Carol For Another Christmas is a star-filled made for TV movie by Rod Sterling of Twilight Zone fame. It was shown only once on TV and without any commercial interruptions, on Dec. 28, 1964. The film was dark and disturbing, and did not play well with those viewers used to more light-hearted Christmas fare. Like I pointed out, the film was never shown again and lived in obscurity until just recently.
I mean, just get a load of this cast! Sterling Hayden (Daniel Grudge), Eva Marie Saint (The Wave), Ben Gazzara (Fred), Barbara Ainteer (Ruby), Steve Lawrence (Ghost of Christmas Past), James Shigeta (The Doctor), Pat Hingle (Ghost of Christmas Present), Robert Shaw (Ghost of Christmas Future), Peter Sellers (Imperial Me), Britt Ekland (The Mother).
Daniel Grudge (Sterling Hayden) was an imposing ex-Navy isolationist, who was devastated by the loss of his young son (Marley) at the end of WW-2. He was a bitter sociopath, who lived alone with his servant in his 24 room mansion, and did not care for brown people, yellow people or Eastern European commies. It was America-First for him, and everyone else in the world could just die for all he cared. His nephew Fred (Ben Gazzara) implored him to change his outlook, but to no avail. Daniel Grudge was not interested in talking or negotiating with “the enemy”, only America carrying a bigger stick than the rest of the world.
As you might guess, Captain Grudge was visited by 3 spirits that night. The acting of the Christmas Past, Present and Future was superior, but especially the performance of Pat Hingle as the Ghost of Christmas Present. And, the Ghost of Christmas Future? How about Robert Shaw? [EDITOR’S NOTE: Sterling Hayden was huge, at 6’5″, he towered over Shaw, who was a 6 ft. tall]
The Visit into the future is a shocking foreshadowing of what we have just witnessed in American politics today. This is evolution in action. Evolution has no goal, no agenda. The survival of the “fittest” is misunderstood by most. The “fittest” does not necessarily mean the strongest, the smartest, the most rational… And certainly not the most compassionate. It is simply those…for whatever reason, have been able to hide under the brush, and behind the woodwork to survive. Evolution, is often not very pretty. It is what it is.
The Peter Sellers scene was a vicious gut-punch. A putrid and shocking scene that made A Face in the Crowd look like a human rights hug-in. It was a terrible harbinger of what we are facing in The United States of America…right now. I am in shock, as I was absolutely not expecting this. This reveal was simply terrifying.
Rod Sterling’s craft in this film carried on to its conclusion, which I thought was too brief, but the damage had already been done. This work of art was a whole-world rendition of the Dickens classic, but one that will stick with me until the day I die. Only the most basic tenets of the original Scrooge tale remained in this unique TV film, but the message was clear and unmistakable. It is not I or Me in this world, like it or not. It is WE, and there is no getting around this if we are to survive as a species.
10.0/10.0 With the Goatesians Rating of DEVASTATING.
Quotes or one-liners
The only one that really matters:
“Now then, they don’t come out in so many words and say that they want to take us over. They’re too clever for that. But, that’s what they want. They want to take over us. Individual Me. And if we let them seep in here from down yonder and cross river – if we let these do-gooders, these bleeding hearts, propagate their insidious doctrine of involvement among us – then my dear friends, my beloved Me’s – we’s in trouble. Deep, deep trouble. Because – because we have now reached a pure state of civilization. The world of the ultimate Me is finally within our grasp. Its a world were only the strong will exist. Where only the path will love. Where finally the word “we” will be stamped out and will become “I” – forever! Because we are each the wise. We’re each the strong. And we are each the individual Me’s!” -Imperial ME (Peter Sellers)
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