A parents' guide to select new movies:

'A Christmas Carol'

Rating: PG for scary sequences and images.

What it's about: A bitter old miser learns to give his cash and himself to others after ghosts show him the consequences of his stinginess.

The Kid Attractor Factor: Animation (motion-capture), a few gags and some spooky ghosts.

Good lessons/bad lessons: Charity changes you and how others look at you — for the better.

Violence: A couple of deaths, some scary corpses and spirits.

Language: Humbug.

Sex: Not in this Dickens, oh no.

Drugs and alcohol: Wine and beer are served.

Parents' advisory: Not the warmest or funniest Christmas Carol, but a great introduction to the story for small children.

Roger Moore The Orlando Sentinel