'Ebenezer,' with Johnny Depp as Scrooge, opens in theaters as a new Christmas Carol retelling
Photo: The GuardianEbenezer, a new film directed by Ti West, is now in theaters as a retelling of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol, with Johnny Depp as Scrooge. The film runs 116 minutes and is rated PG-13 for frightening material. Ian McKellen plays Jacob Marley in a prologue in which Marley is still alive, and Tramell Tillman plays the Ghost of Christmas Present. The story follows the miser who is visited on Christmas Eve by ghosts of past, present and future, and it keeps the familiar beats with a few twists.
Left-leaning CBS News and The Guardian focus on the cast and craft. CBS profiles Emmy winner Tramell Tillman and his role opposite Depp. The Guardian calls the film decent and faithful, says Depp's Scrooge is better than the movie around him, and praises the Marley prologue. Right-leaning New York Post leads with Depp's career, headlining the film far from a holiday classic and framing it as his comeback after eight years, citing ex Amber Heard's abuse allegations and their defamation trial. It calls his early performance too extreme and Muppetesque, says it softens once the ghosts appear, and labels the rest of the movie mediocre. Alternative outlets /Film and Den of Geek differ: /Film calls it passionless and says Depp neither helps nor hurts, while Den of Geek frames it through Dickens' invention of the Victorian Christmas. All sides describe a largely traditional retelling, but the left praises it while the right treats the film as a vehicle for Depp's comeback.
How the sides differ Left sources call the film faithful and praise Depp; right sources focus on his comeback and call the movie mediocre.
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- The GuardianEbenezer review – Johnny Depp’s Scrooge tries to exorcise ghosts of business past
- Los Angeles TimesPaywallJohnny Depp hits the streets of London at the ‘Ebenezer’ premiere, where ghosts of Dickens’ fable abound
CBS News profiles cast member Tramell Tillman and his Ghost of Christmas Present role. The Guardian calls the film decent and faithful, praising Depp and the Marley prologue.
/Film calls it passionless and says Depp neither helps nor hurts; Den of Geek frames it through Dickens' Victorian Christmas and director Ti West's horror work.
The New York Post frames it as Depp's first major Hollywood film in eight years, citing his Heard trial, calls his opening too extreme, and calls the movie mediocre.