Ebbie

Truly touching and wonderfully human update of the classic Dickens tale... a memorable scene in the early part of the film (ghost of Christmas Past)where a young Ebbie(Lucci at her most stunning) recalls a troubling childhood incident involving a stray kitten is particularly heartwarming. Lucci displays her full spectrum of talent portraying Ebbie's transformation from young innocent to savvy (albeit cold-hearted)business executive, and layers what might have been a hackneyed performance with levels of complexity....her performance at the film's finale gives new meaning to what could have quite simply been just tripe.

Why is it taking so long to release this "classic" on DVD? Don't miss it!

I watched this movie last night on Lifetime and really enjoyed it. This is a classic tale that has been re-tooled for the modern audience. Whether you like Susan Lucci or the other actors is irrelevant as the focus should be on the story which is a great reminder that we all need to be kinder to one another every day and not just once a year. This movie is right up there with "The House Without A Christmas Tree" as one of my favorite holiday flicks. I thought Susan Lucci and the entire cast did an excellent job bringing this treasure to life. I hope that it will be released on DVD at some point so that it can be enjoyed by everyone. It is so easy to forget what is important in life and this film is a great wake-up call.

Before Ms. Scrooge, there was this film, one of only two that I am aware of with a female Scrooge.

Susan Lucci was just perfect in the role of Elizabeth (Ebbie) Scrooge, but it was the Christmas Ghosts that really stole the show.

George Kaczender (Christmas on Division Street) has another hit with this film that is based on Dickens' novel.

Wendy Crewson (Santa Clause, Santa Clause 2, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause) plays Roberta 'Robbie' Cratchet, a single mom with two children, including Tiny Tim.

Jennifer Clement and Nicole Parker were fantastically cute as the Ghosts of Christmas Past. They had a "Dreamgirls" look at first, then switched to an "I Dream of Genie" look. It was certainly a different twist.

Lorena Gale (Premonition, Slither) was the Ghost of Christmas present and was so funny in that role.

Molly Parker from "Deadwood" was the sister/niece.

This was an interesting and light version that was really enjoyable.

I've seen many versions of A CHRISTMAS CAROL and can find something good about each of them. My least favorite version (of those I've watched) is SCROOGED, because I find it too hyperkinetic and not all together. Even that one has redeeming qualities. EBBIE is something new and different. Not only is Dicken's timely-for-all-times tale brought into contemporary times, but SCROOGE is a woman--and played by one of my favorite soap opera characters, Susan Lucci. All of the technical aspects (e.g. the way Jake Marley communicates with God by cell-phone when dealing with getting Ebbie in the right spirit; the way that the familiar death scene [once portrayed by a neglected tombstone with Scrooge's name on it] is portrayed by the flat-line signal sound of a heart monitor in a lonely hospital room) sends out the clear message that this fine old Christmas tale hits home these days just as it did in the mid 1800's.

I have seen a 'classic' film version of A Christmas Carol, set in Dickensian times and starring Patrick Stewart and Richard E. Grant. I have also seen a funny children's version, starring Michael Caine and Jim Henson's excellent Muppets. 'Ebbie' is the first modernised version I have seen. It is always interesting to watch modernised versions of classic tales, even if they are not always good. The thing I wasn't sure about was the decision to make nearly all the main characters female, not a feminist thing as the IMDB tells me it was written by two men. It is interesting to see Scrooge as a woman, this was a good decision. It was also necessary to make Scrooge's nephew into a niece, to make her more similar to her beloved sister, even using the same actress (budget problems? - the spirits are also played by other characters from the film). But I wondered if it was pointless to have Roberta Cratchett, a single parent, as well as most of the spirits being female. Brilliant acting from Susan Lucci, an excellent actress whose only other notable role seems to be on the soap 'All My Children'. Look out for Wendy Crewson from 'Air Force One' as Roberta.