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An American Carol

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An American Carol (2008)

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Reviews Counted:40

Fresh:5

Rotten:35

Average Rating:3/10

Consensus: An American Carol suffers not so much from its perceived political bias, but from the fact that it simply is not very funny.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for rude and irreverent content, and for language and brief drug material.

Runtime: 83 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Oct 3, 2008 Wide

Box Office: $6,960,000

Synopsis: Director David Zucker (AIRPLANE, NAKED GUN) returns to the satire genre with AN AMERICAN CAROL. The political spoof stars Kevin Farley (brother of the late comedian Chris Farley) as Michael Malone,... Director David Zucker (AIRPLANE, NAKED GUN) returns to the satire genre with AN AMERICAN CAROL. The political spoof stars Kevin Farley (brother of the late comedian Chris Farley) as Michael Malone, a left-wing documentary filmmaker with a strong likeness to the controversial real-life Michael Moore. The world has long put up with Malone's cynical films and so-called liberal antics. But when he announces his plans to abolish the Fourth of July, the consensus is that he's finally gone too far. Can the three spirits who arrive to haunt Mr. Malone change his stubborn world view? Kelsey Grammer plays one of the three ghosts intent on bringing out Malone's patriotic side through a series of wild adventures filled with celebrity cameos by Gary Coleman, Leslie Nielsen, and Dennis Hopper, to name a few. Malone may still have a loyal fan following, but for this trip he's all on his own. A cross between A CHRISTMAS CAROL and films like SCARY MOVIE, AN AMERICAN CAROL uses ghosts as the main vehicle for its pro-America jokes. Together, the spirits of General Patton, President Kennedy, and President Washington drive the plot of this spoof, which unlike many recent satires, pokes fun at the more liberal end of things. [More]

Starring: Leslie Nielsen, Kevin Farley, Kelsey Grammer, Trace Adkins

Starring: Leslie Nielsen, Kevin Farley, Kelsey Grammer, Trace Adkins, Robert Davi, Geoffrey Arend, Serdar Kalsin, Jon Voight, Dennis Hopper, David Alan Grier, James Woods

Director: David Zucker

Director: David Zucker
Screenwriter: David Zucker, Lewis Friedman, Myrna Sokoloff
Producer: Stephen McEveety, John Shepherd
Composer: James L. Venable
Studio: Vivendi Entertainment

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Release:

Dec 30, 2008

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Reviews for An American Carol

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Using sledgehammer gags in the service of a dissent-bashing tale, Zucker aims for the flag-waving brio of Warner Bros. cartoons during World War II, but he succeeds only in ruining Farley’s big break.

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Betsy Sherman
Betsy Sherman
Boston Phoenix

just too insular to be engaging

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
12/31/08
Bill Gibron
Bill Gibron
Filmcritic.com

What could have been an amusing riff looks more like a propaganda film out to destroy Moore rather than spoof him.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
11/20/08
Pete Hammond
Pete Hammond
Hollywood.com

The gags come fast and furiously with one-liners to make the case that liberals don't have exclusive rights to humor in Hollywood.

Full Review Source: Spectrum (St. George, Utah) | comment 1 Comment
11/15/08
Bruce Bennett
Bruce Bennett
Spectrum (St. George, Utah)

... the jokes are lame and the caricatures too removed from any defensible reality.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles CityBeat | comment Comment
11/12/08
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

An American Carol dares to mock the Left, but it forgets to bring the funny.

Full Review Source: What Would Toto Watch? | comment Comment
10/31/08
Christian Toto
Christian Toto
What Would Toto Watch?

Zucker's film reeks of a deeply insecure psychosis, one that's often insultingly mislabeled as patriotism -- which is how it gets away with wrapping itself in red, white and blue while simultaneously ridiculing our Bill Of Rights.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Weekly | comment Comment
10/29/08
Sean Burns
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly

Nice try, but I'd watch Airplane! again first.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
10/18/08
Jason MacNeil
Jason MacNeil
Jam! Movies

This movie is seriously unfunny, and it's not just my admittedly left-wing politics that are in the way of my getting the joke.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
10/18/08
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Overall, Zucker's cinematic middle finger is about as funny as an exploding toilet seat for hemorrhoid-induced senior citizens...a dreary picture mired in sophomoric sludge.

Full Review Source: Movie Eye | comment 1 Comment
10/14/08
Frank Ochieng
Frank Ochieng
Movie Eye

Utterly asinine, sophomoric, tasteless, the movie has much in common with Zucker's Airplane!, The Naked Gun 2 1/2 and Scary Movie sequels, minus the laughs.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment 3 Comments
10/13/08
Susan Walker
Susan Walker
Toronto Star
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

...too unfocused and ill-disciplined to work either as Dickens pastiche or as political satire.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
10/10/08
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

There's a good idea for a movie here: Someone considered poking fun at liberal filmmaker Michael Moore. The only problem with 'An American Carol' is that it's not funny.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
10/10/08
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Right-wing political comedy just isn't funny.

Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | comment 7 Comments
10/07/08
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Common Sense Media

This is an uneven, uninspired, tired spoof that has about 10 funny jokes throughout.

Full Review Source: Sin Magazine | comment 1 Comment
10/07/08
Austin Kennedy
Austin Kennedy
Sin Magazine

As entertainment, An American Carol ranks below YouTube clips of Sarah Palin.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment 6 Comments
10/06/08
Amy Nicholson
Amy Nicholson
Boxoffice Magazine

Forget politics: An American Carol sucks simply because it's ridiculously, painfully unfunny.

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment 7 Comments
10/06/08
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

Forget about politics for a moment...Carol is first and foremost a terrible piece of filmmaking, marred by bad performances, cringe-inducing dialogue and amateurish direction.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment 2 Comments
10/06/08
Ethan Alter
Ethan Alter
Film Journal International

How dumb does Hollywood think American conservatives are? Not half as dumb as conservative filmmaker David Zucker thinks they are.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment 1 Comment
10/06/08
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

Poorly made indie production has a script that feels like a list of ripostes collected over the last several years to liberal criticisms of the U.S.: The whole enterprise feels far more agenda- than entertainment-driven.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment 1 Comment
10/06/08
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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Latest News for An American Carol

January 03, 2009: A liberal witch hunt in court jester clothing, certain to have Charles Dickens roll over in his grave. An American Carol: Huh?! Cinema at its foulest. Opens in new window
More...

December 29, 2008: RT on DVD: A Matthew McConaughey Stinker or Event Horizon on Blu-ray?
It's officially the last DVD release week of the year, although much like the box office, most big-ticket new releases debuted last week in time for Christmas. Nevertheless,... More...

October 31, 2008: A liberal witch hunt in court jester clothing, and in-your-face politics presumably to coincide with the election, while certain to have Charles Dickens roll over in his grave. An American Carol: Huh?! Cinema at its foulest. Opens in new window
More...

October 19, 2008: LiveJournal.com: A liberal witch hunt in court jester clothing, certain to have Charles Dickens roll over in his grave. An American Carol: Huh?! Cinema at its foulest. Opens in new window
More...

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