Unbiased Reviews by Real People
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Unbiased Reviews by Real People
Scapp70's Top 10 (Ten) Disney Animated MoviesMar 7, 2006 (Updated Oct 25, 2007) Write an essay on this topic.
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Disney has released some good movies that were animated. Good movies, I mean great movies. I have many favorites, but the top ten are as follows. First, an animated Disney movie usually sticks to a strict formula. The movie characters are lovable, the music is addictive, and the story is easy to follow. Also throw in the usual lovable mascot(s). The best thing about Disney's movies is that we have all grown up with them, no matter how old you are. It just shows how timeless and magical these animated films are. All of these movies are rated G, except for James and the Giant Peach which is rated PG. 10. The Jungle Book (1967) has the qualities that make a Disney animated full-length classic. We have lovable characters, evil villain, a flowing story and great tunes. Our main character, Mogli is displaced as an infant and then raised in the jungle by wolves. He speaks the language of the animals, and survives as they do. When wind of the existence of Mogli, the man cub, catches the ear of Shere Khan, the most feared tiger in all of the jungle, the wolves have Mogli rejoin his kind in civilization in order to protect his life. Mogli's longtime friend, big lovable bear Baloo knows what's best, but he can't seem to let him go. The pair bum around all day, sing songs and get into trouble. Since this is the last animated film supervised by Walt Disney himself, it deserves a mention in my list, but mainly because it's classic. Some really cool songs are in the film. Some examples are, I Wanna Be Like You, Bare Necessities and My Own Home. 9. Pinocchio (1940) is one of the few movies that is so storybook like in the presentation. The moral of the story is very plainly seen and clear. The religious overtones are very overt as well, where Jiminy Cricket acts as Pinocchio's conscience telling him the difference between right and wrong. Pinocchio starts out as a wooden puppet that comes to life via a wish made by Gepetto the creator of Pinocchio. The wish was granted by The Blue Fairy and although Pinocchio is still made of wood, only through perseverance and obedience will the puppet be transformed into a 'real' boy. Pinocchio, like most of us, decided not to listen to his conscience (Jiminy), and take the advice of the wrong people time after time. First he skipped school, then he ends up as a jackass in Pleasure Island, then swallowed by a whale. Pinocchio repents and gets the ultimate gift of becoming a real boy. The music of the movie is memorable with golden-year Disney classics like Give A Little Whistle, I've Got No Strings and When You Wish Upon A Star. 8. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) is the first full-length animated feature ever. This film has remained timeless in its entertainment value for each new generation since. The evil queen's jealousy sends her on a rampage determined to destroy the more "fair" Snow White. On Snow White's journey of fleeing the Queen, she meets some new friends, some forest animals, seven dwarfs and a handsome prince. With the help of the seven dwarfs, Snow White is able to destroy the evil Queen, but not without paying with her own life. Snow White dies from a poison apple, but magically is raised from a kiss of the handsome prince. This movie contains the Disney classic songs Heigh Ho, Some Day My Prince Will Come and Whistle While You Work. 7. Toy Story (1995) is perhaps one of the most famous and beloved Disney movies ever. Toy Story is the story about Andy's toys, and their secret life of...well, having life. When the toys are left alone in Andy's room, the toys stop playing dead, well maybe dead is the wrong word, how about 'not alive'. They have their own worries, for instance, birthday parties. Birthday parties mean presents, presents mean more toys, and more toys may mean that the old toys fall by the wayside. This particular birthday party, the toys thought that everything was cool, until mom came out with the secret present, a new Space Ranger super-toy, Buzz Lightyear. Toy Story has so many beloved characters that have become staples in their relatively short run in Disney's animated history. Buzz Lightyear is voiced by Tim Allen, Woody the cowboy sheriff is voiced by Tom Hanks and other talents like Don Rickles, ...provide memorable performances and give life to the toys in Andy's toy chest. Another thing that has to be mentioned is the amazing soundtrack that was written by Randy Newman. New instant classics such as You've Got A Friend In Me, Strange Things, I Will Go Sailing No More. 6. Peter Pan (1953) gave us Tinkerbell, a