Ebenezer: reviews

What the critics say average 5.4 from 56 outlets

• 9.0 But Why Tho?Mike BC Mercifully, instead of attempting to reinvent the wheel, the film shows that a great story of redemption starts with the understanding that it’s never too late to change. Read
• 8.0 The TelegraphRobbie Collin The result is far from revisionist, but instead breathes a cool, fresh, spectral, humbug-free breath down the spine of this beloved festive tale. Read
• 8.0 Screen ZealotsLouisa Moore This is an inventive, wonderfully atmospheric spin on a well-worn classic. It’s spooky, strange, occasionally quite scary, and it also has plenty of heart. Read
• 7.7 The Daily BeastNick Schager And though it breaks no new ground and fails to surpass its finest predecessors, it’s a do-over that earns him a measure of redemption, much like his iconic character. Read
• 7.5 Awards BuzzScott Menzel For me, Johnny Depp’s performance ranks among the best. Depp has always had a gift for disappearing into his characters, and he takes command of the screen here. Read
• 7.5 Movie MomNell Minow The movie is fine. Parts of it are better than fine. But it never comes close to the far better films. Read
• 7.5 HollywoodInTotoChristian Toto Johnny Depp shines in Ti West's spooky, but unnecessary 'Carol' spin. Read
• 7.5 Akron Beacon JournalGeorge M. Thomas At its heart, Charles Dickens’ "A Christmas Carol" is a good old-fashioned ghost story and it’s those elements director Ti West leans into for his adaptation of the Christmas cautionary tale. Read
• 7.5 MoviementariosFuranu With this release Ti West makes an extremely well-known story feel stimulating again thanks to a very distinctive visual personality and his particular feel for the genre. Read
• 7.5 TelevitosSamantha Sparrow Ebenezer is an attractive alternative for those who enjoy Christmas stories but prefer them with a good dose of darkness and suspense. Read
• 7.0 The Globe and MailAparita Bhandari With Christmas creep upon us, Ebenezer will appeal to those looking to get into the spirit of the season, especially if you have older children in your lives. Read
• 7.0 EspinofMikel Zorrilla Told nimbly and precisely by West and with an inspired Depp leading the cast, but it's clear that something more was needed for the film to shine on its own. Read
• 7.0 SDP NoticiasPablo López Ebenezer shapes up as one of the most interesting adaptations of A Christmas Carol in recent years, mainly because of the way it combines its elements. Read
• 7.0 Página/12Juan Pablo Cinelli Casting Johnny Depp as the despicable Ebenezer is a success, even with the mannerisms typical of his style. Read
• 6.7 Original-CinKim Hughes Better than expected and less corny than its trailers suggest, Ebenezer is a worthy if very commercial addition to the Christmas Carol cinematic canon Read
• 6.3 Roger EbertMatt Zoller Seitz It has a measured tone and steady pace. It’s funny and sometimes touching. It connects with the audience, in a basic way that US cinema seems to have largely forgotten how to do. Read
• 6.0 IGNTom Jorgensen Ti West’s Ebenezer does a respectable enough job taking a more horror-forward approach to A Christmas Carol, but the Johnny Depp performance at the heart of the film pulls more focus than is necessary Read
• 6.0 The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck While Ebenezer doesn’t break any new ground, other than possibly being the first version of the story not really suitable for young children, it fulfills its ostensible goal of restoring the actor to A-list status. Read
• 6.0 VultureAlison Willmore Johnny Depp is the worst part of Ebenezer, but he’s also the reason it exists, so it’s futile to try and separate his presence from the rest of the movie, which is, inconveniently, pretty good. Read
• 6.0 Radio TimesPatrick Cremona There's a great deal to enjoy in Ebenezer, but it's a frustrating watch, due mainly to an over-egged central performance that all too often gets in the way of an audience's suspension of disbelief Read
• 6.0 EmpireHelen O'Hara Don’t believe the promo hype: this is a thoroughly conventional adaptation of A Christmas Carol, with excellent ghosts and supporting characters and a compelling Scrooge. Read
• 6.0 We Live EntertainmentAaron Neuwirth Given how this feels more like a plea for a Best Makeup nomination than an attempt to do anything ambitious or innovative, this is really just for those who wouldn’t mind a new version of this story or are die-hard Depp fans. Read
• 6.0 HeyUGuysLinda Marric Devotees of the novella will appreciate the fidelity and the gloom, and horror fans will find the atmosphere and craft they came for. Read
• 6.0 The Austin ChronicleRichard Whittaker In its innovations, Ebenezer still keeps the spirit of the season and the book in its heart. Read
• 6.0 The GuardianPeter Bradshaw This is a decent enough new version, avoiding any big new revisionist takes which might have clunked. Read
• 6.0 La NaciónMaría Fernanda Mugica West once again shows a unique talent for staging horror, even while varying his style. The sequences of the ghosts' visits are powerful and create an atmosphere of real horror Read
• 5.8 The A.V. ClubJesse Hassenger The former superstar is the reason this movie is a big-studio release—and also the ultimate source of a low-rent meagerness of spirit that undercuts some beautiful production work. Read
