A Christmas Carolis one of those stories everyone knows about and few have actually read. That’s a shame, as the Charles Dickens novella is one of his best works: tough, thrilling, and dramatic without being too dark or saccharine. It’s theperfect story for Christmas, which can conjure feelings of warm sentiment as well as cold reflection.
One thingA Christmas Carolis not, however, is laugh-out-loud funny. That’s whereScroogedcomes in. The 1988 movie starring Bill Murray as a modern version of Ebenezer Scrooge is full of cutting-edge humor, both dark and bawdy, and yet it somehow remains faithful to Dickens’ vision of a haunted Christmas Eve that is followed by a dark night of the soul and a redemptive Christmas morning.
Where can you watch Scrooged?
If you want to watch Billy Murray be visited by three ghosts, there are two main platforms where you can watch it for free with a subscription.Paramount+andAmazon Prime Videoare the current streaming homes forScrooged.
WhileScroogedmay lure you to Paramount+, there aremany more shows and movies availableon the platform to make your subscription worth your while. Shows likeThe Good Fight,Star Trek: Discovery,Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, andThe Twilight Zoneand hit movies likeThe Lost City,Orphan: First Kill, andSonic the Hedgehog 2are just a few of the titles that you won’t want to miss.
Prime Video has a considerable library of its own with originals likeThe Tomorrow War,The Peripheral,Fleabag,Jack Ryan, and the worldwide hitThe Rings of Power. Prime’s library also includes classic films likethe James Bond filmsandThe 40-Year Old Virgin.
When does it stream for subscribers?
Scroogedis currently streaming on both platforms.
How much does it cost?
You can save money if you commit to a one-year subscription, too. An Essential annual subscription is $50 a year while a Premium annual subscription is $100.You can also bundle the Paramount+ subscription with a Showtime subscription for $12 a month or $120 a year. For more info on all Paramount+ subscription plans, clickhere.
For Amazon Prime Video, it costs $9 a month just for the Prime Video service.
Is Scrooged worth watching?
Yes, and you don’t have to be in the holiday mood either. Scrooged stands on its own as a ripe satire of 1980s consumer culture, with Murray never better as a slimeball TV executive who has disdain for just about everybody. ThatScroogedis also a terrific Christmas movie that cleverly updates Dickens’s classic is just icing on the gingerbread house.
In addition to Murray, the film stars Karen Allen, Alfre Woodard, John Glover, Robert Mitchum, the Solid Gold Dancers (yep, that’s a thing), and Carol Kane as the Ghost of Christmas Present.Scroogedwas directed by Richard Donner and runs 100 minutes.
The movie has aRotten Tomatoescritics score of 69% and an audience score of 71%.
