A scene from the movie 'A Christmas Carol'

Charles Dickens’ classic 1843 Christmas story, “A Christmas Carol,” is one of the most adapted yuletide tales ever on screen. It’s quite a crowded field as there are several versions starring various actors from Alistair Sim and George C. Scott to Albert Finney and Bill Murray. There’s a musical version, “Scrooge,” there’s a recent romantic comedy adaptation, “Ghost of Girlfriends Past” starring Matthew McConaughey, and there are even versions of various cartoon characters like Mickey Mouse, The Muppets, Mr. Magoo, the Flinstones, Daffy Duck and the Jetsons.

Now comes the Disney version adapted by Robert Zemeckis, his third animated flick after the heartwarming Christmas film, “The Polar Express,” and the action-spectacle “Beowulf.” All the characters and the story elements of the original Dickens work are faithfully here, but in terms of wonderfully executed imagery and elements of thrill and excitement, there’s no doubt that Zemeckis somehow also made it his own as he comes up with a high-tech version that’s something akin to a high end video game. The quality of the visual razzle-dazzle it offers is definitely first rate and he even spices up the story with a chase scene.

We’re sure most of you already know that the story is about a heartless usurer and a miser, Ebenezer Scrooge (Jim Carrey), who reprimands his clerk, Bob Cratchit (Gary Oldman), for expecting to be given a full day’s salary even when he’s not working on Christmas Day. His favorite expression is “Bah, humbug!” And he tells this to his nephew Fred (Colin Firth). He has a life-changing experience on Christmas Eve when he is visited by four ghosts.

The first ghost is former business partner Jacob Marley (Gary Oldman), who died seven years ago. He is in chains because of his bad traits and greed when he was still alive. He now wants to save Scrooge from having the same horrible fate. He tells Scrooge to listen to three nocturnal visitors who’ll soon come. First to come is Ghost of Christmas Past (Jim Carrey, who plays several roles here), presented as a candle with a flickering flame, He tours Scrooge to past Christmases when he was still a young boy. Next is Ghost of Christmas Present (Carrey again) who gives him the chance to see how his nephew Fred and clerk Bob Cratchit are spending Christmas Day happily with family members. He’s also reminded of love he lost in his youth, Belle (Robin Wright Penn.) Last is the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, who shows Scrooge’s miserable looking resting place in a forlorn graveyard, definitely a wake up call.

The quality of animation here is better and more stunningly complex than Zemeckis’ two past animated flicks. You can see it in 3-D and it’s easy to see that it has so much to offer visually, some of which move so fast they’d be lost on you if your eyes are not fast enough to catch them. Obviously, Zemeckis does this so that small kids won’t get bored since the serious story is actually meant more for jaded adults. The production design of Victorian London is superb, particularly the opening scene where it shows an aerial shot of 19th century snowy London.

The vocal acting is also outstanding, with Carrey doing a variety of roles and getting great support from Oldman, Firth, Penn, and Bob Hoskins. Another great asset is the musical score by Alan Silvestri that incorporates so many Christmas songs from “Joy to the World” and “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” that really make you feel like Christmas. This is one of the best Christmas scores we heard since the music in “Home Alone” and the film itself is one of the best adaptations of a well told classic Christmas tale we’ve ever seen, even with its now familiar happy ending.