• 5.5 SlashfilmBill Bria It's a movie that seems to exist on Depp's shoulders for better or worse, a choice that leaves it being technically competent but ultimately confused. Read
• 5.5 HobbyConsolasMaría Bescós 'Ebenezer' is intriguing as a deliberate metaphor for Johnny Depp's return to the big screen, and disappointing as Ti West's attempt to bring Dickens's work closer to horror. Read
• 5.0 Screen RantLiz Declan Ebenezer takes the safest route, adding another cinematic retelling to a pile that features Oscar-winning icons, the Muppets, uncanny valley Jim Carrey, and now Captain Jack Sparrow. Read
• 5.0 Next Best PictureDan Bayer While there’s potential in this idea that could make the material more boldly contemporary, “Ebenezer” squanders it. Read
• 5.0 San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle Thanks to Dickens and Johnny Depp, and almost nothing else, “Ebenezer” is ever-so-mildly watchable. Read
• 5.0 The Irish TimesDonald Clarke Depp, in virtually every scene, doesn’t exactly kill the thing, but you sense a much better film longing to escape his awkward embrace. Read
• 5.0 VarietyGuy Lodge It all ticks along efficiently enough, never exactly dragging — not least because you generally know exactly what’s coming next — but never stirring the heart in the way the best “Christmas Carols” do. Read
• 5.0 Flickering MythRobert Kojder More isn’t necessarily better (a lesson Hollywood never fails to learn), and that’s exactly the issue Ti West’s Ebenezer (a take on the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, adapted by screenwriter Nathaniel Halpern) falls into. Read
• 5.0 CBRChris La Vigna Will have you either shouting "bah humbug!" at the screen, or perhaps even worse, just shrugging as you silently exit the theater. Read
• 5.0 Gone With The TwinsMike Massie What kind of audience will embrace such a dark, bizarre, grotesque interpretation of a man learning about the woes of poverty and the dangers of want and ignorance, considering that it still includes a notable toothlessness and merriness in its holiday depictions? Read
• 5.0 Bloody DisgustingMeagan Navarro It’s all so by the numbers that it’s forgettable. Read
• 4.5 CGMagazineShakyl Lambert Aside from great production and costume design, there’s very little Christmas spirit to be found in the dreadfully boring Ebenezer. Read
• 4.2 IndiewireDavid Ehrlich The slapstick pageantry of Depp’s performance sabotages the movie by keeping that flame at a low simmer from the start. Read
• 4.0 The IndependentLouis Chilton Most of the worthwhile parts of this film stem from director Ti West’s able handling of the more horror-inflected ghost-story elements. Read
• 4.0 Screen DailyNikki Baughan Yet Ebenezer plays it entirely safe, an uninspiring, unnecessary drama which centres on a performance from Johnny Depp that again foregrounds caricature over character. Read
• 4.0 The RevealKeith Phipps This would be a worthwhile addition to the long list of Christmas Carol adaptations if it weren’t built around an obnoxious Johnny Depp performance as Scrooge. Read
• 4.0 The TimesKevin Maher It’s just a shame, then, that the film around [Depp], directed by the horror film-maker Ti West (Pearl, X), is hugely uninspired and has little to offer the already swollen canon of Christmas Carol adaptations. Read
• 4.0 Den of GeekDavid Crow this is the first Scrooge movie that feels like it was designed by the Heritage Foundation Read
• 4.0 NYC Movie GuruAvi Offer A gritty, grotesque and atmospheric slice of gothic horror that's heavy-handed, exhausting, tonally uneven and suffers from style over substance. Read
• 3.8 Slant MagazineTaylor Williams It’s hard to see what stake anyone besides Depp had in this project beyond cashing in on yet another iteration of A Christmas Carol. Read
• 3.8 Chicago TribuneKatie Walsh The intended audience is a mystery, as is the motivation for tackling a project like this to begin with. Read
• 3.3 ConsequenceLiz Shannon Miller Too bad Depp’s performance is a sad joke compared to, say, the great Michael Caine’s definitive take on the role; Caine was performing opposite Muppets, but Depp’s doing his best to act like one. Read
• 3.0 New York TimesBrandon Yu This is a “Christmas Carol” iteration that is bland in imagination and supremely straightforward in interpretation. Read
• 3.0 The WrapAmelia Emberwing Far more adaptations, however, sit on a long list of forgotten attempts to cash in on the holiday box office. Read
• 3.0 Culture MixCarla Hay Instead, this frequently dull and tonally uneven movie doesn't do anything creative except add Gothic horror imagery. Read
• 3.0 The Auteurist ClassPeter Sobczynski Ebenezer just sits there like a giant lump of coal on your lap for two solid hours Read
• 3.0 elDiario.esAlberto Corona So Scrooge y los fantasmas de la Navidad is just another Hollywood Christmas Carol. One more. Read
• 2.5 The Boston GlobeOdie Henderson Under all that makeup, Depp is easily the worst Scrooge I’ve ever seen. Read
• 1.6 The PlaylistRodrigo Perez For all its Gothic grandeur, “Ebenezer” is a punishingly dull, emotionally unrewarding slog whose resources only make its creative emptiness more conspicuous. Read