The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a great movie associated with the holiday season. Many will be awesome, some will be extra awesome. Enjoy.

Day 9: “Mister Scrooge to See You”

Opened Doors: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8

Every new holiday season brings along new memories. There are many traditions we follow, but sometimes the classic way of doing things gets changed a little bit. Sometimes we have changed our traditions so much that they look very different from what our ancestors would do in their heyday. In order to get back to what is important, we need to remember why our celebrations became such an important part of our lives. Sometimes a reluctant, and confused, time traveler from the past needs to be that reminder.

“Mister Scrooge to See You” was unceremoniously released to the world in November of 2013. The film had no television premier, it did not play in theaters, but the new movie from .a small religious studio was made and released. It is currently one of the holiday offerings for Amazon Prime members. Folks, this is a real movie.

Let’s start with the plot of “Mister Scrooge to See You”. The story starts one year after Ebenezer Scrooge had his awakening by the ghost of Jacob Marley and three spirits. Good old Scrooge is busting with the Christmas spirit and has decided to make his clerk, Bob Cratchit, a true partner in Scrooge’s firm. The old name of Scrooge and Marley is going to be replaced with Scrooge and Cratchit. Good old Ebenezer is truly a changed man. He is so full of the Christmas spirit that the Ghost of Jacob Marley sends Scrooge into the future. Wisconsin 2013 to be precise.

Once in his new surroundings, a mildly confused Scrooge starts to get his bearings. He meets a nice lady who owns a diner and learns that his company Scrooge and Cratchit is now based in this Wisconsin town. To make matters more intriguing, the head of the firm is one Timothy Cratchit the VI, and he is a really old pre holiday cheer Scrooge type. It is up to the old / new Scrooge to make not as tiny Tim Cratchit the VI see the errors of his way. In the end holiday joy is once again restored.

“Mister Scrooge to See You” is not a good movie. From a production standpoint it is quite terrible. The effects are really, really bad. The script needed a few rewrites to tighten it up. Most of the plot makes no damn sense, and the religious themes thrown in do not help to keep the logic of the film on track. Nearly ever actor in the movie is more suited for a local community theater, except for David Rupprecht, the man who plays Scrooge. Ruprecht is not great, but he is competent. He is the only one of the cast with any significant acting experience, highlighted by his time as host of the game show “Supermarket Sweep”. Outside of that, this movie is terrible, but it doesn’t have to be.

What makes “Mister Scrooge to See You” worth a look is that the story is not a bad idea. Again the script makes no sense, why would a big financial firm relocate from London to a small Wisconsin town, but the core idea of a time travelling Scrooge coming to bring the Christmas spirit to a Cratchit, that is a solid original idea. Take the religious themes that are clumsily shoehorned in, get a good script doctor and some competent character actors, bring Hallmark in, and “Mister Scrooge to See You” could become a holiday cult hit. It has the potential.

There is nothing wrong with us trying to find something new that reflects the traditions of our past. The important thing is to keep the spirit of the tradition alive. If you have two hours to kill, “Mister Scrooge to See You” is an option. It will not replace your favorite classic holiday film, and you may be upset or confused after you watch the low, low budget movie, but you will see something that very few other holiday movie lovers have seen. You may find a new tradition of telling everyone else about this curious little film. I know I have.

RD

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. Many other famous pop culture figures have been put into their own head scratching Christmas stories. Look no further than the Mario Brothers battling Koopa Clause.

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