I loved the new Robert Zemeckis/Jim Carrey version of A Christmas Carol — it is toasty, dazzling, touching, and spirited; rousingly old-fashioned and, at the same time, eye-tickingly fresh — yet every time I remind myself that the movie is being released this weekend, I have to do a double take. A big, lavish, holiday-cheer Christmas movie coming out the first week of November? Sorry, but that just seems too early. Memo to Disney: It’s not Christmas yet! I do realize that movie release patterns are forever changing. The summer movie season, which a long time ago used to start in, you know, the summer, then got pegged to Memorial Day, then to the week before Memorial Day, then the week before that, and now it starts somewhere in the middle of April. The goal posts keep getting moved back. But do we really want to start kicking off the Christmas movie season — or, for that matter, the holiday season itself — the weekend after Halloween?
During the holidays, when it comes to pop culture, a lot of us can find ourselves getting wistful over the strangest things. When I was a kid in the ’60s, I always marked the start of the holiday season with the appearance of a television commercial that now holds as much Proustian resonance for me as The Charlie Brown Christmas Special: It was that Norelco “Jingle Bells” spot with Santa zipping down a snowy hill on top of an electric shaver. Christmas movies, for me, provide a similar happy jolt of memory, which is why I can generally recall exactly where I was when I first saw most of them. That’s part of their nostalgic fun.
A Christmas Carol isn’t the first big Christmas movie to go early. Elf, which in the six years since it was released has become a perennial holiday favorite, also came out the first week of November. For too many years to count, though, the traditional opening day for holiday movies has, of course, been the day before Thanksgiving — and I admit that I still love it that way. That rhythm is wired into my holiday DNA. There’s something about the Thanksgiving weekend that lends even a raucous yuletide comedy like Four Christmases a bit more soul than it might have otherwise had.
The decision to release A Christmas Carol this early could prove a shrewd commercial move. Or not. After all, it’s not as if people can’t see it over Thanksgiving, or afterwards; the studio is just trying to get the jump. Yet considering that Black Friday, with its increasingly beleaguered dreams of consumerist cheer, is the official kickoff to the holiday shopping season, it seems a tad ironic — at least, in This Year Of Our Economic Distress — that a movie like A Christmas Carol, which so marvelously celebrates the spirit of Christmas, is trying, in effect, to extend that season back by a couple of weeks. Regardless of how much we may welcome the holidays, more shopping is probably now the last thing on most of our minds.
So what do you think: Should they have waited until Thanksgiving to release A Christmas Carol? Or am I making a tinsel mountain out of a molehill? And what’s your all-time favorite holiday movie memory — not just the movie itself, but when and how you saw it?
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SO glad someone else felt the same way I did. I was amused to see ads everywhere up before Halloween. They should have waited till 11/25. I hope it bombs because of this dumb strategy.
You hope it bombs because of the marketing strategy!? That makes no sense! If Schindler’s List came out on Valentine’s Day would you hope it bombed because of the release date??
Matt1: You win for dumbest comment of the day. What does Schindler’s List have to do with this conversation? Now if you wrote that it makes no sense that “Be My Valentine Charlie Brown” came out December 26th, that would be relevant.
I, too, think they should’ve waited until closer to Thanksgiving [maybe the day before?] to release the movie, but I’m one of the few people I know who doesn’t start celebrating Christmas until after the fourth Thursday in Nov., so clearly I am old-school.
I think it is as simple as not wanting to compete with Twilight. Nothing more than that
F**K Twilight and it’s ignorant fan girls.
No one was going to see Twilight but them.
And their mothers.
Wow, it sounds like someone got dumped for Edward Cullen…Anyway, regardless of WHO goes to see the movie, all that matters is that New Moon is stiff competition. Opening day sold out months ago. Apparently there are a lot of ignorant fan girls out there.
@mollence. “Wow, it sounds like someone got dumped for Edward Cullen.”
Really?
