My Top 10 Disney Animated Films and Movies

This is a compilation of my favourite Disney animated films. I may be missing on some of the more known films, but these are my personal favourites.

NOTE: There may be a few spoilers in here!

10 - The Fox and the Hound (1981)

A story about a fox and a dog who grow up together as friends but are trained to be enemies. To me, this is a classic. The tale revolves around the growing conflict of the fox, Tod, and the dog, Copper being natural enemies - the fox doesn't understand why they can't be friends, and the dog just does as he is told by his owner.

Later on in the film, the fox is being hunted by Copper and his owner. Tod is eventually found by Copper, but he lets him go. This causes Copper's mentor, Chief, to keep on hunting for Tod, and he unawarely gets hit by a train. The hound is infuriated by this, and believes Tod is to blame.

Still hunting for Tod, Copper and his owner get attacked by a bear. The owner gets caught in a trap and loses his gun, while Copper tries to fend off the bear. He is of no match to him, but then Tod joins the fight. The bear and the fox are both knocked over and fall in a waterfall. Copper goes to Tod, who is injured, and the owner points his gun towards the fox. However, Copper gets in front of the shot, and refuses to budge until his owner lowers the gun. The two old friends have a last smile before they part.

The moral of the story - friendship has no boundaries.

9 - The Emperor's New Groove (2000)

A truly hilarious adventure, The Emperor's New Groove revolves around a very spoiled emperor, Kuzco, and his misfortune in turning into a llama. Pacha, a humble and friendly villager, helps him to get his body back and his kingdom in the hopes that he won't turn his village into an amusement park/summer resort Kuzcotopia.

The characters are all complimentary to each other. Kuzco is spoiled and self-centered, always ordering people around to do his wackiest whims, while Pacha is caring, forgiving and humble. Likewisa, Yzma - the power-seeking advisor to Kuzco, and the person who turned him into a llama - is relentless and a schemer, while Kronk - her assistant - is peaceful and loves nature. The combinations result in hilarity.

If you're a fan of laughter, you'll be a fan of this film.

8 - Hercules (1997)

A great story about the son of Zeus, Hercules is filled with action, adventure and romance. Top it off with a few troubles caused by a rowdy Hades, and you have yourself a truly intriguing cartoon.

This is one of the few cartoons I've seen talk about Greek mythology, and I enjoyed seeing the mythical creatures battle head to head vs Hercules, as well as the inclusion of the Titans in the film. There's nothing truly groundbreaking about the film or its story, but I enjoyed it, and due to it revolving mythology I couldn't keep it out of the list.

7 - The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

Don't judge a book by its cover. Inspired by Victor Hugo's novel of the same name, the story covers Quasimodo as he - well actually I can't quite remember what he did, but it was an interesting story!

6 - Toy Story (1995)

The first release to use only CGI in the entire film, Toy Story is a movie that fills you with memories of your old and forgotten toys. I still have one of mine - a stuffed frog. Reminds me of him everytime I see the film.

5 - Ratatouille (2007)

I get hungry everytime I watch this film. Ratatouille has laughs, adventure and mischief - the perfect recipe for an adventure involving a rat chef.

"While not everyone can be a great cook, a great cook can come from anywhere"

4 - WALL-E (2008)

Outlining the troubles of our society, WALL-E is an innovative film in that the main character has a vocabulary of only two words in the entire film, and yet still captures your heart. It's quite funny and sad to see the result of the human race - a bunch of overweight people completely managed by technology. They don't even walk.

3 - Finding Nemo (2003)

This film reminded me that most Disney films start off with a tragic event, only to follow a happy ending.

2 - A Bug's Life (1998)

Another CGI movie, this one is from the perspective of ants as they try to appease a horde of grasshoppers who have made them their servants. You follow the adventures of Flik, a smart but careless inventor, who goes off to find a group of warriors to combat the grasshoppers. Instead, he finds a group of circus performers.

Trust me, it's a good one.

1 - Tarzan (1999)

Tarzan is the epic tale of a boy who is raised by gorillas. His parents are killed by a leopard named Sabor, and he is rescued by a gorilla, Kala, who has just lost her son to the leopard as well. Tarzan has to learn how to be like the apes, because often he gets left behind in children's games, and is discriminated for not having hair or for not being able to climb.

Tarzan overcomes these adversities - he becomes the best climber out of all the apes by sliding or dragging in the branches and swinging from the vines. He comes of age strong, agile and knowledgeable. You will often see him being innovative, whether he is fashioning a spear to catch fruit or using Tantor's trunk to breathe out juicy insects into the air.

The relationship between Tarzan and his father, Kerchak, is something that I can relate to deeply. Kerchak is never impressed with Tarzan and often rejects him being his son, despite Tarzan's attempts at pleasing him. Once Tarzan saves him from Sabor, Kerchak begins to see Tarzan's true nature, and what Kala has been vouching for all along - that they are the same. A touching moment is found at the end of the film, where in death Kerchak realizes that Tarzan was truly his son.

Another distinguishing feature in the film is the introduction of the humans. Tarzan experiences a loss of identity when he finds Jane - is he a human, or is he an ape? The climax of this occurs when he introduces Jane to the gorilla family. Once Kerchak discovers this, he becomes infuriated and Tarzan is forced to attack him in order for Jane and the others to escape. He does not know who he is afterwards until Kala explains his origins.

The imagery in the film is fantastic. From Kala being surrounded by doves to Clayton's death synchronized with rain and lightning. The music score is great as well. Just the fact that Phil Collins sung in this film made it better than most, and he easily intensifies the emotion in a scene, from a bunch of happy gorillas playing in a camp to the solemn tone of Kala's song. As far as CD's go from films, it's pretty darn good!

The many themes in the film, combined with an immersion in nature make this film a truly enjoyable experience.