Harry has seen the Cannes Reel from Zemeckis' A CHRISTMAS CAROL & it feels like EC's CHRISTMAS CAROL!!!

Hey folks, Harry here, and if you've been reading my twitter - you'd know I was seeing some of Robert Zemeckis' A CHRISTMAS CAROL this morning. It was being shown to me at the Alamo Village in their new Digital 4K 3D setup and dear lord was it a striking presentation. It was just Quint, Father Geek & myself sitting there with the everpresent Andrew of Disney - but I was sitting 2nd row center - to get the most out of the 3D - and WOW. The title card is a snowy shot of Victorian London - and it is breathtaking. The depth of the 3D was truly stunning. I'd seen UP in 3D last night - and honestly - I think I prefer that film in 2D - based on seeing it at the Highland Galaxy's 3D screen, but I'll see it once more in 3D when it plays the Alamo, as they have a vastly superior set up. The first scene we were shown was where Ebenezer Scrooge is in his office with Bob Cratchit and Scrooge's nephew Fred invites him to Christmas Dinner. It is one of the finest scenes of pure Scrooge - as you are to pull from Dickens - and it is a showcase for this film. Now you might wonder how a simple dialogue scene would be a showcase for the millions of dollars to create a 3D Mo-cap Holiday tentpole film - but frankly the most awkward scenes from the previous Mo-Cap films have been scenes exactly like this. It highlights everything wrong with the process. Because there is no big whizbangery at play. It's just characters talking to one another. But that's hard to get to connect with soulless dead-eyed characters that are chatting. THANKFULLY - they seem to have hurdled that issue - as the scene between Carrey's Scrooge, Gary Oldman's Bob Cratchit and Colin Firth's Christmas loving Fred... well I was instantly drawn in. Only Colin Firth's face comes through - his Fred character isn't directly him, but it isn't that far off either. This isn't the stiff look, like was painfully evident with Hopkins in BEOWULF - here - I didn't even think of Colin Firth as I watched Fred sing the praises of the Christmas season. And Carrey's Scrooge is transformed in 3D. I haven't really liked the footage I've seen on my computer screen, the design of Scrooge is created for 3D though. The folds in his skin, the hairs upon the end of his nose... and what a nose. At one level, it feels like Uncle Creepy's Scrooge - Carrey's aggressive loathing for the Christmas season is wholely Scrooge. I found none of the actor's native voice, inflections or face in the character. Perhaps a bit with the eye placement, but to me, this character was absolutely Ebenezer Scrooge. The ruddy complexion of Fred was such a contrast to the drab look of Scrooge and Cratchit's complexions - who have all the color of a coal miner's face... hidden away from light in a candlelit office with a single lump of coal burning in the fireplace. The next scene we saw was a full version of the Scrooge encounter with his old, departed partner Jacob Marley. Marley is played by Gary Oldman and he is a nightmare. He comes straight out of the pages of EC comics. The most awesome animated ghost performance that I've seen. The scene is very much ripped from the pages of Dickens, but with a dynamism that I've never seen it have before. When Marley's jaw comes undone - and you watch Gary Oldman's solution to delivering that next line. NIGHTMARES! Oh my god. SO GREAT! So horrible! At the same time, Carrey's Scrooge was believably frightened and dismissive of the ghost. Again, quoting directly from the book perfectly! After the two scenes we were treated to an extended montage of select shots throughout the film - This suddenly went from, "I'm not sure" to "SHOW ME NOW!" This is one of those great timeless tales that should be adapted for each generation - and often. We all, each of us, have a favorite version of A CHRISTMAS CAROL - mine is the 1951 telling with Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge. There's something about that version and Alastair's performance that just brings it all to life for me, but I have to say - it is amazing to see some of that book brought to life as it has never been given life before. Zemeckis is onto something with this - can't wait to see the rest!