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Top Ten Mickey Mouse Films

Mickey Mouse is an iconic character and his series is one of Disney’s most precious. Throughout his series of short films which lasted from the late 1920s to the fifties and then a short was released from time to time, Mickey changed from black-and-white to color, from solo cartoons to the companion pieces and the shorts remained charming and wonderful through and through. The best are those that incorporated great action, characterization and humor all into a coherent whole. So without further ado, here are ten best Mickey Mouse short films in my opinion with quite a lot of honorable mentions as well.

10. The Barnyard Olympics

This film was released to coincide with the 1932 Summer Olympics and thus it features Mickey and all of the barnyard animals competing in various Olympic sports. This premise was perfect for this series and although lacking in humor, the action here is so awesome that it really is a hugely entertaining short. The cycling part is the standout as well as Mickey being very well utilized and Pete too.

9. Mickey’s Fire Brigade

Mickey, Donald and Goofy are firefighters and they try to stop the fire in a building, but the fire is alive and it fights them and kicks them to comedic effect. Though most of the trio wasn’t as memorable here, Goofy out of the three was quite funny and Clarabelle Cow truly was hilarious in that one very amusing bathtub sequence. This is one of the funniest shorts in the series which also features truly terrific animation and a great concept.

8. Traffic Troubles

This is another early thirties short on the list as that period was the best probably for this series. Here the highlight is easily seeing the primitive cars and vehicles from this period parodied to a great extent. It is a very funny, but also brilliantly executed short in terms of its action as some of the moments here are very inventive – the fat driver, the bumps on the road and the taxi meter going high were the standouts.

7. Giantland

This story-driven short is a Jack and the Beanstalk adaptation which worked in its entirety. The castle looks great and in particularly the animation highlight is the action in the mouth which proved to be very influential for the future of the medium. But the movie is above all else a highly adventurous tale which is very well crafted in terms of storytelling and featuring a highly memorable giant at its center.

6. The Band Concert

The gang organizes the concert here, but Donald Duck disrupts them. Eventually even the storm does not manage to interrupt their playing the instruments. Though I personally find this short a bit overrated and not as entertaining as others, it still belongs on this list for its perfectly integrated music into its amazing and very polished animation. It succeeds as the first color cartoon in the series and it truly is very classy across the board.

5. Mickey’s Christmas Carol

Who could not adore this film? (Looking at you, Ebert!) This 1983 film is the longest in the series as it’s over twenty minutes, but it was worth it as it adapts this oft-told story perfectly by utilizing all of the classic characters from the Disney lore and making them stand out as everyone got a moment to shine. The animation truly is glorious here and the movie overall is very polished, classical and wonderful.

4. Mickey’s Trailer

The trio drives and lives in the titular trailer here and the attention to detail in creating this trailer is evident in every moment. This is one of the most purely enjoyable of all the shorts in the series as it features many memorable moments from Donald in the bathtub to Goofy’s very amusing final line. The classical physics-defying scenes were the highlights in this one and they brought a big smile on my face.

3. Magician Mickey

Mickey is a magician and he organizes a magic trick show where he eventually uses Donald for his tricks and basically humiliates him. Mickey is actually an asshole here, but it works in this instance as we see a destroyed Donald to hilarious results. The film utilizes the duck at his best when he is angry and frustrated. The animation’s great and the movie’s constantly inventive, brisk and very comedic.

2. Steamboat Willie

How could you make this list without including the one that started it all? Yes, Steamboat Willie isn’t just the very first Mickey Mouse short and the first sound cartoon ever, but it’s also one of the most iconic, unforgettable and best crafted films in the series. The animal scenes are so funny, the sounds are groundbreaking and the animation is superb. And Mickey and Minnie are both very strong here. This short continues to be important and absolutely revolutionary.

1. The Mad Doctor

Mickey dreams that Pluto has been kidnapped by an evil mad scientist and he has to go save him in the doctor’s creepy castle. Although focusing less on humor and more on atmosphere, this horror short still is unforgettable and almost everyone would think of it pretty soon when this series is mentioned how iconic it is. The castle is astonishing, the animation is spectacular, the atmosphere is superb and the villain is phenomenal. The ending with Pluto is beautiful itself. For all of those reasons, it’s my number one pick.

Honorable Mentions:

Two-Gun Mickey – Although unrealized in its potential for a feminist short, this is still a very accomplished western in terms of both action and animation.

Building a Building – Building a Building is one of the most entertaining early flicks with a particularly strong emphasis on setting, action and its iconic villain.

Brave Little Tailor – Mickey shines here as a hero and the animation and score are both splendid. It’s a solid adaptation, but the reduction from two to one giant is problematic.

Shanghaied – Pete is such a terrific villain who needed more shorts for himself as evidenced by this very amusing and so well crafted cartoon where he steals the show as the villain.

Mickey’s Service Station – This is one of the best shorts when it comes to the Goofy/Mickey/Donald trio as they all get their moment to shine individually and as a team.

Modern Inventions – This is actually a Donald Duck short which still belongs in the Mickey Mouse series. Its industrial premise was perfect and the highlight is the funny barber scene.

Mickey’s Gala Premier – This celebrity short could have been funnier and more authentic, but it still features some very entertaining cameos.

Mickey’s Polo Team – Polo is a much better fit for cartoons than overrated baseball and here it was utilized superbly with a lot of fun action and humor.