Welcome back everyone, today I take a look at an older Mickey short that I have wanted to see for the longest time. Today, coming to us from 1932, I bring you Mickey's Good Deed. I believe that to date this is the oldest piece of animation I have reviewed. That doesn't make it bad, in fact I would say quite the opposite. Quick mention, there are two versions of this short available, the original Black & White or a colorized version. I decided to watch the Black & White version for authenticity.
The Plot
The plot of this short is pretty simple. Mickey is down on his luck and homeless, he has set up a little music stand with his cello and with Pluto alongside him but he is not given cash. That is until he uproots and to moves to a nice look mansion and a bratty little boy sees Pluto and wants him. The boy's father sends their butler and he chases Mickey down. Mickey has to fight him off and then he comes to a broken down house of a family that is worse off than him. He decides to sell Pluto to to the rich family and use the money to buy presents for the children of this family and their personal Santa. I love the plot of this short as it mixes the spirit of Christmas and taking care of your fellow man along with the kindred spirit of Mickey and helped to set him up as the lovable nice guy that he is today. As this short came out early in his career and most shorts before he was played as a mischievous little rascal.
Characters
Now I'll be breaking this down into Main, & Supporting. With that out of the way, let's begin.
Main Characters
Mickey Mouse voiced by Walt Disney
I always get excited when I find a short that has Walt voicing Mickey as there is while I adore Wayne Allwine's voice, there is something about how Walt created the voice that is exciting. That said, this is one of the most depressing shorts that I have seen starring Mickey that while at the same time having one of the most uplifting messages. As I stated in the plot, Mickey sells Pluto to the rich family, even though he'd rather not but he does so in order to give the family he sees a better Christmas. This is the Mickey, I like and the one I love seeing. This is the Mickey that is a genuinely good person and wants to help others.
Pluto voiced by Pinto Colvig
I felt truly bad for Pluto in this short because the way, the bratty rich kid thought he could beat Pluto up and treat him anyway he wanted. I mean the first thing this brat did to Pluto is hit him with a mallet. Pluto was tortured by this kid relentlessly. It was maddening to see Pluto be treated this way and when Mickey and Pluto were reunited at the end, I was relieved to see Mickey back with Pluto as they belong together.
Supporting Characters
The Brat - Voice Unlisted
As stated when talking about Pluto, this character was just bratty and thought he could have anything he wanted. He treated Pluto poorly and would throw a temper tantrum when he didn't get what he wanted. In the end though, he got punished as his father spanked him for misbehaving.
The Poor Children - Not Voiced
That is such an adorable shot and is just as it broke Mickey's heart, it broke mine to see the sate and condition that these children were living in. Mickey wanted to give them a better Christmas, he never wanted the money for himself. Sure, he didn't have a dime to his name but he saw this family and thought they deserve a real Christmas. So Mickey sold Pluto in order to give them the Christmas that they should have. Also to mention, we see a picture of I assume who is their father who is in jail during this time but it looks like their pop is Pete. Boy, now I feel really bad for these kids not because their dad is Pete but because he was in jail during Christmas. As for the Christmas, Mickey gave them, well here's a glimpse of to how it turned out.
I'd say that's a pretty good Christmas. Don't you agree?
My Final Thoughts
This is one of the most beautifulChristmas shorts that I have seen from Disney ever. The animation is stunning. The message is wonderful and it just has the feel of being made by a kindred spirit. Not many Mickey shorts have brought me to tears but this one came close. I cannot reccomend this short enough. Also something about watching it Black & White just adds a factor of timelessness to it. Join me tomorrow when I review the first in a line up of Christmas Shorts Showcase as I take a look at an underrated Disney short that I again had not seen before this year.
The Small One
The Plot
The plot of this short is pretty simple. Mickey is down on his luck and homeless, he has set up a little music stand with his cello and with Pluto alongside him but he is not given cash. That is until he uproots and to moves to a nice look mansion and a bratty little boy sees Pluto and wants him. The boy's father sends their butler and he chases Mickey down. Mickey has to fight him off and then he comes to a broken down house of a family that is worse off than him. He decides to sell Pluto to to the rich family and use the money to buy presents for the children of this family and their personal Santa. I love the plot of this short as it mixes the spirit of Christmas and taking care of your fellow man along with the kindred spirit of Mickey and helped to set him up as the lovable nice guy that he is today. As this short came out early in his career and most shorts before he was played as a mischievous little rascal.
Characters
Now I'll be breaking this down into Main, & Supporting. With that out of the way, let's begin.
Main Characters
Mickey Mouse voiced by Walt Disney
I always get excited when I find a short that has Walt voicing Mickey as there is while I adore Wayne Allwine's voice, there is something about how Walt created the voice that is exciting. That said, this is one of the most depressing shorts that I have seen starring Mickey that while at the same time having one of the most uplifting messages. As I stated in the plot, Mickey sells Pluto to the rich family, even though he'd rather not but he does so in order to give the family he sees a better Christmas. This is the Mickey, I like and the one I love seeing. This is the Mickey that is a genuinely good person and wants to help others.
Pluto voiced by Pinto Colvig
I felt truly bad for Pluto in this short because the way, the bratty rich kid thought he could beat Pluto up and treat him anyway he wanted. I mean the first thing this brat did to Pluto is hit him with a mallet. Pluto was tortured by this kid relentlessly. It was maddening to see Pluto be treated this way and when Mickey and Pluto were reunited at the end, I was relieved to see Mickey back with Pluto as they belong together.
Supporting Characters
The Brat - Voice Unlisted
As stated when talking about Pluto, this character was just bratty and thought he could have anything he wanted. He treated Pluto poorly and would throw a temper tantrum when he didn't get what he wanted. In the end though, he got punished as his father spanked him for misbehaving.
The Poor Children - Not Voiced
That is such an adorable shot and is just as it broke Mickey's heart, it broke mine to see the sate and condition that these children were living in. Mickey wanted to give them a better Christmas, he never wanted the money for himself. Sure, he didn't have a dime to his name but he saw this family and thought they deserve a real Christmas. So Mickey sold Pluto in order to give them the Christmas that they should have. Also to mention, we see a picture of I assume who is their father who is in jail during this time but it looks like their pop is Pete. Boy, now I feel really bad for these kids not because their dad is Pete but because he was in jail during Christmas. As for the Christmas, Mickey gave them, well here's a glimpse of to how it turned out.
I'd say that's a pretty good Christmas. Don't you agree?
My Final Thoughts
This is one of the most beautiful
The Small One
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