What’s Your Favourite Disney Movie?

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In the last week we have watched the remakes of two Disney classics, ‘The Lion King’ and ‘Aladdin.’ I’m not a massive Disney fan so didn’t sit down to either with high expectations. I think I’m still traumatised by 4 a.m. repeats of ‘The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse’ during the early years with the hatchlings. I’ve also watched ‘Finding Nemo’ approximately 6,000 times to the point where Dory had better recall than me.

Fionnuala and the girls raved over ‘The Lion King’ remake. I only have vague recollections of watching the original but it seems the reboot remains largely faithful to it. Beyoncé voices one of the lionesses but the highlight for me was Seth Rogen as Pumba the warthog. There’s something about Seth Rogen. I know he’s not everyone’s cup of tea but I like the guy. For me, he can do no wrong. He makes a great warthog.

The CGI effects are amazing and most of the original soundtrack makes a reappearance. I’m not a fan of the cheesy ‘Hakuna Matata’ but all the other classics fared well in this reboot. Overall, I enjoyed the movie but wouldn’t be queuing up to watch it again. The hyenas were probably my favourite animals in it, full of sinister intent and sly malice. They wouldn’t have looked out of place on the slopes of Mount Doom in a Peter Jackson movie.

Everyone knows the plot of Aladdin, even though I can’t recall having watched the original from start to finish. I must admit I didn’t sit down to watch it with high hopes, rather it was a family movie I was ‘enduring’ with the ladies of the house. Fionnuala is a tad obsessed with Will Smith and knows all the words to ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.’ I really can’t compete with that.

Two hours later I was struggling for superlatives to describe it. Brilliant! Amazing! I loved it. Smith is a revelation as the Genie, aided by fantastic special effects and a strong supporting cast. The actors who play Aladdin and Princess Jasmine were superb, the entire movie an explosion of colour and energy. Smith proved he can sing as well as rap and, well, everybody loves ‘A Whole New World.’

My favourite, though, was the magic carpet. Who would have thought a rectangle of fabric could be so expressive and personable. The entire movie flowed with an infectious passion which even an old grump like me couldn’t resist. Rebecca fell asleep towards the end but that was due to the late hour as opposed to any reflection on the film. I’d happily watch it with her again.

The new ‘Aladdin’ has to be up there now with my other favourite Disney flicks, ‘Brother Bear’ and ‘Enchanted.’ The former would melt the ice encased heart of a woolly mammoth while the latter has Amy Adams. I won’t have a bad word said about Amy Adams….ever. Her talent is boundless. Don’t believe me? Check out ‘Sharp Objects,’ or any other movie she’s been in for that matter. The girl has talent to burn.

The Disney machine gets its fair share of flak for being a heartless corporate beast pulling at our heartstrings while rifling through our wallets with overpriced merchandise and some dubious business practices. But when it’s churning out classics like the above it’s hard not to succumb to its charms. Life is hard enough and we all need a little magic from time to time. Disney can still serve it up.

Have you watched the ‘Lion King’ or ‘Aladdin ‘ remakes? What did you make of them?

What’s your favourite Disney movie?

Published by Fractured Faith Blog

We are Stephen and Fionnuala and this is our story. We live in Northern Ireland, have been married for 17 years and have three kids - Adam, Hannah and Rebecca. We hope that our story will inspire and encourage others. We have walked a rocky road yet here we are today, together and stronger than ever. We are far from perfect and our faith has been battered and bruised. But an untested faith is a pointless faith. Just as a fractured faith is better than none at all. We hope you enjoy the blog.

92 thoughts on “What’s Your Favourite Disney Movie?”

  1. If I had a favorite, it’d have to be one of the older ones from WAY back. What the company has become in terms of corporate politics and culture, and the semi-frequent charges of stealing material (the Lion King for example) has turned me off of Disney anymore.

