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May 02, 2024, 08:31:08 PM  | Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011/United States) Trailer |IMDb |Wikipedia |
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Stars:
Tom Hanks as Thomas Schell
Thomas Horn as Oskar Schell
Sandra Bullock as Linda Schell
Zoe Caldwell as Oskar's Grandmother
Dennis Hearn as Minister
Paul Klementowicz as Homeless Man
Plot:Extras:
- Scene Access
- Featurettes
- Digital Copy
My Thoughts:
I decided to watch this one today in honor of Sandra Bullock's birthday. As most of you know... I am a huge fan of hers. Though she doesn't have a huge part in this film... as most the film follows around their son. While I found this to be a very good film. It is also very slow. And I did feel my attention to go elsewhere at times. But it kept my attention for the most part. It is definitely one I think is worth checking out.My Rating:
Out of a Possible 5
Out of a Possible 5
(From Weekend Movie Marathon: The Blu-ray Experience on July 26th, 2013)
Member's Reviews
A Christmas Carol, a review by Antares
A Christmas Carol
Year: 1938
Film Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Genre: Drama, Classic
Length: 69 Min.
Director
Edwin L. Marin
Writer
Charles Dickens (1812)...Original Material By
Hugo Butler...Screenwriter
Producer
Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1909)
Cinematographer
Sidney Wagner (1901)
John F. Seitz (1892)
MusicStars
Reginald Owen (1887) as Ebenezer Scrooge
Gene Lockhart (1891) as Bob Cratchit
Kathleen Lockhart (1894) as Mrs. Cratchit
Terry Kilburn (1926) as Tiny Tim Cratchit
Barry MacKay as Fred
Lynne Carver as Bess
Leo G. Carroll (1886) as Jacob Marley's ghost
Lionel Braham as Spirit of Christmas Present
Review
For oh so many years, the holiday season has meant for me, my yearly viewing of my favorite Charles Dickens story, A Christmas Carol. This story has been told so many times throughout the years, that I think it possible to play every version and variation back to back, and not repeat an instance for the entire twelve days of Christmas. The truth be told, I generally will only watch three versions of this classic tale, which I rate in this order: Scrooge (1951) Alastair Sim, A Christmas Carol (1984) George C. Scott and if I'm looking for a somewhat 'entertaining' version, the musical Scrooge (1970) Albert Finney. The criteria I look for in an adaptation of Dickens tale of redemption are the following; (1) Ebenezer Scrooge must be mean, miserly and completely loathsome in his pre-conversion personality, (2) the narrative must stay as close to the original story as possible and (3) the settings in the film must portray London as it was during Dickens time. A cold, dreary and unforgiving city, where fortune smiles upon the few, at the cost of the many.
Throughout the years, I have watched almost every version of this story put to celluloid. But for some unknown reason, I never came to view the MGM version from 1938, starring Reginald Owen as Scrooge. Well, after finally righting this wrong, I find that I wasn't missing much. This is by far, the worst adaptation of my favorite Christmas classic. Not only does it fail to meet the requisites I mentioned in the previous paragraph, but the performances as a whole, are wholly unbelievable and largely over the top. Terry Kilburn, who was outstanding as four generations of the Colley family, in Goodbye Mr. Chips, plays Tiny Tim as if he's suffering from an intake of too much sugar, topped with a dollop of ADD. He's too manic and cheery to play the suffering, yet hopeful cherub. Gene Lockhart, who is one of my favorite character actors, is woefully miscast as Bob Cratchit, Scrooge's destitute clerk. One look at Lockhart does not create visions of a man struggling to feed his large family, on the contrary, it looks more like he has gorged himself at an all you can eat buffet.
And finally, the story goes that MGM had initially intended for this film to made with Lionel Barrymore in the lead role. Barrymore had been reciting the story on radio every yuletide season for years, and his recitation was so popular, that MGM decided that it would be a perfect vehicle for his acting talent. The cast was hired, the crew was in place and the sets were completed. But an unfortunate accident on the set of another picture would derail the project, Barrymore had fallen and broken his leg, and would be unable to play the lead. In my eyes, it would be a stroke of fortune for one of my favorite actors of the period, as he would miss out on participating in this train wreck of MGM interpretation. Chosen to take his place, at Barrymore's suggestion, was Reginald Owen, a long time bit player and character actor. This would be Owen's lone starring role and he must have decided to make the most of it. First, his appearance is almost comical as opposed to despicable. While I was watching I had a sense of a cross between the wizard from The Wizard of Oz and any adult character from How the Grinch Stole Christmas. His hunched over, hobbling gait looks forced and without any sense of believability. And finally, his delivery of many of the famous quips from Scrooge are entirely over the top.
If you have never watched any versions of Dicken's timeless classic, steer clear of this debacle, it's a complete waste of time. But if you're the type that adds sugar to your Cap'n Crunch, because it's 'just not sweet enough', then this version may be to your liking.
Ratings Criterion
(From A Christmas Carol (1938) on December 4th, 2009)
Member's TV Reviews
Angel Marathon, a review by addicted2dvd
Angel: Season 1
16. The Ring
Original Air Date: 2/29/2000
An investigation leads Angel to an underground gladiator-like arena where he is captured, then forced to fight to the death with other demons in order to win his freedom.
Guest Stars:
Markus Redmond
Douglas Roberts
Scott William Winters
Stephanie Romanov
My Thoughts:
A good episode... but really just a filler episode. I liked the storyline though.
My Rating:
(From Angel Marathon on February 27th, 2010)