Scrooged

Rating:
Summary: "Have you tried staples?" Bill Murray does Scrooge!
Review: Christmas movies are fun. I like Christmas movies because they're generally nice, lightweight, enjoyable pieces of fluff with important moralistic messages ("It's a Wonderful Life," "Scrooge") or sometimes they're just fun to watch ("Gremlins," "Home Alone").

"Scrooged" isn't lightweight, cheery, or happy. It's dark, brooding, sort of evil, and it's the only Christmas movie I can think of that seems as if Tim Burton directed it.

Am I insulting the film? Heavens, no. I love it. In fact, I'm complimenting it. Instead of repeating old traditions, it's trying something new, and the secret to the film is the way it actually pulls it all off.

The plot: Frank Cross is the youngest television station president in recorded history because he knows the people. At least he thinks he does. In reality, he's just a greedy tycoon who gives people bath towels for Christmas -- including his own brother.

Cross is a modern day Scrooge, and the movie "Scrooged" is a modern reworking of the classic Charles Dickens story. Frank Cross is played by Bill Murray absolutely perfectly. He's cynical, dry, and sarcastic, and doesn't give a darn about anyone else other than himself.

So the night before Christmas Eve, Frank is visited by an old business partner -- who has been dead for seven years. ("I wouldn't have guessed more than three, tops," says Frank in his usual sarcastic tone.) His old associate warns Frank to change his ways or he'll end up like himself -- angry, bitter...and dead.

Frank doesn't pay any attention to his "hallucination," and continues being his usual self during the festive Christmas holiday -- by ripping off old ladies' cabs and firing Elliot (Bobcat Goldthwait) on Christmas Eve. (Elliot is sort of today's version of Bob Cratchitt.)

Frank is putting on a Christmas Eve production of Charles Dickens' immortal classic "Scrooge" (what happened to "A Christmas Carol," I wonder?), and in the film's funniest scene, introduces his ad for the program. (It later scares an old woman to death and Frank takes it as a wonderful sign -- controversy is as good as advertising!)

The three ghosts do indeed come and haunt Frank. Except Frank is more cynical than Ebenezer Scrooge ever was, and convincing him that Christmas is a season of giving will be hard. (Frank: "I get it, you're here to show me my past and I'm supposed to get all dully eyed and mushy. Well forget it pal, you got the wrong guy.")

Frank is revisited by an old flame (Karen Allen) and his heart starts to beat once again after years of silence. Frank slowly but surely starts to learn to appreciate Christmas once again, following all of Scrooge's examples. His intern's son, who witnessed his father's murder and hasn't spoken since, is a sort of Tiny Tim, and "Scrooged" does indeed follow all of the elements of Charles Dickens' classic. Only it updates the tale, throws in a bunch of cameos, and great acting on Murray's behalf.

Frank revisits scenes from his childhood and adulthood first hand with the wacky ghosts as companions. They can't see or hear Frank -- his cab driver ghost tells him that he's in the middle of a rerun.

Frank remembers how his father brought him meat for Christmas, how he broke up with his girlfriend over a matter of greed vs. happiness, and how his life was a complete waste. (Ghost: "Let's face it, Frank, garden slugs got more out of life than you." Frank: "Yeah? Name one!")

It was a matter of time before "A Christmas Carol," or "Scrooge," got a modernized treatment. And it comes out fresh and ingenious, dark and hilarious. The movie owes its entire success to the casting of Bill Murray, whose cynical ways shone through in such early films as "Stripes" and "Ghostbusters," and here compliment the film the way no other actor's talent could.

Take, for example, the way he can remain unmoved but, at the same time, flippant and sarcastic, towards his boss when he tells Frank that cats and dogs are starting to watch television, and that he thinks Frank should target some advertising at the canine and feline demographic. Frank just stares at his boss as if he's crazy and whispers, "Call the cops."

The movie was directed by Richard Donner ("Lethal Weapon"), and is one of the films I watch as an annual tradition around Christmas. It's dark and often quite disturbing, and its eerie music adds to the mix. But it helps the film because it makes us see through Frank's eyes. And the outcome is, quite frankly, an instant Christmas classic. This is a film I'll be watching for years, and so far, it's only been getting better every time.

