marley are appropriately heckling as they seek to convince Scrooge to change his ways. Kermit the Frog is a wonderfully sympathetic Bob Crachit just as Miss Piggy is appropriately and aggressively belligerent Mrs. Crachit. Perhaps one of the better-inspired comedy bits comes with the arrival of Scrooge and the Ghost of Christmas Past at Scrooge's former workplace, described as "Fozziwig's Rubber Chicken Factory." Such bits are frequent and help to keep the story fun. Paul Williams' music score and songs are eminently singable and leave the viewer with a lasting memory.

A Muppet Christmas Carol has joined the pantheon of classic holiday films, easily ranking alongside Holiday Inn, White Christmas and A Christmas Story. It is the opinion of this reviewer that for those whom holiday films have become a part of holiday celebration should make this a part of their seasonal experience. One might even complete the film humming the tunes and thinking better of themselves as well as of their fellow humans. In other words, Henson and company have made Dickens story as memorable as Dickens himself wished it to be.