While I love almost all of the "Christmas Carol" films, this one really has a special place in my heart. I saw this movie many years back when I was not really a fan of Christmas movies and never went out of my way to watch them. This film changed that. I enjoyed it so much that I now eagerly await every December as a time once again to enjoy some of the classic holiday shows from times past. "An American Christmas Carol" is easily one of my favorites. And, as a previous reviewer felt, the ending of the Winkler version may be the best of all of the versions, although I still love the Alistair Sims ending (standing on his head!) Excellent film. And it deserves a place in the "Christmas Film Hall Of Fame".

1933, New England. Bitter and ruthlessly greedy old miser Benedict Slade (a surprisingly strong and credible performance by Henry Winkler) runs a finance company that enables him to repossess other people's most prized items if they fall behind on their payments. One fateful Christmas Eve Slade gets visited by three spirits who show him the error of his selfish ways.

Director Eric Till offers a flavorsome 1930's period atmosphere, maintains a touching thoughtful tone throughout, and delivers just the right amount of sentiment without overdoing it. Moreover, Jerome Coopersmith's smart script deserves praise for the ingenious idea to set this story during the Great Depression, which in turn puts a distinctly American spin on the familiar premise.

The sound acting from an able cast rates as another significant asset: David Wayne as friendly book store owner Merrivale, Chris Wiggins as the kindly Nathaniel Brewster, R. H. Thomson as Slade's more altruistic assistant Thatcher, Ken Pogue as Slade's smooth business partner Jack Latham, Gerard Parkes as the hearty Jessup, Susan Hogan as the sweet Helen, and Dorian Harewood as the angry Matt Reeves. A fine film.

An American Christmas Carol (1979) is a movie I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows Scrooge as he visits various renters, children and colleagues just before the holiday spreading what he thinks is the appropriate business and success messages that are both harsh and insensitive. Those messages comeback to him from ghosts on Christmas Eve. Will this be the message Scrooge needs to hear to change his ways?

This movie is directed by Eric Till (Luther) and stars Henry Winkler (Happy Days),Dorian Harewood (Assault on Precinct 13),R. H. Thomson (Chloe),Christopher Crabb (Stained) and Linda Goranson (The Cardinal).

How can you not like The Fonz as Scrooge? His hairstyle in the flashback scenes couldn't make do anything but smile. His relationship and proposal scenes were a bit stiff but fun. The set-up of Scrooge and his outlook was okay but the ghosts were poorly executed and didn't really work for me. I did like the ending and the depiction of the evolution of the characters and circumstances.

Overall this is a nice twist on the classic Christmas tale. I would score this a 6/10 and recommend watching it once.