Rating:
Summary: Bill Murray Rocks
Review: This is a great movie for kids and adults. You can watch it all year long. I must have watched it about 20 times and will watch it again and again. This is one of my favorite movies of all time. If you have not seen it yet you are really missing out on a funny, feel good movie.

Rating:
Summary: Good Christmas movie - bad any other time
Review: I watched this at Christmas, but if I'd watched it any other time, I definitely wouldn't have enjoyed it. Its just those certain movies you can't watch at certain times - like watching a romcom on Valentine's, not a good idea.

Unfortunately, I found this slow to start with. Too long an introduction to Frank Cross (Bill Murray) as the grumpy TV producer person. It really kicked off when the first of the three ghosts appeared - and I found myself reliving my childhood! I loved this book by Charles Dickens as a child, although I was a bad girl, and always skipped to the bit where the ghosts started appearing. I could have done with a skipper on this movie too.

The lovely Karen Allen appears as Frank Cross' ex-girlfriend. I had trouble placing her face, and had to ask - and got the response with a big sigh. I loved her in Starman, and she was great in this movie. The thing about Karen Allen is she has a really nice smile, and makes me want to smile too! I haven't seen her in enough films.

The big singsong was brilliant at the end, and was the highlight of the film for me. Keep watching the credits too, for an extra short bit of Bill Murray doing a little dance.

If you have or want this DVD, don't watch it until the run-up to Christmas. Definitely not one you can watch any other time - unlike A Mom For Christmas (Olivia Newton John, which I think was another TV movie!). I can watch that anytime, and still cry!

Rating:
Summary: Bill Murray plays Scrooge in this modern inner-city version.
Review: If you have seen every version of "Scrooge" and "A Christmas Carol" and are bored with it all, well here is a version that will have you laughing. "Scrooged" (1998) makes fun of all those old versions you have already seen. Bill Murray (NBC Saturday Night Live, 1977-1980) plays "Scrooge" and he is a tv network president who dislikes Christmas and the spirit of it. He will fire anyone that is good and has good sense. What is fun are the cameo appearances and the familar faces of actors we like to see. Lee Majors, Robert Goulet, Harry Shearer, Alfre Woodard, John Houseman, Buddy hackett, Jamie Farr, Mary Lou Retton, Bobcat Goldthwait, Robert Mitchum, John Glover, Brian Doyle Murray, David Sanborn, Paul Shaffer, Karen Allen, Rebeca Archerd, Michael J. Pollard, Logan Ramsey, Anne Ramsey and Mabel King. John Forsythe plays "Lew Hayward". David Johansen plays "Ghost of Christmas Past". Carol Kane plays "Ghost of Christmas Present".

Rating:
Summary: Great for its Stupidity - I Mean This in a Nice Way
Review: First off, I would like to correct the individual who referred to Groundhog Day as a 1983 film and used it as an exaple of Murray's first holiday-themed movie. Groundhog Day was actually made around 1993, I believe.
Anyway, the fun thing about this movie is that it is so dumb. But then again, it had to be in order to get our attention. After all, how many times can hollywood re-make Christmas Carol? Even as I write this, I feel that I will be misrepresenting my own opinions by saying so, but what I mean is that this is dumb in the sense that enjoyment of it does not necessitate brain use. It is fun for fun's sake, which even the elitist snobs of the world such as myself have to recognize as perfcetly legitimate. (And of course it has the traditional "love thy neighbor, give to the poor, God bless us, everyone" ending, which is not a total loss.)
My personal favorite touches are the golf balls and mice falling out of the back of the moth-eaten head of Jacob Marley's character - they changed the name in this movie but what they changed it to escapes me at the moment - as well as the wonderful performance on the part of David Johansen as the deliciously obnoxious cab driver/Ghost of Christmas Past who obviously fell out of the crazy tree and hit every branch en route to terra firma. In addition, fans of his singing will experience waves of nostalgia at the marvelous and familiar gravel that we refer to as his voice.

