I’m sure some of my readers have wondered how I would ultimately rank the Disney movies I reviewed. And I am sure that everyone is aware, there are hundreds of these lists and hundreds of ways to rank favorite Disney movies; this is by no way a definitive guide, just my personal preference at the end of the day.
My Ranking of Disney Movies
Beauty and the Beast live action
Winnie the Pooh
Beauty and the Beast animated
Lion King
Cinderella live action
Robin Hood
Pocahontas
Brave
Mulan
Maleficent
Little Mermaid
Aladdin
Moana
Treasure Planet
Tangled
Hunchback of Notre Dame
Tarzan
Atlantis: The Lost Empire
Frozen
Lilo and Stitch
Jungle Book animated
Aristocats
101 Dalmatians
Sleeping Beauty
Hercules
Jungle Book live action
Cinderella animated
Peter Pan
Emperor’s New Groove
Sword in the Stone
Snow White
So, the live action Beauty and the Beast tops the list; are we honestly surprised, lol? I still love Winnie the Pooh, so not terribly surprising that I placed it second. I’m more surprised at how high I placed Moana, considering I’ve watched it only twice. But Moana is such an awesome protagonist. And Tangled beat out Hunchback; again, due to it has a more pleasant storyline. And of course, Snow White beats out any movie I decided to not review. I know I have friends who have different opinions. And that’s what makes it fun to debate!
A few other favorites:
Favorite Soundtrack: Lion King (mind you, if I’m listening to my Disney playlist, I will inevitably want to watch whatever movie I just heard part of the soundtrack for. Listening to Mulan‘s score, I want to watch Mulan, etc.)
Favorite Princess: Belle (again, not a surprise, see my original post on the movie, lol)
Favorite Prince: I want Adam from the live action Beauty and the Beast, with his well rounded backstory.
Favorite Hero: Robin Hood (this version is the paragon of good)
Best Sidekick: Genie (he supported Aladdin so much, and Robin Williams was genius)
When we get to Best or Most Evil Villain, it becomes more of a discussion:
There’s the evil queen from Snow White; she wanted to kill a girl because she was prettier. Not really a villain in Sword in the Stone. Izma, I always found her more funny. Hook…well, if I had an annoying child taunting me for years, I’d challenge him to a duel. Doesn’t excuse attempting to drown Tiger Lily or blowing up the kids. Lady Tremaine is horrible and abusive to Cinderella. Shere Kahn, he’s a tiger, he’s most likely going to try to eat a boy. Hades, is hilarious. But still tries to take over the world; I don’t think we want a world ruled by Hades.
Maleficent, in the animated, wanted to kill a child because she was snubbed. Very much redeemed in the live action. Stephan was a jerk. Curella wants to murder innocent puppies. Edgar in Aristocats, not high on the “evil scale.” No one villain in Lilo and Stitch, they’re all redeemable.
Hans, let’s discuss. Think for a minute (if Disney would go so far), if his plan had gone through. Anna would have been married to someone who didn’t love her, who only wanted her for her throne (at the very least, she’d be ignored, quite possibly abused). He intended to kill her sister. (Once Upon a Time delves into his villainy a little further). Rourke was a typical villain. Wanted to kill a whole race of innocent people, all for money. Clayton was a jerk.
Frollo, very evil. Murdered an innocent woman, then wanted to drop a helpless baby down a well, in winter. Abuses the boy. Lusts after a gypsy woman. And uses religion as an excuse. Mother Gothel, again, abusive. Selfish. Silver from Treasure Planet is redeemable for his relationship with Jim. Can’t really count Te Kā as a villain in the end. Jafar is nasty. Ursula, well, I’d love to play that role because it would be fun. But she also wants Triton’s throne, is not above dirty dealing to get it, including hypnotizing a man into marriage. (That could go so badly).
Shan Yu does kill an entire village and probably would do that to every village. Mor’du, not exactly the main conflict in the movie. Ratcliffe needs punched. Willing to kill an entire village of people for his gold lust. Prince John is more laughable in this version of Robin Hood.
Still love Scar, and a lot of that has to do with Jeremy Irons. Played brilliantly. But, kills his brother, attempts to kill his nephew (more than once), turns on those who supported his power play and a few deleted scenes had him making moves on Nala. Gaston is the picture of arrogance. He makes it very clear that he wants Belle for his wife, whether she agrees or not (again, would not end well if he won).
Ultimate contenders are Lady Tremaine, the Evil Queen, Hans, Frollo, Shan Yu, Ratcliffe, or Scar. Going to have to go with Frollo; he terrified me as a kid.
Again, if you have any questions, let me know! Any other favorites you want to know? Let me know your favorites!
Next Time: Enchanted
Dreamer in the Mirror 