A modern-day movie musical about the making of a network TV special, Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas is the frenetic backstage story and delightful on-camera results of Dolly’s desire to uplift an exhausted world’s spirits by sharing the unique “mountain magic” she has always found in and around Dollywood at Christmas. Throughout the movie’s production numbers and rehearsal chaos, Dolly finds herself taking a private journey into her past, guided by the mysterious appearances of her personal Three Wise Men. When it’s time for her big special to air live, a renewed and inspired Dolly goes rogue and shows the world that the real magic of Christmas lies in the hearts of the children we all once were, the realization that Christmas is about the people we share it with, and how her faith remains the common thread between Christmases past, present, and future.

For thoughts on Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/B0HH3Rt5Kow?si=JwbSrmpGWSxeOdv7&t=4104]

Video Quality

Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas comes to DVD with a 480p transfer that is perfectly enjoyable for the format. Compression artifacts are present without being too much of a detriment. Black levels are slightly lacking with a fair amount of blocking in the shadows. This DVD offers a fair amount of detail in the costumes and within the festive production design. The cinematography of the film provides an intentional artificiality, but it is not represented to the best of its ability in this lesser format. Colors are the most notable aspect of the experience, especially in the brighter settings that serve as the primary focus of the film. Skin tones appear to be consistent and there are some facial details present in close-ups. This presentation is acceptable for DVD, but this movie really would have popped with a proper Blu-Ray release.

Audio Quality

The DVD comes with a Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio track that sounds enjoyable within its lossy limitations. The film is primarily music-driven along with plentiful environmental elements that give the track some life. Elements such as background chatter on the set add a dynamic touch to the proceedings. Dialogue is presented faithfully and comes through clearly without ever being overshadowed by any music or sound effects. The songs radiate out of the speakers with great fidelity. Directionality is rendered precisely so that sounds originate from all the natural spots. A true lossless track would be a better experience, but most will not be displeased with this presentation. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

A Holiday with Dolly! The Making of Mountain Magic Christmas: A four-minute featurette in which the Dolly and creative team discuss why they wanted to make this film, how this film showcases what makes Dolly who she is, the fun of singing with her family, the fun aspects of production, and more.

Final Thoughts

Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas is a unique entry into the holiday season. If you are looking for something legitimately great, you should look elsewhere. If you are the type who watches Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas movies and delights in making fun of them with a viewing companion, keep reading. This special is absolutely unhinged at various points, and the level of performance is dialed into the cable fare. Nevertheless, you will find some fun guests popping up and Dolly herself is a national treasure. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released a DVD that is solid enough for the format and a brief supplemental featurette. This special can be bizarre fun, but it probably won’t speak to you if you don’t have a soft spot for cheesy Christmas movies and Dolly Parton herself.

Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas is currently available to purchase on DVD and Digital.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the DVD.

Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.