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What do you all think of the recent Disney animation films today compared to the films from the Renaissance era? For this discussion, I would like to leave out Pixar/Disney films.
Renaissance Era:
1) The Little Mermaid
2) Aladdin
3) Beauty and the Beast
4) The Lion King
The New Era:
1) Princess and the Frog
2) Tangled
3) Wreck-it-Ralph
4) Frozen
I haven't seen Wreck-it-Ralph yet! But you can give me spoilers if you want. I can't seem to rent it on Amazon so I don't think I'll get to see it.
I'll start off with the discussion by saying I was a little bit disappointed by Frozen. Critics all over the place were making it out to be as good as the Renaissance films but I don't think it was even close. It does hold an 89% approval rating on rottentomatoes.com which is comparable to the renaissance films and it did indeed have an amazing soundtrack, but I just felt something was missing or incomplete.
The villains of today's era just aren't as epic or dramatic as Jafar or Scar and weren't as hilarious as Gaston or Ursala. I feel like the villains are the biggest weak point in today's films. I won't even remember Hans in the future. Elsa wasn't really a villain to begin with. Mother Gothel was evil, but it was more of a personal greed to keep herself young. She didn't conquer the world/ocean with a genie or trident, nor did she murder her brother, frame his son, and then steal the kingdom like Scar did. I think I remember enjoying Mr. Falacier in Princess and Frog though.
The love stories aren't as good. Anna and Kristophe aren't even believable. Tiana and Naveen seem desperate! Tangled I think is the clear winner here because of all the humor between Flynn and Rapunzel. Their ending when Rapunzel turns into a brunette and Flynn says he never had a thing for blondes anyway was golden. That line I'll remember forever.
For supporting characters.......I don't think this is the strong point for any of the new movies honestly. lol. Tangled had a goofy horse and Frozen had a goofy reindeer. Olaf I didn't even see the point of being there. He wasn't even funny. I......forgot about the supporting characters in Princess and Frog?
Compare this to the old movies. Flounder was the best pal a toon could ask for and I loved the unique and quirky attitudes of all the toons in Beasts castle. Genie basically stole the show in Aladdin. Iago was one of the funniest villain sidekicks ever. Timone and Pumba anyone! Timone and Pumba were so funny they even got their own tv show.
Share your opinions everyone. It should be noted that despite our opinions, all of these movies are critically acclaimed with all of them having high metacritic and rottentomatoes ratings above 85%. Most of them have been nominated and several have won oscars.
For supporting characters.......I don't think this is the strong point for any of the new movies honestly. lol. Tangled had a goofy horse and Frozen had a goofy reindeer. Olaf I didn't even see the point of being there. He wasn't even funny. I......forgot about the supporting characters in Princess and Frog?
Tangled also had Pascal, Rapunzel's pet chameleon. I thought he was a cute character. I liked Sven in Frozen, and Maximus wasn't too bad in Tangled.
Princess and the Frog had better supporting characters. There was Louis the alligator, Ray the firefly, and I guess Charlotte could also be listed as a supporting character.
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Compare this to the old movies. Flounder was the best pal a toon could ask for and I loved the unique and quirky attitudes of all the toons in Beasts castle. Genie basically stole the show in Aladdin. Iago was one of the funniest villain sidekicks ever. Timone and Pumba anyone! Timone and Pumba were so funny they even got their own tv show.
I never liked Genie. I thought he was obnoxious and took the view out of the movie. The film was supposed to be set long ago in the middle east, but then we have the Genie making 90s refrences. Which when you watch it now really dates the movie.
The sidekicks in Tangled and Frozen were different from the "Renaissance Era" sidekicks as they didn't have as big of a part. They didn't talk (except unfortunately Olaf, who seemed like they were trying to make a snowman version of Donkey from Shrek), so its hard to compare them. I'm glad they didn't have talking animals, it would have taken away from the films.
I really enjoyed Frozen. The songs were great and I really liked that it didn't have the traditional Disney ending. The Prince didn't save the Princess, but you still got the cute romantic story line. I didn't even mind the trolls that so many others have criticized as being pointless. The only part that I didn't like was Olaf. I thought there was enough light hearted humor in the story without having to add Olaf for comic relief.
