Celebrating the bicentennial of Charles Dickens’ birth and the remarkable career of Belfast-born Brian Desmond Hurst, one of Ireland’s most prolific and overlooked film directors, we are pleased to present Scrooge, the film that is widely believed to be the best of over 50 adaptations of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. 

This version of the familiar tale of a curmudgeonly miser who is forced to learn the error of his ways when visited by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future is as unmissable a Christmas classic as that other film about a businessman and his spirit guide reviewing his (wonderful) life. In one of the finest performances of his career, Alistair Sim captures the many faces of Scrooge perfectly – from nasty old skinflint to terrified supplicant to joyous merrymaker. Brian Desmond Hurst stays faithful to the spirit (if not the letter) of the original Victorian tale to create a deeply atmospheric and memorable work. 

For more festive screenings and events at the IFI in December, see Christmas at the IFI.