If any girl was moronic enough to prefer a fictional, abusive, controlling, boring, sparkling “vampire” to a real human, he’d be lucky she was gone.
That’s exactly what I was thinking… they just wanted a head start on some money. They knew they wouldn’t be able to compete with New Moon.
I don’t think they’re the same demographic. As far as I can tell, only Twilight fanatics like Twilight, and they don’t expose themselves to anything else.
That’s not true. I like Twilight, and I just saw A Christmas Carol and loved it. And I’m not even Christian. So you’re way off-base. I also think it’s a little weird it came out this soon but even Halloween II came out before Halloween so maybe that’s the trend now. Either way, it’s weird.
I remember back when the Christmas season (including holiday themed movies and tv shows) didn’t offically start until after Thanksgiving. The closest thing to a christmas movie would be the annual airing of the Wizard of Oz in mid November.
Being inundated with all things Christmas by Halloween is a marketing strategy that should stop.
November used to mean Thanksgiving. More and more retailers are trying to get the jump on black friday (and their competitors)with their holiday commercials running right after Halloween. I say enough is enough. I am starting my own one man protest by refusing to shop or see any Christmas themed movie until after Thanksgiving. To me, the Christmas season starts when I see Santa arrive at the end of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, and that’s the way I’m keeping it!
and yes…I agree with the other person who mentioned this – bring back The Wizard Of Oz to an annual airing in November right before Thanksgiving!
I remember Wizard of Oz playing at Easter time, not Christmas. Sound of Music always played at Christmas, right? Am I just getting old?
Clearly they’re banking on something like The Polar Express’ slow burn success, but it still seems dumb. It’s A Wonderful Life was released on Dec. 20, 1946. Modern Hollywood should show such similar restraint . . .
It’s a Wonderful Life was not a box office success, though. It became a phenomenon many years later. Marketing people need success now.
Well, I do often associate the beginning of November as the beginning of the holiday season (because I include Thanksgiving in my definition of holiday season). But even I think that A Christmas Carol is being released too early. I want to see this movie, but I’m going to wait at least a couple weeks before I do. I think the weekend before Thanksgiving would have been ideal, November 20th.
This is way too early. I won’t do anything Christmas-like until after Thanksgiving. That poor holiday gets overlooked.
It doesn’t get overlooked, there just isn’t too much Thanksgiving-related media in which to revel, and after the Halloween spirit passes, we need to latch on to something bigger and glitzier. I, for one, make it an annual tradition to blast Christmas music the midnight after Halloween. There’s just not enough time in the Christmas season to make the most of it, and whoever heard of a Thanksgiving carol?
Yes, yes and more yes
I try to not listen to Christmas music until after the last Thanksgiving dinner dish is washed, but that’s become impossible without avoiding every mall and grocery store. I wish this movie had opened the weekend before Thanksgiving, but having seen the Disney train for it this summer, I also want to see it in 3-D. So I’m thinking I’ve got to see it before they stop the 3-D runs.
Way to early. Not that I’ll see it, anyway. I hate that creepy animation, and Jim Carrey has already ruined one Christmas movie.
I understand the business strategy here, but I don’t really like it.
I am sure the thinking is that if it is a hit, then sales might pick up during December.
As a person, anything that highlights Christmas before Thanksgiving makes me want to vomit a little.
I have to say that I was surprised that you liked this move. Polar Express was freaking horrible! I might try this one out, but nothing will beat Scrooged when it comes to this type of film.
Not to defend, but they were also up against Avatar tying up all the 3D and IMAX screens as of mid-December.
Exactly! If Christmas Carol was released on Thanksgiving it’d only have 2 weeks in IMAX and 3D screens before Avatar took all those screens over!
Do you think that Disney will try to get it back into IMAX the week of Christmas? I know it is doubtful if “Avatar” is the juggernaut that everyone expects it to be, even though I have my doubts.
This release was too early. Maybe Nov. 20 weekend Disney.
