I'm trying
something different to get in the holiday spirit this year. Every
day, from now through Christmas, I will be watching a different
Christmas movie or television special. I have compiled the list of
features ahead of time and am drawing one, at random, from my
Christmas stocking everyday to determine what gets watched. Thank
you for joining me in this endeavor. Hard to believe that we are
already so far in to this project. Let's find out what the tenth
pick is.
Mickey's
Christmas Carol (1983)
Mickey's Christmas Carol represents another special that was
once a common part of my holiday season but has since fallen by the
wayside. Mickey's Christmas Carol was originally produced as a
theatrical short that ran in front of The Rescuers in December of
1983. This short represented the first appearance of Mickey in a
theatrical short in 30 years. For those of you keeping score at
home, I obviously couldn't have seen this in theaters. For me this
feature entered my life in two ways. One was a hand-me-down
Children's Golden Book adaptation. The other is that years later the
special became a holiday staple on the 1980s NBC Disney anthology
series, The Magical World of Disney.
Television airings are the way I have always experienced this
feature. This viewing will be the first time that I will see it sans
commercials. I have been looking forward to drawing this one from
the stocking as it is the way I was first introduced to A
Christmas Carol, which in
intervening years has become one of my favorite holiday stories.
Will I enjoy it as much as I used to, or will this be another feature
that can't compare to the memories I have of it? I am beginning to
realize that I am playing a dangerous game of nostalgia chicken by
doing this project. Shall we find out if it blows up in my face?
Synopsis
Mickey's Christmas Carol is the first of three picks that
are based on A Christmas Carol
to a greater or lesser degree. While it would be possible for me to
do a point by point synopsis of this feature, I don't feel like this
is worth while. It is a faithful adaptation of A Christmas
Carol and, if you don't know how
that story goes, quit reading this blog and read that book. Assuming
that I haven't misjudged and that I still have readers, what I will
be looking at instead are some of the choices that Disney made in
making this adaptation.
 |
| Goofy has always struck me as an odd choice for Jacob Marley in both design and personality. |
The feature is only 26 minutes in length so most of the relevant changes are simply for the sake of its runtime. The sequences with the Ghost of Christmas
Past and the Ghost of Christmas Present (portrayed by Jiminy Cricket
and Willie the Giant, respectively) are the ones that get abbreviated
the most. The only part of Scrooge's (portrayed by Scrooge McDuck,
obviously) past that gets shown in his travels with the Ghost of Christmas Past is the part that relates to his failed
relationship with Isabelle (Daisy Duck). Likewise, the only sequence
of Christmas present that we view is the visit to the residence of Bob Cratchit
(Mickey Mouse). We don't see the celebration at Fred's (Donald Duck)
or any of the other revelry. We only see the moment of fear at the
fate of Tiny Tim. The section that seems the least condensed is
Scrooge's time with the Ghost of Christmas Future. The only thing
not punctuated as strongly as it is in the book is Scrooge's sadness
and dismay over how roughly people speak of him after his passing.
The closing sequence on Christmas day features few edits, mostly
there is simply less shock over the Ghosts doing everything in a
single night.
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| Pete doesn't make the most terrifying Ghost of Christmas Future but he is effective enough. |
Final Thoughts
As stated earlier, A Christmas Carol
is one of my favorite holiday stories so I am pretty critical when it
comes to adaptations of it. To this end there are some things that I
find problematic. For one the Scrooge McDuck's Scrooge never feels
quite as heartless as he should. Many of what should be his most
cruel lines are delivered with a knowing wink or laugh that serves to
undercut their impact. Further, one also fails to really get an idea
of how badly Bob Cratchit is suffering. This is partly because we
spend so little time with him and partly because, save for refusing
to allow Cratchit to use a lump of coal, we only see Scrooge grant
Cratchit a half day off and allow him to leave two minutes early.
Not exactly the crushing weight Cratchit is meant to bear.
In spite of these deficiencies, I
feel that Mickey's Christmas Carol still holds up quite well. While
most of my issues with it can be traced to its shortened run time
this can paradoxically also be one of its strengths. There are times
when you may want a fix of A Christmas Carol
this holiday season but don't have the time to read the book, nor
watch one of the full theatrical versions. In moments like those,
Mickey's Christmas Carol can serve admirably. It is a competent
adaptation of A Christmas Carol
fit into a bite-sized package. As a bonus, the releases of it to DVD
and Blu-Ray come bundled with other Disney Christmas features so
adding it to your holiday viewing collection gives you other quick
seasonal viewing at the same time. I don't have much more to say
about Mickey's Christmas Carol. Worth a watch if you happen upon it.
Will I be watching another version of A Christmas Carol
tomorrow? Join me then to find out.
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| Mickey's Christmas Carol does know a good shot to end on when it sees it. |
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