D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 9, 2017

It's nice to see that the Mighty Ducks franchise has stuck with it through three films. Rather than take the easy road out for one, or both, sequels and simply plop new faces into the film and sew new names on the back of the same hockey sweaters, the filmmakers have created an honest-to-goodness trilogy with the trio of films, following, essentially, the same core players as they mature on and off the ice. While a few departed after the first film and several newcomers took their place in the second, D3 retains essentially the same group from the second and follows their journey to its next logical step: scholarship to an elite prep school to play JV hockey and, eventually, take over the varsity roster as older players graduate to bigger and better things. It makes the storytelling tighter, the franchise more viable, and the movies more efficient and memorable for taking what it built seriously and seeing it through as far as the studio allowed.

The Mighty Ducks, once District 5 hockey champs in Minnesota and later Goodwill Games victors, are moving on up in the world. The entire team has been given a scholarship to play junior varsity hockey at the prestigious Eden Hall Academy. But they won't be coached by Gordon Bombay (Emilio Estevez). He's taken a job away from the team and left it in the capable hands of former North Stars player Ted Orion (Jeffrey Nordling). It's not a good fit. He demands discipline, hard work, and a no-nonsese attitude. He adjusts academic standards upwards for his players, too. He's even taken the captaincy away from the team's heart and soul, Charlie Conway (Joshua Jackson). But the Ducks thrive on levity and fall when they're wound up too tight. Things only get worse when the team blows a huge lead in the third period of a game and a tit-for-tat series of pranks against the school's bigger and tougher varsity squad complicates matters and, altogether, threatens the team's very existence at Eden.

D3 maintains the series' core characteristics as well as its core characters. It blends some screwball comedy into the fold as the team participates in more unique drills on the ice (this time collecting trash) while getting into trouble off of it. This time, the opponent is a group of players who should be their mentors -- older players attending the same school -- but a rivalry develops when jealousy of the younger team's supposed easy ride grates on the varsity squad's nerves. But there's more depth to the movie than the varsity team walking out on an expensive dinner or the Ducks releasing fire ants into the varsity's dorm rooms. Character definition and growth, both from Charlie and his new coach, take center stage. Gordon Bombay returns to his transplanted roots to save the day. Even as the base narrative offers no surprises, the movie does what the series does so well, keeping the audience's heart warmed off the ice while heating things up on it. It may be the weakest film in the series looking at it through the various nuts-and-bolts components, but it makes for a quality end to an underrated franchise.

D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

D3: The Mighty Ducks is more in line with the wishy-washy first film than it is the tighter and more filmic second. The transfer is frustrating, appearing organic and accurate in spots but often appearing flat, pasty, and a bit noise reduced in many others. Details are inconsistent as a result. Every scene benefits from the 1080p resolution but doesn't always take advantage of the inherent tightness and definition in the source. But even at its best, details are just adequate. Varsity jackets, close-ups of the ice, and some of the more nicely appointed Eden Hall interiors have some nice textural richness. But the flatter scenes mostly disappoint. Colors are much the same way. Red Warriors jackets are prone to over saturation and an absence of subtlety. At other times, the jackets are more stable and lifelike. Much the same can be said of the rest of the palette, including wishy-washy black levels and flesh tones. Print wear is minimal but spikes in a couple of shots. Essentially, the transfer lacks consistency, satisfying when it's on and disappointing when it's off, but never does it push too far great or too far bad.

D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

D3: The Mighty Ducks features a fairly straightforward and uninteresting DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Opening title music is adequately wide but struggles with rear channel depth. The track opens up a bit when the hockey action kicks into high gear. Music is more diffuse and capably immersive while crowd cheers and on-ice action consume a good portion of the soundstage. A few good directional effects filter through from time to time, but even more than the other films this is largely a straightforward, dialogue-intensive listen. The spoken word is sufficiently clear and well prioritized from its natural front-center home.

D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of D3: The Mighty Ducks contains no supplemental content.

D3: The Mighty Ducks Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Mighty Ducks trilogy represents one of the best sports-themed franchises out there. It may be a little under-the-radar now some two decades since it last released a film, but the pictures have held up remarkably well and maintain a vitality all these years later. A good cast of characters, solidly enthusiastic performances, and plenty of heart and good cheer make up for predictability. The third film is no different in terms of strengths and flaws. It may be the weakest of the bunch, but it's a nice fit for the series and a fitting end to it. Disney's Blu-ray, exclusive to the company's online movie club, is featureless. Video and audio are fair, the former a little more inconsistent than the latter. Recommended.