In Depression-era Concord, New Hampshire, a miserly businessman named Benedict Slade receives a long-overdue attitude adjustment one Christmas Eve when he is visited by three ghostly figures who resemble three of the people whose possessions Slade had seized to collect on unpaid loans. Assuming the roles of the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future from Charles Dickens' classic story, the three apparitions force Slade to face the consequences of his skinflint ways, and he becomes a caring, generous, and more amiable man.

On Christmas Eve of 1933, Thatcher, Slade's clerk, and his other employees assist him on confiscating the possessions of debtors who cannot repay him. While collecting debts, Slade encounters three of his debtors - a farmer named Matt Reeves, a manager of the local orphanage named Jessup, and a librarian named Merrivale - and denies their requests to have more time to repay him, and confiscates their possessions, much to their dismay.

That afternoon, back in the company warehouse, Slade is taking apart some of Merrivale's leather-bound books that he confiscated that day, which he intends to sell for the value of the leather in their binding, one of which is an original copy of "A Christmas Carol" signed by Charles Dickens. When Thatcher refuses to help Slade with this and tries to explain why he is not helping his employer in this task, Slade thinks that Thatcher "disagrees with everything he does... conspires with others to pull money out of him..." and fires Thatcher, much to his family's dismay.

That evening, the power in Slade's warehouse goes out, and some of the repossessed items in the warehouse start making noise of their own accord. When Slade looks through the warehouse to investigate, he is haunted by the spirit of Jack Latham - his former business partner and the original owner of the warehouse, who had died some time before. The ghost of Latham warns Slade of the mistakes he made in his life, and the terrible fate in Hell that he currently suffers, which Slade will suffer if he does not change. Latham tells Slade to expect three ghosts before the night is over, who will try to help Slade to turn his life around and avoid the same fate as Latham.

That night, Slade meets the first ghost, who bears the appearance of Merrivale, from whom Slade had confiscated the books that he was taking apart earlier that day. Merrivale shows Slade many events from his past, including his apprenticeship in woodwork with a man named Mr. Brewster, and meeting his now-ex-girlfriend Helen, who had cut ties with him upon learning that although he claimed to have loved her, he had chosen money over her one too many times. Merrivale and Slade's last stops include the younger Slade meeting Latham, and Mr. Brewster's funeral.

Slade awakes in his chambers, but hears choral music coming from his warehouse. He enters it to investigate what is happening, where he meets the second ghost, who takes the form of Jessup, who is accompanied by a large crowd of carol-singing children. Jessup shows Slade visions of the present Christmas, including the festivities of Helen, who is now happily married and has a daughter, and Thatcher's family, who are saddened by the event of Thatcher losing his job. Slade notices that, to his dismay, Thatcher's son Jonathan is disabled and uses a pair of crutches to get around. Jessup warns Slade that Jonathan will die if the future remains unchanged.

Slade awakens back in his chambers, where he meets the third ghost, who bears the appearance of Matt Reeves. Reeves takes Slade to a possible future Christmas, where Jonathan, Thatcher's son, dies and the Thatchers mourn his passing. Slade's own belongings are then sold in an auction and then burned outside his house following his future death, which is celebrated by the townsfolk. Slade promises to change if he is returned to the present, which he is.

Awakening in his chambers on the early morning of Christmas Day, Slade returns all the repossessed items back to the debtors he took them from, and gives presents to Merrivale, Jessup and Reeves - who are the three Ghosts in their real-life forms. When returning the repaired books to Merrivale, he also gives back the old copy of "A Christmas Carol", which has been put back together and gift-wrapped. When visiting Jessup's orphanage, Slade finds a bitter orphan like he himself was, and adopts the orphan as his ward and apprentice in wood-carving.

Academy Award-winning special make-up effects artist Rick Baker consulted on the aging makeup for star Henry Winkler.^[2]

An American Christmas Carol was released on DVD on November 23, 1999. It was released on Blu-ray in December 2012.

• List of Christmas films
• List of ghost films
• Adaptations of A Christmas Carol

• An American Christmas Carol at IMDb  
• An American Christmas Carol at YouTube Movies and Shows