THEATRE: A Christmas Carol delivers festive cheer

Paul O’Rourke

WHAT makes a great story great? If we knew the answer to that, everyone would be writing them. But one sure sign of a knockout narrative is a tale that spans generations.

‘A Christmas Carol’ was written by Charles Dickens and first published in 1843. It tells the well known story of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge who is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future to show him the effects his life, and sometimes poor decisions, have had on others.

It’s a property that’s been through many imaginings on stage, big screen and small, but this latest incarnation, which plays at the Gate Theatre until January 18, works on many different levels.

Firstly, the adaptation by Jack Thorne, who is everywhere these days (‘The Aeronauts’, ‘His Dark Materials’, ‘The Secret Garden’) is both true to the original text and at the same time innovative.

The cast, headed by Owen Roe, is altogether brilliant, and the direction by Selina Cartmell is at the same time polished and playful.

And the reason the story still resonates after all this time? It shines a light of hope in a weary world. Go for the uplifting message and interactive audience experience, stay for the magical bell ringing. We award it a review score of five fabulously festive stars.

If you like your five star culture on the big screen, check out the wonderful ‘Honey Boy’, starring Shia LaBeouf in a harrowing examination of his life as a child actor.

It’s bold, it’s raw, it’s honest, and it’s superbly well acted, written and directed. A masterful study of generational abuse, and one of the best films of the year.

And finally, ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ stars Edward Norton as a 1950s New York detective with tourette’s, attempting to solve the case of his murdered boss.

In doing so he gets involved with crooked politicians in a film that tries to emulate the classic ‘Chinatown’ but falls short. It’s a decent watch but not as clever as it thinks it is, with an overly complicated plot and a hammy performance from Alec Baldwin.