Scrooge (1951 film)
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| Scrooge (1951 film) | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Brian Desmond Hurst |
| Produced by | Brian Desmond Hurst |
| Written by | Noel Langley |
| Starring | Alastair Sim Mervyn Johns Hermione Baddeley Michael Dolan Francis De Wolff Brian Worth Kathleen Harrison Michael Hordern Patrick Macnee Peter Bull |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
| Release date(s) | 1951 |
| Running time | 86 min. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Scrooge (1951) is one of the best-known and most acclaimed film adaptations of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol.
This version was directed by Brian Desmond Hurst; the screenplay was by Noel Langley. It was released as A Christmas Carol in the U.S. in the same year.
Scrooge starred Alastair Sim (in arguably his best-known role) as the title character, and featured Kathleen Harrison in an acclaimed turn as Mrs. Dilber, Scrooge's charwoman. Fans of British cinema will recognize Hermione Baddeley as Mrs. Cratchit, Mervyn Johns as Bob Cratchit, Clifford Mollison as Samuel Wilkins, a debtor, Jack Warner as Mr. Jorkin and a young Patrick Macnee as the young Jacob Marley. Fans of WW II films will recognize Michael Hordern, who was frequently typecast as a British military officer, as Marley's Ghost, as well as old Marley.
Sim's performance as Scrooge is generally regarded as the definitive portrayal of the role. In addition, the film expands on the story by detailing Scrooge's rise as a prominence which was corrupted by a greedy new mentor that supplanted the benevolent Mr. Fezziwig. When that new mentor is caught as an embezzler, the opportunistic Scrooge and Marley offer to compensate the company's losses on the condition that they receive control of the business.
The film did not attain its current popularity until about 1970, when it began to be shown on television. Until then, the most frequently seen film version was MGM's 1938 adaptation, starring Reginald Owen. The Alastair Sim version had received a favorable notice from the New York Times when it opened in 1951, but otherwise had not caused much of a stir, perhaps because it is more frightening than the MGM version. However, in the years since its first TV showings on local PBS stations, it has attained classic status. It now seems unbelievable that the film attracted so little attention back in 1951.
[edit] Featured cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Alastair Sim | Ebenezer Scrooge |
| Kathleen Harrison | Mrs. Dilber |
| Mervyn Johns | Bob Cratchit |
| Hermione Baddeley | Mrs. Cratchit |
| Michael Hordern | Jacob Marley Marley's Ghost |
| George Cole | Young Ebenezer Scrooge |
| John Charlesworth | Peter Cratchit |
| Rona Anderson | Alice |
| Glyn Dearman | Tiny Tim |
| Louise Hampton | Laundress |
[edit] External links
- Scrooge at the Internet Movie Database
