Holiday Gift Guide: MICKEY'S CHRISTMAS CAROL 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray (Review)

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Mickeys Christmas Carol I distinctly remember the first time I watched MICKEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL. It was 1983, and THE RESCUERS (which I was too young to see the first time around) was reissued to theaters. Ahead of the film was an “all-new featurette” called MICKEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL. It was a big deal, and everyone wanted to see Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Pluto, Goofy, and a host of familiar characters in the Walt Disney version of the Charles Dickens classic.

Let’s hop in the DeLorean for a minute and take a look at how we were lured to the theater back in ’83:

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mickeycc300 I remember the special later running on the Disney Channel, and it would eventually become a perennial staple – a must-watch for each holiday season. Eventually, I became a grownup, got married, and my wife sent me on the hunt for MICKEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL on DVD… but it wasn’t available, and the VHS (remember those?) was also out-of-print. Then, it finally got released in 2009, and we got it… right after our first daughter was born. While I can’t seem to find it, I distinctly recall taking a picture of when I showed Addie this Christmas classic for the very first time, and although she won’t remember it (December ’09 – she was only four months) I was trying to preserve the moment. The question is: What device did I take it with, and on what drive does it reside today?

Now, for the very first time, Walt Disney Studios has digitally restored MICKEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL for a 30th Anniversary Blu-Ray release, and it’s astonishing just how good it looks. We’ve been watching our DVD for the past four years, and even though it’s digital – the film looks old. Not so on the Blu-Ray, which looks absolutely fantastic, and now captivates our entire family, including now four-year-old Addie, and her little sister.

TRF approved125 While MICKEY’S CHRISTMAS CAROL is a five-star staple on it’s own, the inclusion of the additional short films, Pluto’s Christmas Tree, Art of Skiing, Corn Chips, & The Hockey Champ (all of which will be familiar to 30-somethings like myself that had Disney Channel in the 80s), make this a must-own release, and a great gift idea. And, there’s a brand-new short called Yodelberg, which is from the new series of Mickey Mouse short films that I previously posted about earlier this year.