Either way, this movie looks really creepy. The charcters I’ve seen in the trailers look awful and their anthropomorphic movements look robotic, just like Polar Express. Why can other CGI artists (Pixar) with well-designed characters and marvelous backscapes when Zemekis can’t?
It’s nice in Canada that Thanksgiving comes in early October. The Christmas season starts here right after Halloween (unfortunately). I really want to see this movie but my husband and I decided to wait a couple weeks because it’s WAY too early!
I’m in the Philadelphia area and the cheesy pop radio channel switches over to Christmas music at midnight on Halloween (well, technically Nov. 1st). Starbucks started giving out the holiday cups on Nov. 1st as well. It’s just the way things are, I blame it on the malls and department stores…they start doing the holiday change-over right after Halloween. As far as marketing strategy is concerned, it will prove to be a very smart idea…I saw A Christmas Carol yesterday and I already know that I’ll be seeing it again once the holiday spirit takes me over.
Aw, you’re all Grinches! Just kidding. Seriously, though, am I the only person in the country who loves the holidays and wants to extend them as long as possible? Christmas music makes me happy–it brightens my mood and helps me have a better day. It’s like oatmeal for the soul. The release date does seem a little early, but not offensively so. And really, to me, what’s so wrong about wanting to spread some happiness and cheer before the technical start of the “Christmas season?” I mean, I get that there’s a profit motive here, but you can choose not to be cynical. And isn’t that what the holidays are supposed to be about?
I’m with you Laura K.- I love the holidays and don’t mind an “early” start to the Christmas season. I currently live in Italy and if people are complaining about the beginning of November being too early they should have seen the Christmas displays up in some shops in Florence in early October! (Not that it is common to have them up that early here, but it happens.)
I take it that most of you don’t work in retail stores. Try listening to Christmas music non stop for eight weeks and see what that does to you. Most people who work in retail are not that festive when the actual holiday rolls around. It’s become mind numbing. As for the movie, I just saw it and it was awesome. I’d watch it if it was released in July. There’s no such a thing as a holiday season anymore, it’s ongoing.
Because Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, I’m always frustrated and annoyed by the rest of the country jumping straight from Halloween to Christmas as soon as November starts. Christmas doesn’t officially start for me until after Santa arrives in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and after I’ve eaten my Thanksgiving dinner. I think Disney could have waited at least another weekend or two before releasing “A Christmas Carol,” but it will still probably do fine no matter how early they had released it.
I think a reason why Disney released it this early is so this movie wouldn’t clash with the company’s other big holiday movie, “The Princess and the Frog.” That movie has already received more promotions than “A Christmas Carol,” so I think it’s clear that Disney really wants that movie to succeed. Hence, they decide to release “Carol” over a month before “Princess.”
My thoughts exactly
Disney had better just hope it doesn’t bomb so badly that it is no longer in theaters at Christmas.
It should be illegal to even mention Christmas before Thanksgiving (December 1st would be even better). Humbug!!!!
You bet it’s too early. In my family, Christmas decorations and everything else do not come out until the first advent Sunday (this year November 29th), and I refuse to see a Christmas movie until then.
I detest Christmas creeping in before Thanksgiving – before Halloween in many places. I’ll boycott this film for this year.
I spent an Advent season in Austria where Advent was celebrated, a season of joyous anticipation. Christmas carols weren’t heard until the beginning of the “real” real Christmas season – December 24. Anyone who says they put up their Christmas decorations on the first Sunday of Advent has completely lost the meaning of Advent and they have bought into the Macy’s-inspired Giftmas Season.
I love the holiday season, particularly Christmastime, but this is too early. for me, Christmastime doesn’t start until the cartoon How The Grinch Stole Christmas is on TV and my mall puts up the Christmas decorations [which is around Black Friday/end of November]. I can’t get into a Christmas movie now.
My SO turned on the radio last weekend and out came Jingle Bells! Are you kidding me? I said to him, “Wasn’t Halloween just last week?” What the heck?