character that is so identified with the world and entertainment of Disney. She is the tiny fairy that sprinkled Pixie Dust at the beginning of every television show, World of Disney, she ended many a parade at Disneyland and Disney World, and a sort of a Disney logo over the years. The movie, Peter Pan isn't so bad either. The fantasy factor is very big in this film. The title character, with the help of Tinkerbell teaches three London children how to fly, and leads them to a place called Neverland where children never grow up, and they have adventures with Indian braves, mermaids and pirates. Captain Hook is one of the greatest villains in Disney history. I like the fact that you know his weakness right away, the crocodile that stole his hand. The music has some memorable songs like You Can Fly! You Can Fly!, The Second Star to the Right and Following the Leader. 5. Toy Story 2 (1999) is the only sequel that I've included in my top ten. It stands out as far as sequels go because in my opinion, it betters the original. In the first, the biggest adventure was getting back home to Andy's room after getting lost on the town, and then trapped in Cid's room next store. Now the big chore is getting Woody back, who was kidnapped by Al from Al's Toybarn. Al wants to sell Woody and the rest of his Round-Up Gang to a museum in Japan. Buzz and the gang have to get to Al's apt to get Woody back home to Andy. Their adventure took them to the toy store and to the airport, where they hijacked a luggage transporter to drive home to Andy's. We meet a couple of new characters, most notably Jessie the cowgirl, Woody's counterpart, and Bullseye, Woody's horse. Also a new villain, Stinky Pete, the Prospector. These three are characters from the old 50s TV show, Woody's Round Up. There's also two more amazing songs from Randy Newman, the TV show title song, and the amazing tear-jerker When Somebody loved Me, performed by Sarah McLaughlin, as Jessie's character. 4. Alice in Wonderland (1951) is such a strange journey through this tale of fantasy, and that's probably the biggest reason why I love this movie. In the beginning we see Alice getting home schooled on a beautiful summer day, where she couldn't help but to daydream to relieve her boredom. When she sees a White Rabbit hurry by screaming that he's late for an important date, her curiosity peaks, but of course the White Rabbit has no time to stay and answer questions. Alice is determined and chases the rabbit into a rabbit hole and floats down a hole/hallway into a mysterious Wonderland. She meets strange characters like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, The Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and the very memorable Cheshire Cat. Alice in Wonderland is not really known for it's musical numbers, but are worth a mention like A Very Merry Un-birthday, or Golden Afternoon. 3. James and the Giant Peach (1996) is probably the darkest of stories in the Disney animated tales. I must say, that this movie almost doesn't belong here, since it doesn't start out as an animated film. The lead character, James is the only child of a married couple, when a rhinoceros from the sky kills his parents. He then has to move in with his two evil aunties, who work him as a slave, starve him and beat him as well. Before his parents died, they promised that they would go as a family to New York City, the most wonderful place they said. The only thing keeping James going is the dream of escaping to and living in New York City happily ever after. A little magic must help James across the Atlantic, and with the help of a magical crocodile tongue, that he accidentally had eaten, his adventure begins. He took a bite out of a giant peach that grew because of the magic crocodile tongues, and he transforms from his human body to an animated one. Also, the insects that were also hanging in the soil were affected by the magic tongues, and they grow bigger than James, they can also talk and help James on his journey to NYC. His dreams become the dreams of the insects, a ladybug, a caterpillar, a spider and a glow worm. The story flows the same way a Grimms tale might have. The soundtrack was written again by Randy Newman, and the songs are OK, like That's the Life, Eating the Peach and Family. There is one song that sticks out for me and sums up the whole movie. It is another Randy Newman masterstroke, and that is My Name Is James, a gentle ballad sung by James. It is heartfelt with lyrics that embody such a strong emotive element that it is the film's highlight moment for me. 2. Aladdin (1992) was a huge success and a favorite to many. One of the main reasons why the movie is so beloved is due to actor Robin Williams' voice talents for one of the lead characters, Genie. Genie was funny, quick and had a decent singing