The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

Assuming you are amenable to the Muppet mentality, The Muppet Christmas Carol is a beautiful rendition of the holiday classic, creating a fresh holiday classic itself. Michael Caine is well cast in the role of Ebeneezer Scrooge, even if he does repent and weep with completely dry eyes. The Muppets are infectiously disingenuous and sentimental in their roles, the musical numbers are musically and lyrically inspiring, and everything just feels spot-on right. That's what I love about the Muppets: They may be wacky (not a bad thing, actually) but they always feel true to themselves (Muppet Wizard of Oz excluded), the one-liners are fast and ribald, and the original music always lifts the spirit. Extra features include a mild set out outtakes (always esp. funny given the Muppet premise that nothing they do can be spontaneous anyway) and a Pepe interview with Gonzo. I had to locate this DVD through the public library system since Netflix still doesn't stock or even list it. 5 stars.