Christmas is creeping ever closer—presents maybe bought, probably not wrapped, Baileys flowing like the Thames, decorations at full twinkle. And while you’re settling into the festive haze, we’re diving headfirst into the ultimate Christmas tale: Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The man practically invented the modern Christmas… and yet somehow Hollywood keeps reinventing him. (And yes, because the universe demanded it, there’s even a brand-new Johnny Depp version on the way.)

We all adore The Muppet Christmas Carol here at TTR, but this year we’re taking the long road past Kermit and into the return of our Versus Series—pitting two adaptations that NONE of us had ever seen before. Bold? Foolish? Extremely on brand?

In the red corner: 1951’s Scrooge, starring Alastair Sim—widely hailed as the definitive Scrooge by Christmas purists.

And in the blue, motion-captured corner: Robert Zemeckis’ 2009 animated A Christmas Carol, featuring Jim Carrey playing… well… everyone.

Which film honours Dickens’ vision? Which is more entertaining? Who gives the superior “Bah Humbug”? And which one deserves a place on your festive rewatch list instead of being visited by the Ghost of Christmas Nope?

We break it all down in four categories:

🎭 Performance

📚 Faithfulness & Adaptation

🎨 Visual Representation

🎄 Entertainment

Each category scored out of 5 by each TTR host, with a final tally to crown the ultimate Christmas champion.

Grab your Baileys, wrap something (literally anything), and join us for a festive showdown of Dickensian proportions.

FULL SPOILERS FOR SCROOGE AND A CHRISTMAS CAROL IN THIS EPISODE. But you surely already know this story...

Agree with our scores? What would you score these films? We want to know!

Email us at thirdreelpod@gmail.com or through the socials @third_reel_pod

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TIMESTAMPS:

00:00:00 - Preamble

00:20:58 - Category 1: Performance

00:41:10 - Category 2: Faithfulness & Adaptation

00:53:27 - Category 3: Visual Representation

01:11:38 - Category 4: Entertainment

01:27:11 - Final Scores

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