Tony Danza, Lea Thompson, and Betty White star in this take on the classic tale, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas. After bungling his latest heist, bank robber Jack Clayton (Danza) flees the big city and winds up in the small town of Evergreen. There, he’s mistaken by Sarah Gibson (Thompson) and her daughter, Noelle, as the Santa Claus they’ve hired to promote their family Christmas tree farm. Jack plays along with the misunderstanding while casing a local bank job. That is, until his growing affection for Sarah, his encounter with a kindly shopkeeper (White) and his conscience cause him to question his criminal ways in this hilarious, heartwarming holiday tale you’ll want to watch again and again!

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[youtube https://youtu.be/c93nHMgCOAU?si=CiwcRI3NeGNmD6is&t=3028]

Video Quality

Stealing Christmas debuts on Blu-Ray with a surprisingly good 1080p transfer in its original 1.78:1 courtesy of Universal Pictures. There is no indication that this transfer is derived from a new master, but even if this is an older master, it provides a lovely viewing experience. Colors are consistently saturated with true vibrancy that captures the hues of the holiday season. Black levels are solid in their depth, although some stray moments struggle with delineation and a hint of crush.

The transfer looks clear and detailed with nothing registering in terms of density fluctuations in the grain field. The source appears to be in great shape with no damage spotted. Compression artifacts and other digital anomalies are likewise kept to a minimum. Image quality is stable with some impressive detail in the costumes, landscapes, and production design. This transfer holds up with no real signs of digital tinkering. Universal has brought back this forgotten television movie and treated it with respect.

Audio Quality

Universal brings us this Blu-Ray with a lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix that accomplishes all that is asked of it. The score conjures a spritely atmosphere for the narrative which exhibits no signs of weakness when it comes to fidelity. Dialogue holds up perfectly, coming through clearly without being clipped by the music or sound effects. The environmental elements are delineated nicely within the speakers without being overbearing. There are a handful of scenes that get a bit more lively near the climax, but don’t look for it to bring the house down. At best it just adds some texture to the low end. Universal has done a fantastic job with the audio side of things. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

There are no special features provided on this disc.

Final Thoughts

Stealing Christmas is a familiar holiday tale that finds a man achieving redemption during the most festive time of the year with the aid of a change in perspective. The film is not winning any awards in the screenplay department, yet it surprises with how effective it is as a television movie. The star power brought by Tony Danza, Lea Thompson, and Betty White is enough to make this feel slightly more substantial than many of its ilk, and there is enough of an edge to keep it from feeling completely saccharine. If you are not Grinch around the holidays, this works well enough to buoy your Christmas spirit. Universal Picture Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray that sports a great A/V presentation but no supplemental feature. Recommended

Stealing Christmas can be purchased directly through MovieZyng or various other online retailers.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Universal Pictures 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.