9 Reasons The Muppet Christmas Carol Should Have Won an Oscar

Because we all want to see Gonzo walk the red carpet with a chicken

By Julia Hays Dec 10, 2014 9:41 PMTags
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Unforgiven won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1993. You know what didn't win? The Muppet Christmas Carol! For that, the Academy remains... unforgiven.

(Nailed it.)

The Muppet Christmas Carol isn't just a great holiday movie or a great Muppet movie; it's a great piece of classic American cinema.

Michael Caine cries real, human tears multiple times, yells, screams, and gives a career-defining performance as Ebenezer Scrooge, and he does all of this while talking to Muppets.

Sure, Jim Henson wasn't around when the story was first written, but we have a feeling Charles Dickens' original intention for this legendary tale was for it to involve frogs, pigs and whatever Gonzo is. Here's why we think the film was majorly snubbed for not winning an award:

1. It's adapted from a Charles Dickens' book, so you know it's legit.

2. The Muppets get deep in this one—poverty, hunger, the class system… a movie with a platform is a movie with an award nom.

3. Those Michael Caine tears! Sure, he got Oscars for Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules, but this is his finest work! Like that moment when he literally bawls his damn eyes out at the end of "When Love Is Gone?!" Our Kleenex are gone. So good!

4. Tiny Tim breaks our hearts, coughing, and giving heartwarming speeches about good will. If award shows are obsessed with anything, it's sad family plotlines and unexpected newcomers on the big screen.

5. Beloved Muppets Sam Eagle and Fozzie are barely recognizable in this age transformation makeup. It's like The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, except you won't fall asleep during this movie.

6. The special effects game is strong! The Ghost of Christmas Past is like a tiny floating nightmare person. In fact, every ghost in this movie (minus Christmas Present, because he is redhead Santa) is frighteningly impressive.

7. Everyone loves an underdog story. Kermit the Frog as Bob Cratchit shows so much resolve as a poor father struggling to keep his family together amid their many hardships. A relatable performance like that can be a dark horse contender.

8. A period piece is always impressive. Lavish sets and costumed extras, sure most of them are from Jim Henson's Creature Shop, but it's still historical!

9. This soundtrack is everything! It's so damn catchy that Scrooge himself goes from humbugs to humming to outright singing in the end. All the Oscars, please!