Saturday, August 27, 2011

Disney Animated Features, Ranked

So, the "Saturday Morning Classics" post is upcoming. In the meantime...


The first thing to do when compiling this list was to break down the movies into three tiers: Tier One being the above average films, Tier Two being the average films, and Tier Three being the below average films. From there, it becomes easier to sort them into specific rankings within the three tiers.

Tier Three:
#33 - Oliver & Company
#32 - The Princess and the Frog
#31 - The Great Mouse Detective
#30 - The Emperor's New Groove
#29 - Pocahontas
#28 - The Aristocats

Tier Two:
#27 - The Rescuers
#26 - Hercules
#25 - Fantasia
#24 - Tarzan
#23 - Lady and the Tramp
#22 - The Sword in the Stone
#21 - The Rescuers Down Under
#20 - Lilo & Stitch
#19 - Alice in Wonderland
#18 - The Fox and the Hound
#17 - The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
#16 - Robin Hood
#15 - Pinocchio
#14 - Mulan

Tier One:
#13 - Sleeping Beauty
#12 - Bambi
#11 - Cinderella
#10 - Aladdin
#9 - The Jungle Book
#8 - Dumbo
#7 - The Little Mermaid
#6 - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
#5 - Peter Pan
#4 - 101 Dalmatians
#3 - The Hunchback of Notre Dame
#2 - The Lion King
#1 - Beauty and the Beast

So it's really difficult to put the films into exact order. Without a more thorough investigation into each film, it's hard to say which of two very close in quality is better. I'm not dead set on the exact positions in this list, but it's pretty close, I think.

The following films in the official list of Disney features were unable to be ranked because (1) they're obviously terrible and I haven't gotten around to seeing them as a result, (2) I regrettably haven't seen them yet, (3) they're computer animated, or (4) they're really just an extended short film. I'll let you figure out which reason(s) applied: Saludos AmigosThe Three CaballerosMake Mine MusicFun and Fancy FreeMelody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, The Black CauldronDinosaurFantasia 2000Atlantis: The Lost EmpireTreasure PlanetBrother BearHome on the Range, and Chicken Little, Meet the RobinsonsBolt, Tangled, and Winnie the Pooh.

UPDATE: See the recent changes.

6 comments:

  1. No "Song of the South"? Shennanigans! Also, we came to the realization the other day that Ariel is a hoarder. I'd be interested in your thoughts on this subject at a later date.

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  2. Snow White and Mulan need to be switched, sir. And I'm kind of confused what The Hunchback is even doing on this list at all, for it is terrible. Otherwise, I approve.

    And Ariel makes so much more sense as a character if she is a hoarder.

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  3. Unfortunately, Song of the South isn't on the official list of Disney animated features. Neither are Mary Poppins or Who Framed Roger Rabbit? though.

    And yeah, Ariel, she's got some issues. As does that movie. I kind of regret putting it at number 7 now. I dunno. I need to watch it again.

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  4. I do really like Mulan, but I think it relies too much on Beauty and the Beast and the other Disney Renaissance films. I think it lacks originality. It's kinda just like them in a lot of ways, but they're like, "Ooh! Look how multicultural we are!" Which is fine, when it's not forced. It's not too bad, though.

    As for Hunchback, I beg to differ. That may be the most understood movie of all time. I'll do a series analyzing it one of these days.

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  5. Don't get me wrong, the Little Mermaid was still an awesome movie. I also agree with all your points on Mulan but also think it should be on the top solely based on the fact that she is clearly the biggest badass of all the Disney princesses.

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  6. How 'bout I do a separate list ranking Disney characters according to coolness? When I do, Mulan will probably be Numero Uno.

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