Rating:
Summary: "What about my bonus?" "Towel or a facecloth?"
Review: In 1988, Richard Donner (who directed the 1976 horror film "The Omen", the 1978 film "Superman" and all four "Lethal Weapon" films between 1987 and 1998) directed the hilarious film "Scrooged", which is a modernized remake of the classic Charles Dickens' short story "A Christmas Carol". The film stars the well-known actor/comedian Bill Murray as Francis 'Frank' Xavier Cross, the "Ebenezer Scrooge" character of the film. Frank is a high-rolling, power-hungry, penny-pinching TV executive who decides to produce a live version of the classic "A Christmas Carol" on his TV station on Christmas Eve. His secretary, Grace Cooley (Alfre Woodard), is the "Bob Cratchit" of the story. With several children to raise, including her seemingly autistic son Calvin (Nicholas Phillips)--the "Tiny Tim" of the story, Grace has no choice but to begrudgingly work for Frank underpaid and under appreciated. When Frank's boss, Preston Rhinelander (Robert Mitchum, 1917-1997), decides that Frank needs as assistant, the brown-nosing Bryce Cummings (John Glover), Frank becomes extremely jealous; but Frank's problems are only beginning when the ghost of a former coworker, Lou Hayward (John Forsythe), pays him a visit.

There are many memorable scenes in the film including Frank reliving part of his childhood with the taxi-driving Ghost of Christmas Past (David Johansen), Frank reliving meeting his former girlfriend Claire Phillips (Karen Allen) who works in a homeless shelter, Frank seeing his brother James Cross (played by Bill Murray's actual brother, John Murray) and his family celebrating Christmas with the hilarious Ghost of Christmas Present (Carol Kane), Frank being terrorized by a fired employee Eliot Loudermilk (Bobcat Goldthwait), Frank meeting the Ghost of Christmas Future (Chaz Conner, Jr.), Frank thinking that a waiter is on fire, the various accidents that the TV censor (Kate McGregor-Stewart) endures, and the ending scenes. Several cameo appearances include Jamie Farr, Robert Goulet, Buddy Hackett, John Houseman, Lee Majors, Pat McCormick and Mary Lou Retton (who Frank wants to portray his TV "Tiny Tim").

There is no way to know whether Charles Dickens (1812-1870) would like this modern remake of his classic story, but I believe that he would love the fact that his story remains just as powerful, entertaining and inspiring today as it was when it was first published in 1843. Overall, I rate "Scrooged" with 5 out of 5 stars for its superb use of poetic license, great humor, engaging plot and wonderful dialog. It has become a Yuletide classic itself that I never tire of watching each year.

Rating:
Summary: Bill Murray the goofy verson of Ebenezer Scrooge.
Review: A 5-Star movie by bill murray ever! Let me give you a little background about the movie by the famous paramount pictures.
Bill Murray plays a Evil President of tv named Frank Cross He looked at a lot of Christmas Promos, then he requested his own promo about Scrooge and It sounds like this.... [Scrooge promo plays]: "Acid rain. AAH. AAH. Drug addiction. Unh, Unh. International terrorisim. BOOM! Freeway Killers. [Shotgun blasted]. [I don't know the other words].... See Dickins' immortal clasic Scrooge. Your life might just depend on it."
Then [Record scratched]. Hey if you want all the information, Watch the movie ok?

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BEST BILL MURRAY MOVIES EVER!!!
Review: If you love Bill Murray and you love Christmas, then this modern tale of Scrooge will knock your socks off! It is one of the best Christmas movies that I have ever seen! Bill Murray is a self-centered television executive who is visited by three ghosts in an attempt to make him a better man. All that I can say is excellent, excellent, excellent!!! The best part is that you don't just have to watch this movie around Christmas. It's great all year round. So, throw some popcorn in the microwave and watch this baby with your loved one. There are a couple of scenes that may be a little too intense for younger viewers. Definitely check out this movie!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: The Modern Scrooge
Review: With Modern Spirits. Absolutely hilarious, and still captures the ideas that Dickens was trying to communicate. I am especially fond of Christmas Present, since I think it captures the modern spirit- a tongue-in-cheek social commentary. Worth adding to your collection of Christmas Carol adaptations.

Rating:
Summary: Scrooged
Review: This is a classic tale of scrooge with a little twist from Bill Murray. I am a Bill Murray fan, and just love this movie. It sort of puts a new age spin to the old tale of scrooge. This movie was made in the late 80s, but still stands the test of time. This is a great Christmas movie and is a good buy for a complete Christmas collection. The movie is geared more towards adults.