Rating: 7/10
Genre: Biographical Drama
Similar Titles: A Christmas Carol, Scrooge, Scrooged (you get it!)
By Leanne Harragan
Set in 1843, Dickens’ books were failing, his wife was expected their fifth child and with expensive renovations taking place at his house, he was struggled. When an idea struck and the end result ending up becoming one of the best selling books of all time. Watch just how Dickens changed the way Christmas is celebrated!
Having seen nothing about this film I had no idea what to expect. Apart from Dickens’ classic story being retold again! This film is definitely different from the other versions I've seen, I really enjoyed the way Charles Dickens’ own life was connected to the story. The mix between the story and his life was something I really enjoyed watching. While searching to create the perfect character for his story Dickens’ had to face up to the fact that he had acted like Scrooge himself at times and in the process of finishing the book had to come to terms with his similarities.
When I hear of Charles Dickens I only really think of his titles, and all of the things that I've learnt about his writing style. I had never thought about him as a living, breathing person with a life and family, to see him brought to life in this way was enjoyable. It was interesting to see the way his character's came to life and followed Dickens around daily, often grilling him about his inability to finish the story when suffering from writer's block.
As a British made film, the majority of the cast were Brits, which I always enjoy. Special mentions go out to Dan Stevens who played an excellent Dickens and also to Christopher Plummer's flawless performance as Scrooge.
This is definitely not one of the most ground-breaking films I've seen this year but it's worth a watch if you're a fan of other versions of this tale. It's also a cheerful Christmas film so if you're trying to get in the spirit give it a go
Rating : 7/10
By Rebecca Mannick
The Man who invented Christmas was a refreshingly new way to sort of tell the old story of ‘A Christmas Carol’. This story follows Charles Dickens and his journey in writing the Christmas classic. You pick up the story as Dickens is still on a high from writing Oliver Twist. Jump a few years later and he’s written 3 books which are flops. Riddled in debt, Dickens sets his sights on a Christmas story - however he is met with negativity and pessimism. At this time, Christmas was not as it is today. Only a few people celebrated the day of Jesus’ birth and Dickens wanted to change attitudes of those around him.
You discover the way in which he writes and how his characters come to life. How it affects his closest relationships. Also you see him tackle issues unaddressed which were holding him back.
Although this wasn’t my favourite film I could still appreciate the importance of the story. I’m also not sure of how factual this movie is. But I do know that Dan Stevens really pulled it out of the bag on this one. Without his persistent and precise performance the story wouldn’t have been told as effortlessly. It’s not a Christmas classic but if you like the story of ‘A Christmas Carol’ then this is definitely for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment