Film

Ebenezer

Name: Ebenezer
Genre: Fantasy, Comedy
Released: 2026
Cast: Johnny Depp, Rupert Grint, Daisy Ridley, Andrea Riseborough, Tramell Tillman

Other titles called Ebenezer: the 1998 film.

Fantasy
Drama
Light-hearted

A reimagined take on Dickens' miser with a contemporary cast, blending Depp's darkly comic sensibility with spectral encounters that push Scrooge toward redemption. It's a paranormal comedy-fantasy that treats the supernatural genuinely rather than whimsically, aiming for laughs alongside genuine stakes. For anyone who wants their yuletide yarn unsettling and funny.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like a familiar story retold with a sly, mischievous streak, where the Christmas ghosts are an excuse for big jokes and a bit of heart.

Skip it if you already know every beat of Dickens's carol and would rather it were left alone, since this reworks the well-worn template more than it surprises you.

What it asks of you: At just under two hours, it settles in for a comfortable stretch, with its laughs arriving in a steady, unforced rhythm rather than in bursts.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

A Christmas Carol2009

Robert Zemeckis' motion-capture version cranks the spectacle to eleven: the Marley sequence is genuinely terrifying, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is properly menacing, and Jim Carrey's Scrooge has real desperation beneath the showmanship.

But The motion-capture can feel oddly weightless, and some sequences slide into sentimentality that undercuts the darker edges you might crave from this cast.

Insidious2011

James Wan proved horror and genuine emotion aren't enemies. It's about love and family fighting something genuinely *other*—the supernatural encounters carry real dread alongside mystery. Tildes that line between fright and catharsis perfectly.

But If you want levity, this isn't it. The tonal commitment to scaring you means comedy is sparse and purposeful, not woven throughout.

The Witch2016

A slow-burn portrait of paranoia and moral collapse set in a haunted space. The supernatural feels ancient and inexplicable; characters unravel under pressure. It's beautifully composed and deeply unsettling in ways that linger.

But It's glacially paced and eschews jump scares entirely. If you need constant forward momentum or clear answers, frustration will set in.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Ebenezer

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Muppet Christmas Carol1992

Both take a canonical story and filter it through an unconventional aesthetic and cast to find new dimensions in familiar material. Neither apologizes for its weird angles or cast choices.

Brian Henson's adaptation proves Dickens works beautifully as comedy without sacrificing emotional weight. Gonzo and Rizzo as narrators, Jim Henson's Marley—it's joyful, scary, and genuinely moving. It respects the story while being utterly unpretentious about the medium.

But If you find puppets intrinsically silly or refuse to engage with anything Muppet-adjacent as *serious*, you'll fight the film every step.

Crimson Peak2015

Guillermo del Toro's gothic romance wraps genuine scares and lush visual storytelling around characters you actually care about. The ghosts aren't cheap; they're part of a larger moral architecture that gradually reveals itself.

But The mystery elements are somewhat transparent to genre-savvy viewers, and the pacing occasionally favors atmosphere over propulsion.

Krampus2015

A Christmas horror film that blends creature-horror with familial crisis. It's genuinely inventive in its creature design, takes its premise seriously, and finds dark comedy in the collision between holiday tradition and genuine terror.

But The CGI is sometimes inconsistent, and the film's ambition occasionally outpaces its execution in the final act.

The Lovely Bones2009

Peter Jackson directs a supernatural narrative about loss and transcendence. The afterlife sequences are visually stunning, and the story balances genuine horror with a meditation on grief and moving forward.

But The film's tonal shifts between darkness and sentimentality don't always land cleanly, and some viewers find the magical elements undercut the grounded crime narrative.

Carnival Row2019

Both examine how supernatural force—genuine, unexplainable, inescapable—can strip away pretense and force a character toward reckoning with who they've become.

A dark-fantasy miniseries with Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne exploring morality, prejudice, and redemption through a paranormal noir lens. It's lush, character-driven, and treats supernatural elements as a framework for examining human failure and possible salvation.

But The narrative occasionally drowns in its own mythology, and the episodic pacing means it takes time to find its rhythm. Commitment is required.

The Lighthouse2019

Both use the supernatural as a crucible that forces characters into unflinching self-examination. The ghosts—literal or psychological—aren't there to entertain; they're there to annihilate self-deception.

Psychological horror masquerading as maritime isolationism. Two men, one small space, one rotating supernatural nightmare. Shot in black-and-white, steeped in folklore and fever-logic. Pattinson and Dafoe deliver performances that feel like possession; the film becomes increasingly unmoored from reality.

But It's aggressively experimental: the aspect ratio is claustrophobic, the dialogue is period-maritime gibberish, and the ending rejects clarity. Patience and appetite for discomfort are prerequisites.