Scrooged (1988), with Bill Murray
A TV executive staging A Christmas Carol live gets the visits himself.
The modern Scrooge runs a television network, and his big Christmas show is A Christmas Carol.
You want a comedy with an edge, and you know the original well enough to enjoy the jokes about it.
What it keeps and what it changes
Keeps: a dead mentor, three ghosts and a change of heart on Christmas Eve.
Changes: nearly everything else. Bill Murray is Frank Cross, president of the IBC network; Christmas Past is a cab driver played by David Johansen, and Christmas Present is a violent fairy played by Carol Kane.
Whose story is it?
Frank Cross’s.
How much time does it ask?
A feature, 1 hour 40 minutes. Directed by Richard Donner.
Bill Murray, Karen Allen, John Forsythe, Bobcat Goldthwait, Carol Kane, Alfre Woodard.
Where to find it
Other ways to get it: DVD — Amazon · Find where it’s streaming — JustWatch
More Christmas Carols: A Christmas Carol (MGM, 1938) · Scrooge (1951), with Alastair Sim · A Christmas Carol (1984), with George C. Scott