Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol [Blu-ray]

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol [Blu-ray] Review

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol [Blu-ray] Overview

Matt Smith and Karen Gillan return as the Doctor and his companion in an all-new Doctor Who Christmas special on Blu-ray and DVD. Amy and Rory are trapped on a crashing space liner, and the only way the Doctor can rescue them is to save the soul of a lonely old miser, Kazran Sardick. But is Sardick, the richest man in Sardicktown, beyond redemption? And what is lurking in the fogs of Christmas Eve? Writer/Executive Producer Stephen Moffat (The Original UK Coupling, Sherlock) describes the special, “We're going for broke with this one. It's all your favourite Christmas movies at once, in an hour, with monsters. And the Doctor. And a honeymoon. I've honestly never been so excited about writing anything. I was laughing madly as I typed along to Christmas songs in April.” Special guest stars include Michael Gambon (Harry Potter) and Welsh singing sensation Katherine Jenkins.

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol [Blu-ray] Specifications

Combining the whimsical science fiction of Doctor Who with the Victorian sentimentality of Dickens's A Christmas Carol may seem silly at first glance, but it turns out they're a perfect fit--A Christmas Carol is, after all, already a time-travel story. On a distant planet, the Doctor (Matt Smith) confronts a miserly curmudgeon named Kazran Sardick (the brilliant Michael Gambon, The Singing Detective), who holds the key to the survival of the Doctor's companion, Amy Pond (Karen Gillan), and thousands of others. To crack open this miser's heart, the Doctor decides to take Sardick to Christmases Past, Present, and Future… only these journeys involve a flying shark, a deep-frozen beautiful girl, and some of the funniest dialogue in the entire history of Doctor Who. Written by Steven Moffat, who shepherded the remarkably high-quality fifth season of the show, A Christmas Carol is bursting with clever ideas, gleeful moments of comedy, and a deft bit of genuine sadness. Smith has settled into the role of the Doctor with aplomb, tossing off wild curlicues of rapid-fire thought with boyish zip and sly timing. This is an outstanding episode of an engaging series that deserves a much wider following. Extra features include an excellent making-of documentary and a video of a symphonic concert of music from the series. --Bret Fetzer