toplaycool22 wrote:http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/N ... matedFilms
You go down to the Disney section, they talk about Hercules, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Rescuers Down Under, Bolt, Meet the Robinsons, and The Great Mouse Detective needing more love. I have to disagree with TV Tropes on this list.
In terms of Hunchback, while Disney has done darker films in the past successfully (I.E. Snow White, Pinocchio and Fantasia) Hunchback is not as successful with it's "dark" tones. The film is a perfect example of what was going on with the creation of the film. They wanted to try something different and darker but yet throw in the disney cliches that didn't match with the film's tone. The ONLY thing that works in this film is Frollo, that's it. Frollo is a great villain, and the song Hellfire is amazing. But that is only one component. Just because a film has one good thing about it doesn't mean it is all the way around a great film. Take Iron Lady for instance. It is only remembered because of Meryl Streep's performance but the rest of the film falls flat. Most people dislike the gargoyles because they are just throw in characters to keep with the "disney sidekick" syndrome. Quasimodo, while not a bad character, when you compare him to other portrayals like the Charles Laughton version in 1939, falls flat for sure. The songs are very good, but not memorable. there is no "Be Our Guest" or "Circle of Life" in this movie. The animation is very well done, have to admit that. But like I said, the film has to be ALL the way around good. I think because Hunchback is not adaptable for "disney", maybe Don Bluth would of handled this project better since his films had more adult subject matters with out the Disney cliches in your face.
Hercules, well it is the Aladdin wanna-be. They had good intensions but it falls flat even more than Hunchback. Hercules is really bland as a character. Aladdin is way more memorable than Hercules. There is nothing special about him. The side characters don't have stand out moments. The music doesn't work when you think about it. Gospel with Greek myths? eh NO! The only good song is "I Won't Say I'm in Love." That was nice and catchy. Hades, great villain (probably because James Woods is awesome). But like what I said about Hunchback, that is only a few good components while the rest fails. The animation is ehhh, not the best way to interpret Scarfe. I find it strange that the film did soso at the box-office and it still got a TV series and a tv film (though it did not last long). Plus Hercules is featured quite a lot in Kingdom Hearts and it isn't even that popular. Disney was just desperate for a hit at the time and since both Pocahontas and Hunchback turned everyone off by being too dramatic, this was their answer. Not the best one. Also, the story has WAY too familiar stolen storylines (Superman and Rocky). I know, you are gonna say "What about Lilo & Stitch? It has E.T. written all over it." Not really, it may sort of a connection to E.T. it was still a good stand alone film.
The Great Mouse Detective is not a bad film, but not great one. What's good about it? Ratigan, GREAT villain (Hell it's Vincent Price!). Basil, good hero. Some songs are nice. The animation is pretty good, the best parts are the clock fight sequence and some of the toy shop stuff. And that is basically all the great stuff. What's wrong with it? Nothing really? It is just that the side characters, while not bad, they are boring except for fidget. Some parts of the story is rather slow moving. I love Henry Mancini, but he needs to make up his mind on weather this was to be a musical or not. It's like there are some moments where the characters break into song and then no more songs. The rest of the animation is just ok, and that's it. Like I said above, the clock tower and toy shop scenes really stand out. You want a good mouse film? The Rescuers. Now that one SHOULD be an important Disney classic (it was the ONLY disney hit after The Jungle Book and before The Little Mermaid). Plus it received a sequel, and good one for that matter. Great Mouse may not be a flop per say, it was a modest success at the box office, it was no Rescuers hit. Great Mouse just helped move the studio forward.
Not really gonna get into the Disney sequels stuff because they were mostly direct-to-video. Though I do agree that Cinderella III was good.
Bolt and Meet the Robinsons while were better than Chicken Little, they are just ok. Like The Great Mouse Detective, they helped move the studio forward ONLY. Tangled and Wreck It Ralph are far more superior films than these two. But I will give credit to both Meet the Robinsons and Bolt for helping Disney get back on track. You can see that Disney was trying. Both films have moments that were good and you can tell that something was coming. Tangled and Wreck It Ralph was thats something and everything came in full circle. Hopefully Frozen continues this trend.
You want Disney Films that need more love? Well, I already mentioned The Rescuers, but I would have to say Mulan, Tarzan, The Emperor's New Groove and The Princess and the Frog. While Mulan did way better than Pocahontas, Hunchback and Hercules, and Disney does give this film attention, not enough. It is featured in products, parks, film montages etc. but not enough. Tarzan, same deal. The Princess and the Frog brought back Disney 2-D Animation. It was a nice welcome-back. Got 3 Oscar nominations, and received great reviews. All 3 of these films NEED a attraction at Disney parks. Now, I know Tarzan has one in Disneyland, but not in Disney WORLD. The Emperor's New Groove is probably the most underrated out of the all of them. Mulan, Tarzan and The Princess and the Frog may not be featured as much as Snow White or Lion King, they do still get some level of attention. New Groove doesn't really get attention at all and yet it has a huge following. It made money on VHS and DVD, got a sequel and TV series.
So, that's my opinion about this, what's yours?