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  3. Watched the Lion King with some of my nephews – yes, faithful to the original and beautifully made, but it just didn’t do it for me. Just like nothing can beat the original Disney the Jungle Book. I’m with you on Seth Rogen though!

    Not seen Aladdin but now will…

    Have a great day and hugs from London!

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  5. I could never stand Disney movies. I hate how Disney takes a story & white-washes it until it has almost no relation to the original tale. That said, I do like Lady & the Tramp & I do like Bambi … although the original novel is SO MUCH BETTER (if you haven’t read it, find a copy & do so) & has nothing to do with the horrors of a little deer taken from his mother at too young an age … it’s really a philosophical work about solitude & spiritualism. What I like about the movie Bambi is the beauty of the animation & the artwork. You don’t see that kind of work anymore. In fact, modern animation is pretty lousy IMHO.

    I do adore Will Smith. I might have to see the new Aladdin just to check him out. But I’ll wait … until I can see it at home. I almost never go to the theatre. If it shows up at the small movie theatre in my neighborhood, I might go there. But I hate giant movieplexes & I hate crowds.

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  7. There is not enough music in the remake of The Lion King, but the movie itself was well done. I am not sure I have a favourite. I love Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. I also enjoy The Sword and the Stone (it was my son’s favourite). I love pretty much all Disney animated films. I know they totally changed the story but Mary Poppins has always been a favourite as well.

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  9. The original Lion King holds a special place in my heart, which is why having listened to the new version’s soundtrack, I am very reluctant to watch it. The new recordings don’t have any of the charm of the original for me.

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  10. I haven’t seen any of the new ones, maybe later when they’re on the streaming services. Not a huge priority right now.

    Candleshoe is my favorite Disney movie – Jodie Foster AND David Niven? Perfection.

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  11. From my childhood, it was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It’s the first movie I remember seeing and it was in a grand theater. I think it was the entire experience that made it memorable. I also loved The Lion King (the original). Haven’t seen the new one but I plan to do so.

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  13. I used to hate Disney for all the usual reasons. Whitewashing, using other people’s stories to drive their films and then being the greediest jerks over copyright, fighting to extend laws so no one can ever get their hands on Mickey and reinterpret him in the tradition of storytellers, allowing him to become a part of culture rather than corporation (insane levels of hippocracy).

    But, when I saw Moana (again and again as my beach loving baby demands) I finally caved. I hate the corporation, but they hire the best storytellers and artists. You can expect quality from them. Also, in looking at the credits, all the folklore experts, it seems like in their reinterpretations they are striving to do better.

    So now my blog tagline mentions Moana’s grandmother, who takes pride in her role of village crazy lady, dances to the ocean, and delights in telling spooky stories to children.

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  14. Pinnocchio.

    I thought the new Aladdin was great! Critics seemed meh toward it, but watching something to pick it apart is not the same as “going with it”.

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      1. Sadly, they have all gone to the Rainbow Bridge (they lived to be 14, 15, and 13 years old respectively). I miss them … and would love to have another some day! While they’re not for everyone, they were splendid dogs for me and my family.

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  18. I enjoyed both the new Aladdin and Lion King. I also saw Toy Story 4 which I really enjoyed as well. I too like Enchanted. I enjoyed the Cinderella reboot and The Jungle Book reboot too. I’m not sure I have a favorite Disney movie. I like a lot of Pixar stuff. I love Ratatouille and WallE.

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  19. Thanks for the reviews. I will have to add these to my list. 101 Dalmatians and Snow White still probably rank as my favorite Disney movies as I have not seen one in a long, long time.

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  20. I haven’t seen the remakes. Don’t plan to either. My kids are all grown, and they don’t want to see them. I loved the originals of both, but my favorite is Beauty and the Beast, which I have also seen on stage.

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  21. You’ve piqued my interest…I really enjoyed Robin Williams as genie in the animated version. It’s hard for me to imagine that Will Smith could hold a candle (in the wind) to that. Now I’ve got to find out for myself.

