18 thoughts on “TBT: The Muppets Christmas Carol (1992)

  1. This is my favorite film version of A Christmas Carol. Not only is the costuming great, of all the adaptations I’ve seen, its the one that is most faithful to the book. When they started with the “dead as a doornail” gag, I was literally squeeing with glee.

  2. Um, I hate to interject like this, but I saw this movie in theaters when I was 8, and I very distinctly remember seeing the “When Love is Gone” song performed by Belle. I don’t know where that narrative of “it was cut from the theatrical release” came from, but it’s a crock of bull.

    Of course, the song didn’t really register with me then as it does now, so I had no idea why Rizzo was crying afterwards. I knew Belle was leaving Scrooge, (I’d seen Mickey’s Christmas Carol before this movie), but I forgot what kind of an impact it had on Scrooge and the story hosts.

    This version of “Christmas Carol” was nowhere near as dark as some versions I’ve seen. In two other films, I actually saw Scrooge getting thrown down to hell at the end of his journey with the Ghost of Christmas Future. Talk about a wake-up call.

    Now that you mention it, it doesn’t really make sense that Belle would wait 20 years for Scrooge to marry her before finally realizing he loved the business more than her. If only 5 years had passed like you say, they should have still been wearing 1790s clothes in the “When Love is Gone” scene. But then again, they weren’t really going for anything to be totally correct in this film. Heck, I’ve seen some versions of “Christmas Carol” where in ALL the scenes, people wore the same generic Victorian fashions, even though 50-60 years had passed!

    Michael Caine actually said that “The Muppet Christmas Carol” was one of his most memorable roles, and I think he did a very good Scrooge. He looks better (and warmer) in a bathrobe than just in his nightshirt, like some versions of the story story show him in. I thought it was a nice change in his character to go from cold, brittle, scary blacks; to putting on the warm red scarf at the end.

    1. I agree! I had a vhs tape and When Love Is Gone was on that as well. I think it was cut from later releases but I very much remember rolling my eyes thru it every year.

    2. Well, I was an adult when I first saw Muppet Christmas Carol in the theater, & I’d never heard of the “When Love Is Gone” song until I started researching this post! This site http://bookriot.com/2015/12/21/anatomy-of-a-scene-the-love-is-gone-the-muppet-christmas-carol/ & others have more details about the producers cutting it from the initial theatrical release.

      The song DID make it to the first VHS run & one of the DVD prints, but not the Blu-ray or the version that’s shown on cable & Netflix today (I’ve watched it twice in the past month).

      1. I saw it in the theater and the song was there. I think it depended on where you were state wise, as to if it was included in your print. I loved the song and still do. I think the movie without it is diminished.

  3. This is one of the few versions of the story I have not seen, so I will seek it out (and watch it when my husband is elsewhere – he’d rebel!).

  4. Love it. The family makes it a Christmas tradition every year.

    The version I own has both the shorter cut and the “When Love is Gone.” We opt to watch it with the song included, even though that forces us to go widescreen — the emotional impact isn’t the same without it.

    1. My favorite Christmas Carol, tied with George C. Scott’s version. Saw it brand-new and have always loved the effort put into the Muppet characters’ clothing.

  5. Oh, Trystan!

    This post just made my day. I love the idea of a seriousl well-informed yet warmly snarky critique of historical fashions worn by Muppets in a Christmas movie.

    Love it!.

  6. Looking at the Ghost of Christmas Present reminds me of how annoyed I was when Hagrid was cast for the Harry Potter movies. He was always Ghost of Christmas Present in my head.

    1. My husband has the audio version. He especially likes Sir Patrick’s rendition of the church bells: “G-dooooiiiinggggggg!”

      1. Yes, I used to have it as well. In the stage performance, Sir Patrick did mention how today, in the 20th century, there are those who are still homeless, starving, etc and that they live in our communities, not the 3rd world.Found it something to really think about.

  7. I love this version of Dickens’ story. The costumes were so wonderful even for the muppets.

    I saw the film when it was released in 92 Christmas season and Belle’s song was in the film. So if it was cut, it wasn’t cut when it was released in New York. It may have been later in the run, they chopped the film when it was released to other cities. So disappointing because the song added a lot to the film.

  8. I know this is an old post but I love this movie. I was Mrs. Cratchit in a community theater production (Brian Way’s version) in November 2016. I hope I didn’t channel Miss Piggy. We went for generic Victorian. I was also the hair “gal”, and I made sure every woman had her hair up, if only in a bun. Thanks to this site for that info! Off topic, but I remember Belle’s song. I don’t remember if it was in the theater or on video. I’d have been about 9 when it came out.

  9. Funny connection for all you goths in the audience; Ann Hollowood, one of the costume designers for this (who also did a lot of Jim Henson stuff) was also costume designer for Clive Barker’s Nightbreed (not a period film, but still!)

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