voice. Also, the musical numbers were top notch. Songs like A Whole New World, One Jump Ahead, Prince Ali and A Friend Like Me were strokes of genius. Recruiting lyricist Tim Rice for some of these songs was a great idea. The story is about the lead character, Aladdin and his best friend, squirrel monkey Abu were partners in crime who had to steel in order to survive in these ancient Middle Eastern times. The Royal Vizier, Jaffar and his smart mouthed parrot, Iago were a different kind of partners in crime. They didn't want for anything except more power and to become more corrupt. Jaffar's plan is to obtain the ancient genie of the lamp in the Cave of Wonders. He discovers he needs the assistance of Aladdin in order to obtain it. The very beautiful Princess Jasmine meets up with Aladdin, and of course they are both smitten, but the only problem is the law that segregates people by their station. When Aladdin finds the lamp, and meets the Genie, he wishes to become a prince, so he could marry Princess Jasmine. Throughout the film there are tugs of war for the power of the lamp, ups and downs, but of course true love trumps all other plots or subplots in Disney films. 1. The Little Mermaid (1989) should top the list the more I think about it. The combination of music, story, villains and characters is so universally loved and the movie so easily holds the attention of the viewer. The story is about a mermaid named Ariel. She is the daughter of King Triton and the black sheep of many sisters whose curiosity sets her apart from the rest. Her curiosity is focused on the world that is way above the ocean floor, and dwells on the surface of the lands. Her interest is peaked when she spies Prince Eric at work and play on a ship. When the ship catches fire accidentally, it is up to Ariel to save the Prince. She sings to him, but hides herself when he come to, as her father Triton warned her never to show herself to the land dwellers. Prince Eric only remembers the greatest singing voice he has ever heard and a very catchy melody. So, Prince Eric pines away for the mystery girl. Ariel, after a falling out with her father, decides to side with Ursula, an evil female octopus, who is also a witch, to rebel as much as she could. Ursula promises Ariel that she will become a human, and pursue her life with Prince Eric, only if she trades in her voice. Ariel gets her legs, but cannot speak or sing a note in order to convince Prince Eric that she is the mystery girl. Plus, one more stipulation, Ariel must make Prince Eric fall in love with her within the time frame of a week, or Ariel's soul would will belong to Ursula forever. Ursula on the other hand decides to hijack the voice of Ariel, and win Prince Eric for herself with the aid of a beauty spell as well. Ursula is really only after the magical trident of Ariel's father. Ariel is accompanied by her best friend, Flounder, and a watchdog/tattletale Sebastian, a crab, who was assigned to Ariel by King Triton. The musical numbers, in my opinion are the best that a Disney movie had produced in one movie. Kiss the Girl, Part Of Your World, Poor, Unfortunate Souls and Under The Sea were instant classic Disney songs, and they'll always have a place in the musical history of Disney animated, and the whole genre for years to come. Close follow ups are: Beauty and The Beast, The Lion King, The Lion King 1 1/2, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, A Goofy Movie, Fantasia 2000, and Return To Neverland ¤¤¤¤¤~Disney Related reviews from Scapp70~¤¤¤¤¤ The Music: Disney’s Music From the Park Disney’s Greatest - Volume One Disney’s Greatest - Volume Two Classic Disney Volume One Classic Disney Volume Two Classic Disney Volume Three Classic Disney Volume Four Classic Disney Volume Five Disney's Christmas Favorites Vol. 1 Mannheim Steamroller Meets the Mouse Disney: The Music Behind the Magic: 50 Songs Celebrating 50 Years of Walt Disney Records The Parks: Soarin’ Haunted Mansion Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Mickey's Backyard BBQ Sunridge Vacation Home Near Disney World Families First Vacation Homes Scapp70’s 50 Favorite Things To Do In Walt Disney World (part 1) – 50 - 41 Scapp70’s 50 Favorite Things To Do In Walt Disney World (part 2) – 40 - 31 Scapp70’s 50 Favorite Things To Do In Walt Disney World (part 3) – 30 - 21 Scapp70’s 50 Favorite Things To Do In Walt Disney World (part 4) – 20 - 11 Scapp70’s 50 Favorite Things To Do In Walt Disney World (part 5) – 10 - 1 The Books: The Haunted Mansion – From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies Popping Up Around Walt Disney World The Official Disney Encyclopedia - Third Edition The Movies Scapp70’s Top 10 Favorite Disney Animated Movies Toy Story (3-Disc Ultimate Toy Box DVD Set  |
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