Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 5, 2019

'Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas' is currently only available as part of a two film bundle with 'Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas.'

It is the most joyous, wondrous, beautiful time of the year: Christmas! This year, three gifts appear under the tree, each with a story to tell. The first, a sailboat, tells a story of “laughter and family.” In this reworking of the classic Groundhog Day tale, Huey, Dewey, and Louie are celebrating the season with Donald and extended family. When the day is done, the boys are sad that Christmas won't come around again for another year. They wish upon a star for Christmas to happen every day, and their wish is granted. They awake to find the calendar showing every day as December 25th. The presents are under the tree once again, and the day continues just as it was the day before. But as the same events unfold day after day, the boys come to realize that an endless celebration of the most wonderful day of the year isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, especially when their desire to shake up the routine leads to disaster.

The second gift, a bear, tells the tale of a father and son and the love they share. Goofy and his son Max are celebrating the season with festive decorations and a letter to Santa. In their effort to ensure the mail carrier takes it, Goofy and Max find themselves in an adventure through the local mall, attempting to chase down the letter which is fluttering through the air. The letter is finally sent, and Max dreams of Santa reading it and delivering exactly what he wants: an extensive list of high priced toys and electronics. But Max’s dreams are dashed when a tactless neighbor, Mr. Pete, tells him Santa doesn’t exist. Now it’s up to Goofy to convince him otherwise.

The final present, a sleigh, offers “the gift of a heart” and is based on O.Henry’s The Gift of the Magi. It’s Christmas Eve and Mickey and Pluto are shopping for last-minute gifts for Minnie. Unfortunately, the chain he’s eyeing is out of his price range, but a good day of work and tips at the tree lot should do the trick. Meanwhile, Minnie is struggling to come up with the funds to buy Mickey a gift; bills are piling up but she’s working hard to put on a stable and secure front. Her only hope is a Christmas bonus at work, which will hopefully be of the financial, not baked, variety. Meanwhile, Mickey is fired for not allowing his boss to scheme impoverished customers. Can Mickey and Minnie find a way to make ends meet at the last minute, or will their respective situations teach them a little more about the true meaning of Christmas?

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas features a robust 1080p transfer. The image is crisp and colorful with some more traditionally sturdy backgrounds and resplendent, radiant animation in the foregrounds. Character models are a delight, super sharp and revealing firm, fine lines and distinguished colors across all three shorts. The entire palette pops with highly impressive punch and depth. Christmas colors, as well as clothes and a number of accents around the home, offer solidified tones that bring each location to life. Background details are sharp and stable, revealing support elements like furniture, walls, and storefronts with high yield textural and color stability. There are a few uneven and jagged lines here and there; Max's bicycle helmet in the second segment is an example. The picture is otherwise in terrific shape; fans should be very pleased.

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is richly detailed and fully engaged around the stage. Music delivery enjoys healthy width and precision-engineered surround implementation, which offers pinpoint detail that is at once both distinct and effortlessly folded into the greater listen. Some of the more prominent effects in the second segment with Goofy and Max feature some quality traffic zipping and zooming en route to chasing down the mail and some enjoyable low end depth at the mall during a few of the more zany adventures, such as when an oversized ball rolls after Goofy. A firework pops with authority in the third installment, followed by firetrucks zooming to the scene from back to front. Dialogue is clear and center-positioned. It is well prioritized for the duration.

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas contains three supplements.

• Gift of the Magi Storybook (480i, 6:32): In this supplement, a narrator reads a Disney-themed recreation of the famous O. Henry work first published in 1905 (which is also the subject of the third short in this collection). Viewers who enjoy the story can find another take on it with Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas.
• Disney's Songbook "Deck the Halls" (480i, 2:10): The famous and familiar Christmas song is presented karaoke-style, set to footage from Pluto's Christmas Tree.
• Disney's Songbook "Jingle Bells" (480i, 3:02): The karaoke-style presentation set to footage from Winter (also on the above linked Olaf collection).

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas is a fine little collection of several familiar stories reworked and rebranded with Disney magic. The Blu-ray delivers healthy video and audio presentations and a few extras. Highly recommended.