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The Man who Invented Christmas

Aymen Saqib
Dec 25, 2017
2 min read

Rating: 6/10

Directed by Bharat Nalluri

Starring

Dan Stevens (IV) as Charles Dickens

Christopher Plummer as Ebenezer Scrooge

Jonathan Pryce as John Dickens

Even the finest go through slumps but is every story about being broke as fascinating as that of literary giant Chares Dickens? We doubt that. The Man who Invented Christmas, a biographical drama, attempts to offer insight to the horrors of writers block and simultaneously evince to the audience a world of motivations and inspiration that enthuse a writer during his writing process. The writer in question just so happens to be Charles Dickens.

Suffering from an acute case of writers’ block, Charles Dickens, with his fifth child on the way, is financially constrained and drowning in debt. Many believe his career has peaked and can only go downhill. But Dickens, while making regular trips to London and reassuring his creditors, scuffles with his own demons. To make matters more complex, characters from his underway novella leap in from his imagination to his living room crafting the classic “A Christmas Carol”. But will he be able to get it published and distributed within 6 weeks before Christmas?

Whether Dickens will be able to make the deadline is the least thrilling thing about this movie. Of course he’ll make it, there’s no need to create unnecessary drama that we all know won’t amount to anything, sheesh!

Dan Stevens gives a lively performance playing Dickens. He’s a head-strong, driven man who has a passion for writing and is highly imaginative, so much so that the characters speak to him in his head. Dickens has a soft corner for the less fortunate, but at the same time happens to be a bit self-absorbed and impulsive, with a tendency to misspend for a lavish lifestyle.

While Dan Stevens gives a delightful performance as Dickens, director Nalluri pushes his protagonist off the pedestal. Rather than representing Dickens as a prodigy with a hyperactive imagination at play that he undoubtedly was, The Man who invented Christmas tends to somewhat indicates that Dickens was just some random guy who happened to be at the right place at the right time. A Christmas Carol just so happened to fall into his lap. The movie undercuts the Dickens’ skills as a writer, neither showcasing his genius nor truly being able to display the maddening frustration of writers block.

A Christmas Carol has had a lasting impact on Christmas celebrations even to date. The name of the movie “The Man who Invented Christmas” also indicates that. But the film slightly touches the topic and looks away, ironically without adequately representing the man who did, in fact, invent Christmas.

If you liked The Man who Invented Christmas, you should also check out the 2009 animated version A Christmas Carol. It’s bound to move you emotionally and also the themes, characters, creative elements and messages happen to come through more effectively.