1913 Silent Version
Today we started with the 1913 silent version from England. This is the first of two ACC movies starring Seymour Hicks as Scrooge (the 2nd being the 1935 sound version). A career role for Hicks, starting in 1901, I think he pulls it off well for his age at the time. (He was in his forties.) The movie is properly titled Scrooge but was released as Old Scrooge in the U.S. This is the title presented on my DVD copy. (This is the same DVD, previously mentioned, where the movie is coupled with the 1923 silent production). I guess the inspiration for the title’s change comes from an early scene in the movie where Scrooge is outside being taunted by a groups of boys, calling him “Old Scrooge.”
Despite the short runtime of about 40 minutes and its peculiarities, I like this version.
There are so many differences with the way the story is presented here that it would take a much longer article to go through them all.
The film begins uniquely with some brief background on Charles Dickens and we are treated to a 1913 visit to the outside of his birthplace along with an actor as Dickens sitting to write the story.
The exposition introducing us to Scrooge is quite different from versions that would come after. There is nary a hint of Dickens’ text in the placards.
People seem to travel in small packs in this version. Scrooge receives a visit from three men (that could at first be mistaken for the charity solicitors). Here, it is not his nephew alone that visits. His nephew, unnamed in this version, appears with his wife and another couple in tow. It is when the nephew appears that the dialog on the placards begins to resemble Dickens’ text. Oddly, there is only one charity solicitor (as in the later 1923 version) instead of the standard two. Half of the solicitors’ part is taken by a previous character: a poor woman (see Unique part below).
Scrooge never leaves his counting house to go home. All of the actions take place within the counting house. When Marley appears to Scrooge in the counting house, he is respectfully scary (for 1913). This is where the movie’s biggest innovation happens. Marley takes on the role of all three ghosts to pose the past, present, and future to Scrooge. I can’t fathom the reason for this particular innovation and leave it up to Dickens experts or film experts to sort out.
With Marley “representing” the Ghosts (his own word), Scrooge doesn’t actually visit the events but rather experiences them as visions presented by Marley’s ghost. At times, Marley stands as presenter with an outstretched arm as the visions appear. I mention this because I wonder if it was the inspiration for how some the 1923 version, also English, was presented. Ten years later in the poor 1923 version, Scrooge’s experiences are also done as visions in his bedroom with the Ghosts sometimes taking a very similar pose done by Marley here.
This has a version of the too often used, non-novella scene where we see Scrooge visiting the Cratchits’ home for Christmas dinner. But to prevent it from being too far a deviation from the story, it is rendered as an imagining the reformed Scrooge sees in his mind before going off to his nephew’s. In Scrooge’s fantasy, he actually holds a sprig of holly over Mrs. Crachit’s head and kisses her! This is also a rare Mrs. Cratchit that is portly.
Unique
There are two particular unique bits I find interesting.
The first is the appearance of a poor woman with a baby at the counting house. Before the charity solicitor appears, a poor woman with a baby comes into Scrooge & Marley for some Christmas charity. She takes on part of the role of one of the charity solicitors where Scrooge delivers some of his well-known anti-charity lines.
The second is the time when the visions are finished and Scrooge is reformed. It is still Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day.
1910 Silent Version
The 1910 silent version is an uneventful affair that was done by Edison Studios, the movie company owned by Thomas Edison. It runs a bit under fifteen minutes. The runtime alone is a good gauge to not expect much in the way of getting a decent version. I do take it in the context of its time and don’t think it’s actually that bad; I just don’t care much for it, personally.
Like the 1923 silent version, it’s interesting for the historical value among the various ACCs. Unless you’re a hardcore ACC fanatic, you may not find it that exciting. This is still the early days of film entertainment so it has to be seen with that perspective.
It is widely available around the web to view. It is available on DVD in a collection of silent film holiday shorts called A Christmas Past.
We all know the story so let’s quickly state some of its quirks.
This is another version where Scrooge experiences visions instead of visiting locations. Anticipating the regretful 1923 version, all the visions take place in Scrooge’s bedroom.
We get the ghost of Jacob Marley but only one other ghost. An entity called the Spirit of Christmas shows Scrooge the various visions of past, present and future. After each timeframe the ghost disappears and reappears with the slightest alteration.
Want and Ignorance are changed to Want and Misery.
We have the deviation of Scrooge visiting the Cratchits for Christmas dinner, but first stops at his nephew and his wife’s home to bring them along to the Cratchits’ home.
Unique
Absolutely unique to this version:
The vision for a Christmas yet to come has Scrooge witnessing his death with the charwoman at the bedside. As soon he dies, the charwoman steals a ring from his finger.
25 Days of A Christmas Carol 