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  23. Pingback: Inspiration through Fractured Faith – Moment by Moment

  26. My Favorite Disney movies are Aladdin and Mulan. I have seen the live action version of Aladdin and it was fantastic. Will Smith is the best thing EVER! I will see Lion King on Sunday. I saw Toy Story 4 this past Sunday and it was amazing, probably the best in the series. Incredible writing. I wanted to hug whoever wrote the movie.

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  27. I’ve been anti the live-action remakes, but this is making me reconsider. Still, I suspect they won’t do my favourite, “Sleeping Beauty”. Maleficent is the bomb and I have to admit to a wicked crush on Prince Phillip when I was a child.

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  28. My daughter loved the original “Snow White” when she was a toddler. One day as I came into the room just as the prince was carrying her off to his castle – in the SKY(?!) – I realized the story contained the gospel! -> Snow White’s disregarding sound advice and opening the door to the evil one, taking a bite of the fruit, “dying,” and being resurrected by the son of the King, who took her away to be his bride… It opened my eyes to the gospel messages in other beloved movies, such as “The Lion King” – complete with the King laying His life down for his son, the accuser’s chasing the son away, then the son’s returning to reclaim his rightful place in the renewed kingdom. The best stories are the ones that convey tell the truths.

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  31. I couldn’t agree with you more about the remake of Aladdin! Lion king is my top Disney movie but I’m scared to watch the remake because I hold the original in such high esteem. I’m going to bite the bullet and watch it this weekend but I’m sceptical because of various reviews I’ve seen.

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  32. Have not seen the Aladdin or Lion King remakes. Might see the Aladdin one eventually, the Lion King I have no interest–I didn’t care much for the animated movie, that and Pocahontas are probably my least favourites.

    My favourite Disney animated film made within my lifetime is Hunchback of Notre Dame by far. If Disney tried to do a live action remake of it I would be terrified but probably curious enough to watch it. My favourite Disney animated film overall is Fantasia. I’m not sure if that could lend itself to a live-action remake–that would be an intriguing experiment.

    Favourite non-animated Disney film is probably Mary Poppins and also Bedknobs and Broomsticks.

    Story I quietly wish Disney would do an animated film of: Phantom of the Opera.
    \

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  33. I haven’t seen the new Disney movies yet. We will wait until they come out on Blu-Ray. I’m not sure that I have a favourite Disney movie but there are some that I will watch over and over again.

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  34. No favorites come to mind, but I Baloo the Bear in the original Jungle Book cartoon was a great character; in fact the whole movie was good, and my wife played Enchanted on demand on TV the other night, and I’d have to say I agree with you on that one as well.

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  37. ” Ne Zha” is a so hot movie recently. The feature debut of Chinese filmmaker Yang Yu, ‘Nezha’ is well positioned to overtake Disney’s ‘Zootopia’ ($236 million) as China’s biggest animated film ever.
    “My destiny isn’t written in the stars, but held in my hands.”
    “If the fate is unfair, fight with it to the end.” I like his words, it’s surround yourself with positivity.

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  43. I did see the Aladdin remake. I thought it was okay and liked some of the jokes, but Disney is going overboard with all these remakes. It still irks me how The Lion King got a “live action” remake even when it’s been revealed that they stole characters, storylines, and scenes from Kimba the White Lion, trademarked the phrase “Hakuna Matata”, or literally using a plagiarized song with “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”. Don’t even get me started on the racist implications of the hyenas. Funny you mention that movie because I mention Scar in a Top 7 list I did of characters people are reluctant to call ripoffs. https://iridiumeye.wordpress.com/2021/04/06/top-7-characters-that-fans-are-reluctant-to-call-blatant-ripoffs/

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      1. No problem. Thought you would find it interesting. I did mention a bit of those controversies with you before, but it’s good that you acknowledge these things. You’re welcome.

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