The 12 Films of Christmas: Scrooged (1988)

By Thomas Broome-Jones

This Christmas film is actually pretty scary but is ultimately hilarious and heart-warming. It's essentially a modern-retelling of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, something that's been done a thousand times I know, but this is one of the best adaptations in my mind.

Who you gonna call? Yourself, actually.

Scrooged follows TV executive Frank Cross, played by the legendary Bill Murray. He's Scrooge in ecery way, grumpy, miserable, cruel, despised, stingy and hates Christmas. You all know the rest of the story, 3 spirits, life lessons, bad guy turns himself around, yada, yada, yada.

Bill Murray is one of my favourite actors of all-time, I'd have to rank him as the greatest comic actor ever, even above giants such as Robin Williams and Jerry Lewis. He carries this film and his comic timing is perfect as ever. He creates a memorable character in a film which is basically Groundhog Day if it were written by Charles Dickens.

A funny heart warmer that's pretty lewd in places but is on the whole a real riot, especially when Murray meets Death, but you'll have to watch it to find out. Scrooged is worth a slot in your Christmas films list.

Thomas Broome-Jones is on Twitter, you can follow him @TBroomey.