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A CHRISTMAS CAROL
Release date: November 16, 2010
Blu-ray version (some materials may not
appear on the DVD version)
 Move aside Mister Magoo, Mickey Mouse and Muppets, “A Christmas Carol” is back and this
time Jim Carrey, thru Motion Capture technology, offers his take on the crotchety old Ebeneezer Scrooge. Although my initial reaction when I heard about the movie is that the Motion Capture is nothing more than a gimmick, I’ve now drastically changed my tune.
The Motion Capture is visually extraordinary, and an ideal medium of choice to create effects that might not have been possible with any other type of animation or live action. For the most part, I was captivated by the story, but distracted by the Motion Capture at times only to think, “That is so cool!” or occasionally, “How did they do that?!”
While I don’t have a ghost of a chance of describing the unique appearance with accuracy in text, the effects such as the
materialization of the various ghosts is no less than hauntingly stunning, and the Motion Capture allowed the ability to create the characters
as close exactly as envisioned for this version, rather than trying to find actors with the best characteristics or succumbing to the limitations of traditional or computer animation.
I imagine this telling of “A Christmas Carol” is the closest to what Charles Dickens originally imagined when
he penned the story back in 1843.
BONUS FEATURES:
BLU-RAY EXCLUSIVE: BEHIND THE CAROL: THE FULL MOTION CAPTURE EXPERIENCE (14:43) shows various aspects of the unique Motion Capture process, while hearing from the cast and crew along the way. There’s plenty of behind the scenes footage, too. All this is humorously tied together with your hostess, the very entertaining Jacquie Barnbrook, who had a number of roles in the film, including Mrs. Fezziwig and Fred’s sister-in-law.
ON SET WITH SAMMI – A KID’S EYE VIEW (1:52) brings you around the set with Sammi Hanratty who plays a number of roles including the young Crachit girl. Here you follow Sammi from initial makeup to filming. Although only a couple minutes long, it offers a more personal view of a single performer’s experience in technologically enchanting film.
There are a total of six DELETED SCENES (8:39). More than just seeing some scenes that were cut, what’s really cool with this is that none of the scenes are completely finished, so you really get some addition great insight into the process.
While I wish there was more behind the scenes footage, there’s still a great amount of fantastic findings on here.
I hope this has helped you to know what the Dickens is on this blu-ray!
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