An American Carol movie review
by Manic Mike Marcotte-Guest Blogger to Connect the Dots Blog

An American Carol is a 2008 American comedy film, directed by David Zucker and starring Kevin Farley, brother to the late Chris Farley. Presented from a conservative perspective, the film is a parody of liberal film maker Michael Moore that "lampoons contemporary American culture, particularly Hollywood." It uses the framework of A Christmas Carol but moves the setting of the story from Christmas to Independence Day. The screenplay is written by Myrna Sokoloff and Zucker. The supporting cast includes Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voigt, Dennis Hopper, Trace Adkins, Gary Coleman, Jillian Murray and Leslie Nielson. The film was released on October 3, 2008.

Left-wing activist and filmmaker Michael Malone (a parody of Michael Moore) is campaigning to end the celebration of the Fourth of July. Malone truculently argues to the American people that America's past and present are offensive, and therefore should not be celebrated. Malone's nephew is a naval officer about to deploy to the Persian Gulf, and Malone treats him with contempt. Malone is then visited by three ghosts, Presidents George Washington and John F. Kennedy, and General George S. Patton, who try to make him rethink his view of America. They try to show him that sometimes war is necessary for the greater cause. For example, Patton shows him an alternate world where slavery is still in existence because Lincoln chose not to fight the Civil War. He also shows the filmmaker how British Prime Minister Chamberlain appeased Adolf Hitler. Malone is also visited by the spirit of George Washington (played by Jon Voight) who takes him to the very church in New York where he was sworn in as the 1st President. Washington tells him how the dust in the church is the dust from the World Trade Center on 9/11. In the film's end, Malone is a changed man who loves America and realizes how precious freedom is.

Even before the scheduled release of the movie, An American Carol, had been strongly advertised by notable Republicans and conservative leaning people, such as radio personalities, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannitey, Glenn Beck and Mark Levin. On October 3, 2008, actors Kevin Farley and Kelsey Grammer appeared on the FOX News program the O'Reilly Factor to promote their film. An American Carol has also been described by newspapers such as the Dallas Morning News as being "for the right wing."
The film was not screened for critics. Director David Zucker explained this was because the studio did not believe it would get a fair hearing from critics due to its conservative political viewpoint. The film currently has a rating of 14% at Rotten Tomatoes (RT) based on 28 reviews, and a score of 23 out of 100 at Metacritic based on 11 reviews.