I also really enjoyed Tangled and the Princess and the Frog. With the New Orleans setting, Princess and the Frog seemed so different then any of the other Princess movies in the Disney cannon. While Tangled was a cute movie, it was a pretty generic Princess movie. Girl meets boy, they instantly fall in love (like seriously it took a day?) villain takes girl, boy saves girl... They live happily ever after in a castle. There was even the Beauty and the Beast element at the end where girl is able to bring boy back from the dead through the power of a magical flower.
I always forget that Wreck it Ralph is Disney. I didn't really like it.
I don't think we are in another Disney renaissance. The renaissance of the 90s lasted for ten years, and also includes The Rescuers Down Under, Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules, Mulan and Tarzan. 10 great movies in a row. Right now Disney had a good string of Princess movies, but I don't see that continuing. The next Princess movie isn't going to be for another 4 years (Mona, which sounds more like a Mulan type Princess movie instead of the traditional princess movies), and the movies in between now and then don't seem all that great. Although Giants could be good, which is based off of Jack and the Bean Stock and Disney seems to do better with the fairy tales. The next Disney movie is a Marvel comic, so it probably won't feel like a Disney movie, and the one after that is Zootopia, which from the synopsis sounds dorky.
I haven't seen Frozen yet. But if you leave out Pixar, The Lion King was the last GREAT animated movie Disney made. They've made some good ones since then, but nothing approaching a classic.
Big Hero 6 will be interesting but Disney always did a few different ones that strayed from the normal fairy tales like Jungle Book, Great Mouse Detective, Aristocrats, Bambi, Fox and the Hound, Oliver and Company. Big Hero 6 will be different but why not try something different. If it doesn't work, you don't have to go back there and instead do more Frozens and Tangleds.
I'm a big Disney movie fan so maybe I'm biased. I love Frozen. I loved the characters and it was refreshing to have a different type of villain. Olaf was there as a reminder of the relationship Anna had with Elsa when they were little girls. Olaf was the snowman made by Princess Elsa. The two of them called him Olaf. When Elsa became queen and ran off to the mountains to be alone, she made Olaf without really knowing she made him come to life. He's the connection to the positive side of their relationship...their closeness. Sven was a great companion. I loved that the love between sisters is what saved the day and not another romance between Anna and Kristophe. The actual villain wasn't even obvious until toward the end of the movie. I've been reading all over the internet people think Queen Elsa was a villain. She's not the villain if she never intended on hurting anyone. She's just got a power she doesn't know how to control.
I haven't seen Wreck-it-Ralph either, but I heard it was good. I can't say if it follows any recipe for a Disney movie or does something unique and interesting. I want to see it though.
I enjoyed Princess and the Frog, but it wasn't my favorite.
I can say the worst mistake of Disney's was Pocahontas 2. The first one was OK, but they tried to get artsy with the drawing of the characters. The second one just fell flat. It was awful!
There is a difference with the stories Disney comes up with. I can however appreciate every movie for what it is. I find most Disney films to offer a good deal of entertainment and interest.
My biggest gripe with Disney is that they are stuck in formula. They can still turn out some truly beautiful animation. Songs are sometimes good. But when was the last time a Disney story surprised you? Within 10 minutes of the movie, you can predict the final 90 with surprising accuracy. And the cutesy magic friends in every freakin' movie.
It's why I no longer fork up the cash to see a Disney film in the theater. Why bother? I can see the trailer and know everything about the movie already. I'm content to wait for the DVD.
I can say the worst mistake of Disney's was Pocahontas 2. The first one was OK, but they tried to get artsy with the drawing of the characters. The second one just fell flat. It was awful!
Most of their direct to video/dvd movie sequels are horrible. At least Disney knows they're not all that great and doesn't try and release them in theaters. The only good sequel Disney has done is the Rescuers Down Under.
My biggest gripe with Disney is that they are stuck in formula. They can still turn out some truly beautiful animation. Songs are sometimes good. But when was the last time a Disney story surprised you? Within 10 minutes of the movie, you can predict the final 90 with surprising accuracy. And the cutesy magic friends in every freakin' movie.
About 4 months ago when I saw Frozen. They didn't go with the normal princess is saved by the prince storyline that they normally do. There was also a bit of a twist halfway through the movie as to who the villain actually was.
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Tangled I think is the clear winner here because of all the humor between Flynn and Rapunzel. Their ending when Rapunzel turns into a brunette and Flynn says he never had a thing for blondes anyway was golden. 
