'A Christmas Carol'

'A Christmas Carol' (09) (PG) ***

Written and Directed by Robert Zemeckis
Starring: Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Robin Wright Penn, Bob Hoskins, Cary Elwes

Robert Zemeckis's version of "A Christmas Carol" is a faithful and jazzy update of the Christmas classic filmed in 3D. I am not sure the 3D effect is really needed because It think it would look better in 2D. It might be just me but I can't get comfortable looking at a 3D movie. It sometimes distracts me from getting involved in the movie. The movie though does look very beautiful and the motion capture animation is getting better and looks less creepy than it did in "The Polar Express". Jim Carrey is awesome as Scrooge and also as one of the three ghosts. He is somewhat the ideal choice to play Scrooge and is way better than he was in the other creepy Disney film "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas". The movie might be a little scary for young kids but kids have been watching other versions of the story for generations and it hasn't scarred them. There are a lot of cool special effects in the movie but I like that they stick with the meat of the story and don't let the effects take over. So this is a fun movie and it is a blast experiencing Jim Carrey do what he does best. I like the 50's version of "A Christmas Carol" better but this is a job well done and worth revisiting for Christmas.