Christmas 2021: December 1st

It's been a couple of years since I tried to do a Christmas movie marathon in December. It almost always goes off the rails quickly, as the end-of-the-year is a hectic time for me. However, I've thought about it for a while and decided to give it another shot here in 2021. No guarantees this will last more than three days but here we go anyway: Film Thoughts' 2021 Christmas marathon. 

Scrooge (1935)

There have been so many different adaptations of Charles Dickens' “A Christmas Carol” over the years, that you could easily watch one every day of December and still have some left over for next year. I've reviewed most of the well known adaptations of Dickens' classic tale of ghosts and redemption over these various scattered Christmas marathons. Yet I've rarely considered which cinematic “Carol” was the first. There had been several adaptations of the story throughout the silent era, all of which were shorts of varying length and several of which are lost. The first feature length sound version of Dickens' oft-told tale was made in Britain in 1935. Despite its historical significance, this “Scrooge” is rarely discussed. Let me see why that is.

As I do anytime I discuss a version of Dickens' story, I have to acknowledge that there's no point in recounting the plot. Instead, it's far more productive to discuss how this “Scrooge” is different from all the others. Director Henry Edwards and screenwriter H. Fowler Mear maintain much of Dickens' dialogue. However, they excise many well-known episodes from the book, such as everything concerning Scrooge's childhood. The Ghost of Christmas Past sequence focuses solely on his relationship with Belle. A long sequence is devoted to the royal Christmas party, highlighting the class division of the 1800s. This is also, I believe, the only version of “A Christmas Carol” where we actually see Tiny Tim's corpse. However, this “Scrooge” is probably most notable for what it doesn't show. Three of the four ghosts are left largely off-screen. 

One of the main reasons I wanted to check out this particular iteration of “Scrooge,” aside from its historical significance, is that Wikipedia points out that its visuals were heavily influenced by German Expressionism. The film is not quite the “Caligari”-style variation on Dickens' tale that I hoped for. However, the shadows are quite heavy here. This Scrooge's London looks quite bleak and dark indeed. The decision to leave most of the ghosts off-screen create several intriguing visuals. Marley is rendered totally as a voice. The Ghost of Christmas Present appears a shimmering silhouette. Most atmospheric is The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, depicted only as the shadow of a pointing finger on the wall. Scrooge's face is always framed by this shadow as he watches the visions of the future. The scenes where Old Joe pass around the dead Scrooge's possession is so shadowy and sinister, it really feels like something out of a horror movie.

Any cinematic “Carol” is really only as good as its Scrooge. Sir Seymour Hicks had played Scrooge multiple times on-stage before committing his take on the character to celluloid. It's a very grouchy version of the famous old miser. In the early scenes, Hicks' Scrooge barks and coughs at the charity collectors. Short and wrinkled, he strikes the viewer as a rather toad-like Scrooge. Hicks is more convincing as an ill-temptered old man than he is as a redeemed one. The scene where Hicks begs to be shown no more of his past is not convincing at all. His Christmas morning bliss feels less than natural. Only a brief shot of him crying while overhearing Tiny Tim singing made me feel any emotion. 

Generally speaking, this “Scrooge” feels rather rushed. It cuts out enough of Dickens' story that many sequences feel underserved. The Christmas Past scenes sail right by. The Christmas Present scene includes an odd digression of sailors celebrating on a boat but excises the Children of Ignorance and Want. The future scenes are better handled but the film's conclusion is oddly truncated. This version of Scrooge never actually meets with Tiny Tim in-the-flesh, deeply cheapening whatever affect the boy's condition had on the old man. This is one of the rare adaptations to focus more on the earlier scenes of urban decay in 1840s London, than on the supernatural visitations that make up the story's meat. 

Ultimately, this “Scrooge” simply can't summon up emotions, like the best versions can. While Hicks makes for a compelling Scrooge, the character's transformation is never keenly felt by the audience. Downplaying the supernatural in favor of the historical setting, while ramping up the spooky visuals, was a novel approach. In effect, it just removes most of the stuff people actually like about this story. Despite being the first feature adaptation, this one's obscurity is probably owed to its general mediocrity. The 1938 version would overshadow it, which was then overshadowed by the 1951 adaptation. (Still the best of the classic Scrooges, in my opinion.) The film is in the public domain so, naturally, can be found for free on any number of websites. Most of the prints are of rather poor quality, with even the best available copies being overly dark. [6/10]

Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree (1995)

As I've said in the past, the Muppets and Christmas are synonymous for me. Their version of the “Christmas Carol” was an annual presence in my childhood VHS player. I assume the connection is true for other people, as Jim Henson had been creating holiday specials starring his trademark creations since the seventies. In 1995, the Henson Company would put together another half-hour of holiday cheer, designed to air in prime time. “Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree” was based on an apparently beloved children's book by Robert Barry, with Kermit the Frog being added as a narrator. Produced by Nabisco, the star-studded production aired on CBS on December 5th, 1995 and has been rarely re-broadcast since then. 

Mr. Willowby is a very rich man and, every December, he has the perfect Christmas tree brought into his home. Unbeknownst to the man and his butler, a family of mice have stowed away inside the tree. The rodents are searching for their own perfect tree. Willowby has his butler saw off the top of the too-tall tree and tosses it out... Which is then picked up by a family of bears, who use the tree in their own holiday traditions, before removing the top portion of their tree. Onward, the cycle goes, passing through different families, before the mice are finally presented with a tree that is just the right size for them. 

Fitting enough for the season, “Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree” is a movie about holiday traditions. Mr. Willowby's tree erecting ceremony is only the event that sets off the chain reaction. His upstairs tenet, a Swedish woman, explains her St. Lucia Day festival to Baxter, the incredulous butler. The bears have their own odd holiday tradition, licking honey pots clean that they hang on a tree. This leads to a very odd sequence, of owls singing strange songs as they go through their own December pattern. All of this proceeds, of course, the mice family doing their own Christmas thing. And each party thinks their Christmas tradition is the most perfect one and they are right, of course. Every family has their own way of celebrating.

“Mr. Willowboy's Christmas Tree” was produced a year before “Muppets Tonight!” started out and the special has a similar visual approach. The sets are limited and the direction is often stationary, feeling a lot like a variety show. This approach does leash the ingenuity of the muppet performers a little bit. The bear sequence rather clearly features several men in suits. Yet one can not underestimate the appeal of the Muppets. The puppetry work adds an inherently likable quality to all their scenes. The sequences set inside the mice's little homes or crawl space are really adorable. Kermit's screen time may be limited but the jolly frog is always a welcomed face.

Ultimately, whatever charm “Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree” only goes so far. The narrative is repetitive and the audience quickly deduces in what way. The music is similarly repeated, the special only having one song it plays different variations of throughout its short run time. The non-muppet cast is an oddball collection of performers. Robert Downey Jr., around the same time he became notorious for his drug problems than his acting ability, plays Mr. Willowby as a wide-eyed fop that strings together made-up words. Leslie Nielsen gets one or two laughs during the St. Lucia Day scene, taking it straight. Stockard Channing puts on a not-totally-convincing accent as the Swedish woman upstairs. Despite a lot of factors in its favor, “Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree” is a little too slight to be worth a recommendations. [6/10]