A Flintstones Christmas Carol (1994)

A Flintstones Christmas Carol (Dir: Joanna Romersa, 1994).

Geological puns abound, as Fred Flintstone stars as Ebonezer Scrooge against Barney Rubble’s Bob Cragic in this modern Stone Age retelling of Charles Dickens’ Christmas classic. 

The Flintstones is, of course the enormously successful animated TV sitcom from Hanna-Barbera which, prior to The Simpsons (1989 - present) was television’s longest running prime time cartoon series, originally airing for 6 seasons between 1960 and 1966. That this movie was made 30 years after the heyday of the show demonstrates the continued enduring popularity of the franchise. 

Rather than a straight adaptation of Dickens’ familiar tale of festive redemption, A Flintstones Christmas Carol takes a tip from Mr Magoo’s Christmas Carol (Abe Leviton, 1962) and presents the story as a play within a story. So, running parallel to the events of the Bedrock Community Players performance of A Christmas Carol, we have the story of Fred, so engrossed in his role of Scrooge that he neglects his family duties until the lines between he and Ebonezer begin to blur. If you can buy that a group of cavemen are celebrating Christmas a few millions years before the birth of Christ, than you will have no trouble accepting them performing in a version of a story first published in 1843. 

Casting The Flintstones in the roles of Dickens’ characters is a nice idea. Not a particularly original idea, but I can see the appeal. The backstage story which runs alongside it is less engaging and the two strands work against each other to make for a somewhat choppy narrative. It isn’t a bad movie; made for US TV, the standard of animation is a shade better than normal Saturday morning fare and there is undeniable nostalgic value for those of a certain age. Familiar vocal work from Henry Corden (Fred) Jean Vanderpyl (Wilma) and Hanna-Barbera stalwart Don Messick (Bamm Bamm) adds to the fun. 

Yet what is appealing in a 25 minute TV show is not quite as fun when stretched to nearly three times that length. While I enjoy The Flintstones on TV, I found A Flintstone Christmas Carol a little bit of a chore to watch come the halfway mark. Still, while it is a little disappointing in the story department, its colourful animation is above average and it does provides some mild chuckles. However, I think a straight version of the tale would have been better and can’t help but feel this somewhat of an opportunity missed. Longtime fans will probably get a kick out of the movie, but it’s not quite the ‘gay old time’ it might have been.