By George & Josh Bate
After years of floundering in the doldrums of cancellation, Johnny Depp makes a return to big studio fare by taking on one of cinema’s most enduring roles in yet another adaptation of one of English literature’s most celebrated works. Depp, whose has spent recent years focusing on independent and European projects, steps into the spotlight for the first time since the global phenomenon that was his 2022 defamation trial and, in doing so, immediately renders this latest adaptation of A Christmas Carol a cinematic event catching the attention of studio execs, producers, creatives, and the general public, all eager to see whether the world will embrace or reject the once universally beloved actor. The result of Depp’s efforts is an adaptation that may not reinvent Charles Dickens’ classic novella but is nonetheless faithful, atmospheric, beautifully shot, and anchored by a phenomenal lead performance.
Ebenezer stars Depp as the bitter and wealthy Ebenezer Scrooge, who undergoes the most profound of transformations on a particularly eventful Christmas Eve. Visited by the ghost of an old friend (Ian McKellen) and three ghosts of Christmas past (Andrea Riseborough, Tramell Tillman, and Robert Strange), Scrooge gradually recognizes the issues with his disgruntled demeanor and heartless attitude that have caused strain with his employee Bob Cratchit (Rupert Grint), his nephew Fred (Sam Claflin), and his nephew’s wife Clara (Daisy Ridley).
Following seemingly countless adaptations of A Christmas Carol, Paramount Pictures marketed Ebenezer with an alluring tagline: “The name you know, the story you don’t.” The suggestion that the film would expand upon familiar elements of Dickinson’s novella, coupled with the interesting decision to hire renowned horror director Ti West to direct, rendered Ebenezer an intriguing prospect, even if one were to ignore Depp’s divisive role in it all. As the credits of the somewhat long-winded film roll, it becomes clear that Ebenezer doesn’t quite live up to its ambitious billing that teases a radically different take on A Christmas Carol, yet there is still plenty to admire.
Director Ti West leans into his horror roots with plenty of Gothic imagery, moments, and production design. West understands that, despite being a wholesome story of redemption, Dickens’ original text was a ghost story at heart and, as such, needs to get a little spooky at times. With the streets of Victorian London shrouded in fog, the skies colored a grim gray, and light snow coating it all, Ebenezer makes for atmospheric and decidedly wintery viewing, the perfect aesthetical foundation for the story of Scrooge to unfold within.
West also uses massive red writing pulled straight out of a Hammer horror movie to introduce the title and different acts of the film, another indication of his desire to make his version of A Christmas Carol more horror-leaning than most.
West further embraces the horror of A Christmas Carol through his characterizations of the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come. While Andrea Riseborough’s pale, gaunt Ghost of Christmas Past and Robert Strange’s Grim Reaper-like Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come are superficially unsettling, neither portrayal does anything particularly unique with these long-established literary characters. Severance star Tramell Tillman, however, breathes refreshing new life into the Ghost of Christmas Present. Whereas most adaptations depict the character as a majestic, jolly giant clothed in a deep green robe, Tillman plays the spirit with a darker edge. On screen, the character deteriorates before Scrooge and the audience’s eyes, while he does not have the high spirits and unwavering warmth that most depictions of the spirit have.
But the star of the show is obviously and undoubtedly Depp, who approaches his step back into major studio films with stature and personality. It is a strangely fitting role to mark Depp’s return to major movies. In the third act, Scrooge pleads to the ghosts (as Depp pleads to the audience) to accept that he has changed and is worthy of redemption. Scrooge’s climactic celebration as he wakes up on Christmas morning feels like Depp celebrating his grand comeback, in a truly timeless story no less. Some may go so far as to say Depp’s arc off-screen mirrors Ebenezer’s on-screen, although that’s a tad reductionistic.
Nonetheless, Depp makes a pitch-perfect Ebenezer Scrooge as he delivers a performance that ranks him among Alaistair Sim and Michael Caine as the best on-screen portrayals of the iconic character. Contrary to what the trailers and promotional material would have you think, Depp’s portrayal of Scrooge is more restrained and less over-the-top than expected. There is certainly a musicality to the way in which he delivers dialogue and moves across the screen, but Depp largely reins in the more flamboyant eccentricities of Jack Sparrow. In turn, Ebenezer hardly features a laugh or even a chuckle of note. Those expecting a sillier, Jack Sparrowified version of A Christmas Carol will likely come away somewhat disappointed by the film’s more solemn tone and moody aesthetic.
With more restraint, Depp excels as Scrooge and showcases the caliber of actor he is beyond his more cartoonish and outlandish portrayal of Jack Sparrow. Depp carries much of the film’s emotional baggage on his shoulders as he is tasked with subtly conveying his character’s gradual redemption and change of worldview over the course of the film, often without dialogue at his disposal. Depp takes this task in his stride, however, producing facial expressions and work with his eyes that deftly track Scrooge’s evolution of character.
Despite Depp’s best efforts, Ebenezer doesn’t quite reach the emotional heights of other adaptations of A Christmas Carol, in particular The Muppets Christmas Carol and Alaistair Sim’s A Christmas Carol. In part, that’s because West’s film pushes the Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim story more to the periphery. In that everything involving the Cratchits is often what anchors the emotions of adaptations of Dickens’ work, the relative pivot away from these characters and toward Scrooge’s nephew means West’s film fails to tug on the heartstrings as profoundly as one may be accustomed to.
Other changes to Dickens’ work are few and far better as West exhibits an unwillingness to deviate from the source material too much. That means that Ebenezer is rather familiar and plays things a bit too safely for its own good. However, the craft in front of and behind the camera render it a worthwhile addition to the Dickens canon.
VERDICT: 7/10
Ebenezer may not reinvent Charles Dickens’ classic novella or live up to its ambitious billing that teases a radically different take on A Christmas Carol, but it is nonetheless a worthwhile addition to the Dickens canon. Director Ti West leans into his horror roots, delivering a beautifully shot, atmospheric, and decidedly wintery adaptation anchored by a phenomenal lead performance from Johnny Depp. With more restraint, Depp excels as Scrooge, showcasing the caliber of actor he is beyond his more cartoonish and outlandish portrayals, and delivers a pitch-perfect performance that ranks him among the best on-screen portrayals of the iconic character. While the relative pivot away from the Cratchits means the film fails to tug on the heartstrings as profoundly as other adaptations, and its unwillingness to deviate from the source material makes it play things a bit too safely for its own good, there is still plenty to admire. Perhaps most interestingly, Ebenezer marks Depp’s big return to major studio movies and is strangely the perfect project for him to make his comeback with. In the third act, Scrooge pleads to the ghosts (as Depp pleads to the audience) to accept that he has changed and is worthy of redemption, while Scrooge’s climactic celebration as he wakes up on Christmas morning feels like Depp celebrating his grand comeback, in a truly timeless story no less. In this sense, Ebenezer may be more interesting on paper and for off-screen reasons than it is as a film unto itself, but none of this should take away from impressive craft in front of and behind the camera.