A Comparative Analysis: A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carols?: A Comparative Analysis

Behind all of the spirits, money, and “Humbugs”, the reworkings of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol take many unique liberties in the specifics of the piece, particularly in their choice of setting, their visualization of thematic elements, and in their characterization of the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge and those who help him (or her) to see the proverbial light. Analyzing both the diversities and correlations between Vanessa Williams’ A Diva’s Christmas Carol (as directed by Richard Shenkman) and Bill Murray’s Scrooged (as directed by Richard Donner), it is apparent how their particular approaches to Dickens’ original novella service them and set them apart from their more classic counterparts

Set in twenty-first century New York City, director Richard Shenkman took Dickens’ viewership out of Industrial Revolution era England and allowed for more modern thematic elements to arise from it. For example, in the source material, Dickens writes:

“Now, it is a fact, that there was nothing at all particular about the knocker on the door, except that it was very large. It is also a fact, that Scrooge had seen it, night and morning, during his whole residence in that place; also that Scrooge had as little of what is called fancy about him as any man in the city of London, even including—which is a bold word—the corporation, aldermen, and livery. Let it also be borne in mind that Scrooge had not bestowed one thought on Marley, since his last mention of his seven-years ' dead partner that afternoon” (Dickens,

Filling this role is Herman, a homeless man that Frank often sees on the street and inadvertently, due to his lack of compassion and harsh exterior, contributes to Herman’s fatal demise. While Donner is sure to include Herman is those whom Frank makes amends with, showing Herman among the three spirits and Hayward’s (Marley’s) ghost waving their goodbyes to Cross at the end of the film, the inclusion of this striking tragedy was bold and furthered Dickens’ themes of compassion and forgiveness found within the original novella.

Frank Cross, coming full circle from his maniacal past, soliloquizes:

Frank Cross: There are people who are having trouble making their miracle