Best Disney Prologue In Your Opinion?

[AwallaceUNC]

SaveDisney.com has a new poll up, asking which classic story would you like to see Disney do next, and what medium should it use. It mentions a few of the ones we've discussed here.

-Aaron

[Deco King]

The wonderful opening of Snow White, with the now cliched book opening then the camera panning to the Queen's mirror room "Magic Mirror On The Wall Who Now is Fairest One of ALL?"etc! A really great opening.

[BrandonH]

I am a big fan of Disney prologues, and it just so happens that some of my favorites are from my top 3 animated films list.

1. Lion King's Circle of Life: Pure joy.
2. Toy Story 2's space film homage: The funniest, most reference-filled Disney prologue.
3. Finding Nemo: A great mix of wonder, humor, and emotion.

Beauty & The Beast gets an honorable mention from me for being simply gorgeous.

[Simba3]

BUMP: Here's a blast from the past

I was going to create a thread for this, but I knew I should search first:

In my opinion, "The Lion King" definitely has the best opening sequence. In fact, it is one of the biggest reasons why this is my favorite DAC. "CIrcle of Life" engages the audience from the very first second of the film, and that is a remarkable accomplishment.

Another close contender is "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." This is another spectacular opening, "The Bells of Notre Dame" is such a good song and serves as a perfect backdrop for this opening. Also, the chase scene quickly lets the audience know how evil Judge Claude Frollo is.

"Beauty and the Beast" also has a great opening sequence. I love the way in which the story is told, and I love the images of the stained-glass windows.

As for the older classics...

I love the way "Bambi" opens. I love how the camera takes you right into the forest and we zoom in on the newly-born Prince of the forrest.


What are your favorites??

[candydog]

Ummm... I think a lot of people here are confused about what a prologue is. Circle of life is a great OPENING, but it's not a prologue.

A prologue is like a short summary events or backstory that leads up to chapter 1, or the moment when the movie REALLY begins.

For example, the prologue in beauty and the beast tells how the beast came to be, before moving to the "present day" where belle enters and the story begins.

In Hunchback, Clopin gives a sort of Prologue by telling how Quasimodo came to be the bellringer of Notre Dame, and then the story begins with him as a grown man living in the bell tower.

That's what a prologue is guys, sequences like "Circle of Life" are great, but they're just opening sequences, not prologues, sorry to nitpick

[Simba3]

Ummm... I think a lot of people here are confused about what a prologue is. Circle of life is a great OPENING, but it's not a prologue.

A prologue is like a short summary events or backstory that leads up to chapter 1, or the moment when the movie REALLY begins.

For example, the prologue in beauty and the beast tells how the beast came to be, before moving to the "present day" where belle enters and the story begins.

In Hunchback, Clopin gives a sort of Prologue by telling how Quasimodo came to be the bellringer of Notre Dame, and then the story begins with him as a grown man living in the bell tower.

That's what a prologue is guys, sequences like "Circle of Life" are great, but they're just opening sequences, not prologues, sorry to nitpick

Very true. However, I thought I would revive this thread rather than making a new one. Maybe this should be called the "Best Prologue/Opening Sequence Thread"

[jeremy88]

These don't count as prologue's or opening scenes but I love the start of Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan. The songs "Alice in Wonderland" and "Second Star to the Right" are two of many favorite songs and they fit perfectly with each main title along with the credits that follow in front of the beautifully painted concept arts in the back.

My favorite actual prologue has got to be Beauty and the Beast. The start in the forest where you get the first glimpse of the Prince's Castle is amazing. It was a pretty neat idea to explain the prologue through narration over the stained glass windows. Definitely one of my favorite scenes in the entire film.

[carolinakid]

1. Snow White
2. Cinderella
3. Sleeping Beauty
4. Beauty and the Beast
5. The Sword in the Stone

[Goliath]

It can't come as a surprise that I choose The Rescuers. The first scene immediately sets the tone for the rest of the film. It directly engages the viewer in wanting to know more about Penny: what does she do on an old riverboat, deep down in a deserted swamp? Who is she afraid of? What has she written on the note? The screeching door, the lightfall, the thunder, the crocodiles: it all comes together; it gives me goosebumps.

Another strong opening is that of The Great Mouse Detective. It's really frightening. I like how they have intercut Olivia and her father celebrating with the danger that is on its way to their house. They are totally unaware of what is about to happen, yet the viewer knows something will. The moment where Ratigan's bat assistant breaks through the window used to scare the crap out of me when I was little. Still strong effect. And then, little Olivia is on her own...

I forgot to mention Mickey's Christmas Carol, I think this is probably one of the best prologues besides the "The Journey" sequence in The Rescuers, the song Oh, What a Merry Christmas Day is a great song. Gotta love that!