Disney’s A Christmas Carol is a great way to ring in the holiday season.

This was personally my first time watching a movie in animated 3D. While the extra cost of the ticket was a bit of an unpleasant surprise, the feeling that the falling snow might at any minute hit my toes was worth the extra bit of cash.

There’s no denying that the movie had impressive animation and plenty of action for a film based on a Christmas classic.

I did find some of the characterizations almost painfully awkward.  The first ghost, the ghost of Christmas past, was a candlestick with a completely cartoonish face. That character was almost too hokey for me to watch. And on the other hand, the ghost of Christmas yet to come seemed completely underdone.

Jim Carrey lends the character of Ebenezer Scrooge a masterful and relatable voice. The animators did a great job at mimicking Carrey’s mannerisms. The great voice and masterful mannerisms combine for a realistic, yet animated, Scrooge.

Now, in the effort of full disclosure I have never read Dickens’ classic nor watched any film based on this classic (you may gasp now). So whether Disney and director Robert Zemeckis were true to the classic story is completely lost on me.

I can tell you that this story is engaging. Children will be entertained (though be warned, it has its ghoulish moments), but the story is an important reminder for adults, especially as we enter the holiday season.

Watching a man who can stop Christmas carolers with one cold glare transform into a man who anonymously sends the largest turkey to Tiny Tim’s family is a story that is relevant to any viewer at any time but maybe especially as we head into a holiday season amidst of the highest unemployment rates in a quarter of a century.

A Christmas Carol reminds us of the good things about the holidays — not the glitz, not presents under the tree, not the biggest turkey, or the most expensive stocking stuffer. The holidays are a celebration. A celebration of life, love, friendship, family, good health, food to eat, of selflessness, sharing and hope, which of course are all possible because of our Savior, whose life is the reason we celebrate in the first place.

Go see this film (and if you can, go 3D). Overlook its quirks and embrace its lessons. ‘Tis the beginning of the season.

Disney’s A Christmas Carol (USA)MPAA
Rated PG for scary sequences and images.
Run time: 96 mins.