Most people who know me, know that I’m a sucker for a good conversion story. Saint Paul. Saint Augustine. Tony Stark — from arms dealer to Iron Man. These tales provide affirmation that, yes, through grit and even grace, anyone can improve.
Probably the most popular example of redemption during the Advent and upcoming Christmas season is Ebenezer Scrooge, the protagonist of Charles Dickens’ 1843 classic piece of literature, “A Christmas Carol.” With the help of three spirits (Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet to Come), he is who a miser opens his heart to the people and joy around him.
It appears that I’m not the only one who enjoys a bad-gone-good yarn; throughout the decades, there have been many adaptations and re-interpretations of the seminal work — from Alastair Sim’s masterful take on Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol” (1951), to the Disneyfied “Mickey’s Christmas Carol” (1983), to Bill Murray’s “Scrooged” (1988), to Jim Carrey’s digital disaster “A Christmas Carol” (2009).
For my preference, however, there’s only one version of Dicken’s perennial I make sure to re-visit every December: “The Muppet Christmas Carol,” a musical classic.
From the genius of puppeteer Jim Henson, the Muppets have been a presence on television and silver screens for over 60 years. As a child of the 80s, I grew up with the anarchic and absurdist spirit of Kermit the Frog, Gonzo the Great, Miss Piggy, Crazy Harry and Fozzie Bear through “Muppet Show” reruns and movie classics such as “The Muppets Take Manhattan.”
Underneath the chaos of these characters, good humor and sweetness could be found. So it shouldn’t have been surprising to see Henson’s troupe take on “A Christmas Carol,” the ultimate transformation from dark to light.
Produced in 1992, two years after Henson’s unexpected death, “The Muppet Christmas Carol” is a fitting tribute to their founder.
Unlike past movies where these characters, for the most part, played themselves, in this holiday film, the Muppets assume Dickens’ types: the Great Gonzo is the narrator, Kermit is Bob Cratchit, and Fozzie, with a tweak of the original “Fezziwig,” becomes “Fozziwig.”
Playing Scrooge, one of the few human actors in the movie, is Michael Caine, who holds his own with his felt friends and effectively pulls off Scrooge’s conversion.
In the opening song, “Scrooge,” the English townspeople show how much they disdain the banker, as only the Muppets can do: “There goes Mr. Humbug/There goes Mr. Grim/If they gave a prize for bein’ mean, the winner would be him.”
It is clear that Scrooge’s life is his work; he has no time for family, friends or even the holiday season. Early in the movie, Scrooge exclaims to his nephew, “If I could work my will, every idiot who goes around with ‘Merry Christmas’ on his lips would be cooked with his own turkey and buried with a stake of holly through his heart.”
As he is visited by the Christmas spirits, he remembers the love of a woman, lost because of Scrooge’s own love of material gain; sees the plight of the family of his employee, Bob Cratchit, if circumstances don’t change; and witnesses his own funeral attended by few, remnants of the forgotten life of a man consumed by his own interests.
Crying as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows him his own tombstone, Scrooge understands what must be done: “These events can be changed! A life can be made right.”
Waking up on Christmas Day after the visitations, Scrooge is a changed man (sound familiar?). Soon, he is off to Cratchit’s house, to raise his salary, pay off his house, and provide a turkey dinner to the distressed family.
Before the swells of the closing song, “The Love We Found,” the narrator/Gonzo the Great describes the man with words we should all keep in our hearts: “He became as good a friend, and as good a man. … And it was always said of him that he knew how to keep Christmas well.”
However you mark these next few weeks, keep these times with your loved ones well in your hearts, and find consolation in the power of the (Holy) Spirit to guide your steps to a life of joy and generosity. As for me, I’ll be sipping egg nog and singing along to “It Feels Like Christmas.”
Peter G. Sánchez is staff writer and social media coordinator at the Catholic Star Herald.
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