|
Many of the great actors of the early 20th century were drawn to well-known
characters from Dickens or Shakespeare. Seymour Hicks was better known as a
cheerful song and dance man, as well as a successful playwright and musical
theatre impresario, so Ebenezer Scrooge might seem a strange choice of signature
role. But Hick's Scrooge was a runaway success - he first played the role in
1901 and apparently played him some two thousand times before committing it to
the screen in this 1913 film for Zenith Films. He would reprise the role one
last time in 1935 for Henry Edwards' sound version.
The film opens with a vignette showing Hicks in contemporary dress, then again in costume and
make up as Scrooge. This is followed by a shot of the exterior of Dickens' house
at Gad's Hill (which served at that time as a Dickens museum) and a
representation of Dickens himself, pacing his library at Gad's Hill waiting for
inspiration and beginning to write 'A Christmas Carol'. As with other Dickens
adaptations, the film is careful to establish the credentials and expertise of
its lead player, as well as to pay attention to authentic locations. The
inclusion of the author himself seems to suggest that the great man would
somehow have approved the production.
With years of practice behind him, Hicks understandably makes a convincing
Scrooge. Marley's shrouded ghost is suitably grisly and care has been taken with
the costumes, sets and the snowbound London street scenes, enlivened with plenty
of energetic children. At 34 minutes, this 1913 version is interesting to
compare with Thomas Bentley's feature-length David Copperfield, released the same
year.
The shorter film, more typical in length for its time, necessarily condenses
the story, so elects to have Marley's ghost stand in for the ghosts of Christmas
past, present and future. The scenes of Scrooge's past life are presented as
short vignettes as Scrooge and Marley's ghost look on in the manner of Dante and
Virgil. This form of representation was a legacy of the pictorial traditions in
book illustrations and magic lantern adaptations which left their mark on early
films, but which were being edged out by greater naturalism and expanded running
times.
Bryony Dixon
|
1. 'Humbug!' (2:42)
