The Golden Era? I would call the Katzenberg-Eisner animation revival the Modern Era of Disney movies. The Golden Era would probably be the early days, when Walt and his gang were experimenting and created all those classic films in the '30s and '40s (Snow White, Fantasia, Pinocchio, Bambi, etc.)
Disney is uneven, but there are plenty of great films. Their live-action stuff is terminally mediocre (except for Mary Poppins), but their animated films were great.
Disney went through phases. There were the classics (Snow White, Cinderella, Fantasia, Pinnocchio, Peter Pan), then the moribund phase (a dismal record up through The Black Cauldron), then the rebirth (starting with The Great Mouse Detective, they had a run of great films through The Emporer’s New Groove, the only real misttep being the banal “The Lion King”). Lilo and Stich was good, but minor.
Best of the lot was Mulan. Worst of those I’ve seen was “The Fox and the Hound,” though I hear “The Black Cauldron” is even worse.
I liked The Black Hole ,except for the soundtrack and the robots
The Ugly Bug Ball!!
Misstep??? What the…? That’s one of the best ever! I find it weird you’d class The Great Mouse Detective as better than The Lion King.
And let’s give a shout out for the minor masterpieces of the 1940’s:
Saludos Amigos (1942)
The Three Caballeros (1945)
Make Mine Music (1946)
Fun and Fancy Free (1947)
Melody Time (1948)
Yes they lack the grandeur of a Pinocchio or a Snow White, but they have that wonderful Mary Blair visual palette. And Jose Carioca, the coolest character Disney ever created.
One of my favorite pieces of Disney animation is an animated short from 1943 called Education for Death. It’s the story of a German boy growing up under the Nazis and gradually becoming indoctrinated in fascism. Unlike the silly Der Fuhrer’s Face, Education for Death is both moving and chilling. It’s an example of just how good Disney could be on the rare occasions when they played just to adults.
Can you elaborate? Pixar didn’t get involved until Toy Story (in fact, I seem to find that the Pixar/Disney movies are: Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters Inc., and the Incredibles. Citey McCite Cite).
Most of the films being discussed here are Disney movies. Movies come up with, drawn by, and distributed by Disney.
And I think there is a case to be made that Pixar made/Disney distributed movies can still be considered “Disney movies.” Personally, I haven’t really been a big fan of the Pixar-era Disney movies (except maybe Nemo). There is something about simple, old fashion (well, you know what I mean) animation.
Pochacco I LOVE The Three Caballeros! Thank you for reminding me!
**RealityChuck **, can I ask why you think the Lion King was a huge mistep? I’m just curious if you took issue with the story, the animation, the music, or if it is just person preference?
My vote for most under-rated Disney movie: Fantasia 2000
And most over-rated (by far): The Lion King. I don’t think the Lion King was bad, per se, I just thought it was generic, obvious and predictable, with only one really good song. And it came on the heels of the back-to-back-to-back triumphs of Mermaid, Beast and Aladdin. And yet it’s consistently named as people’s favorite Disney film. I just don’t get it.
Yes, all Pixar films have been distributed under Disney, because when they first started out with Toy Story (they had never had a feature film before) they needed money for distribution, and they chose Disney. Disney screwed them in their contract, though, claiming ownership of all their characters and in their five movie contract did not count sequels. So The Incredibles was the last in the five movie deal.
Cars, and those that follow (there’s one coming about sewer rats, I think), are not part of that deal. They need a new distributor, and I’m not sure what’s been decided as they are considering returning to Disney now that Michael Eisner’s stepped down.
The point is, Pixar has all the creative input, which is the part that counts, and have long passed the point where they need to beg for funding from anyone anymore, but Disney still takes the credit, IMHO unfairly. Disney are even making a Toy Story 3, independent of Pixar (though if they sign up with Disney again, as mentioned above, then perhaps that will get sorted out).
Best: Pinocchio. Visually, it’s amazing. They hadn’t learned how to cut corners yet. Every frame has this glorious hand-crafted luminosity.
Worst: Home on the Range. This should have been direct-to-video. Skimpy animation, bad voice acting, boring. A sad end to a great tradition of animation.
Most Under-rated: The Emperor’s New Groove. One of the funniest movies Disney ever made, plus it has some remarkable facial animation. Contains a subtlety of character not seen since Frank and Ollie retired.
Most Over-rated: The Little Mermaid. A step above Hanna-Barbara. Crudely animated and saccharine. Saved by its songs.
Weirdest: Victory Through Air Power. The full power of golden-age Disney animation used to sell the common man on the virtues of strategic bombing.