Welcome to the Animation 12 Days of Christmas! A series of posts leading up to Christmas to put our readers in the festive mood. This will include some opinion pieces and reviews of animated christmas specials, live-action christmas movies, and even a holiday gift guide with gift suggestions from our very talented writers. To read more of the articles, click here.
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Released December 16, 1983, Mickey’s Christmas Carol is a charming Disney-fied adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Christmas classic, A Christmas Carol. Today’s is its 30th birthday and its definitely a film worth reflecting on and celebrating.
Originally released in theatres alongside Disney’s The Rescuers, the 26-minute short sticks pretty close to the story of the original tale, with of course, a trademark Disney touch. The entire show has the feel of a community Christmas play, with beloved Disney characters playing the classic roles and putting on a show for the audience. Playing old Scrooge is, of course, Scrooge McDuck. Mickey Mouse is Scrooge’s underpaid and overworked accountant, Bob Cratchit. I’m assuming you already know the story, so I’ll skip the details and let those who haven’t seen it, enjoy it. Although I will say that Goofy makes an excellent ghost.
The animation is lovely and feels like classic Disney. It is trademark 80s Disney hand drawn animation, slightly rough around the edges and unpolished, but still feels warm and beautiful. Of course, it’s modest and doesn’t push the technical envelope, but wins for its emphasis on story, characters and humour.
Something Disney fans will lap up is the presence of tons of Disney characters from numerous Disney features–The Big Bad Wolf, Lady Cluck, Chip and Dale, and many more! It’s fun to test your Disney trivia and see how many you can spot! Here’s a fun Christmas game to play with friends- challenge them to name as many as they can!
Mickey’s Christmas Carol is actually the first of many Disney adaptations of A Christmas Carol. Fan favorite The Muppet Christmas Carol and the 2009 Jim Carrey starrer have somehow left Mickey and the gang way behind in popularity. So much so that people forget that this classic even exists! Still, Mickey’s Christmas Carol remains a fun filled, heartfelt holiday tale for fans of all ages to enjoy. This is the kind of film that deserves to be a part of your annual Christmas movie roster.
What do you love most about Mickey’s Christmas Carol? Sound off in the comments!
Mickey’s Christmas Carol is now available for the first time on Disney Blu-ray. Buy it now from Amazon: Blu-ray DVD
