Top 10 Disney Animated Musical Movies

When it comes to ranking Disney Songs from best to worst, its most often told in the form of simply writing which song is the best.  But I look at it a bit differently.  I look at these films as one whole musical that needs all of the songs to work, or none of them at all.  This is the beauty of Disney.  They make sure that almost all of their songs are memorable and yet further the story.  Few of these songs actually stop the progress of the movies (at least the theatrical releases), and more often than not, are the most memorable part of each movie.  Here is the countdown of the Top 10 Disney Animated Musical Movies.

Here are the ground rules:

1. Only songs are taken into effect.  No story, no characters, no animation.
2. Disney Canon films only; no Nightmare Before Christmas or Mary Poppins

Here are a few honorable mentions:

Alice in Wonderland (1951)
Pocahontas (1995)
Princess and the Frog (2009)
Lady and the Tramp (1955)
Hercules (1997)
Tarzan (1999)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

10.  Peter Pan (1953)

I rarely have Peter Pan in any Top 10 lists, because I usually view it as a slightly overrated film.  But when a film deserves a spot on a list, I will give it to the film.  A good number of the film's songs, from "You Can Fly", "The Second Star to the Right", and "Following the Leader" are so well known that they are some of the first few songs that kids learn the words to.  I know my grandmother taught me these songs when I was little, and the songs are fairly difficult to get out of your head, even the racially insensitive ones.

Songs in the Movie

"The Second Star to the Right"
"You Can Fly"
"A Pirate's Life"
"Following the Leader"
"What Made the Red Man Red?"
"Your Mother and Mine"
"The Elegant Captain Hook"

Songwriters: Sammy Cahn, Sammy Cain, Winston Hubler, & Ted Sears


9. Pinocchio (1940)

Disney had their work cut out for them if they wanted to top the songs they had written for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  After all, the songs written were so well known, that they were being sung all over the radio and had inadvertently created the movie musical.  For Pinocchio's songs to be even half as memorable as Snow White's, the same exact songwriters would have to create melodies that were even more memorable as the latter's.  The result was some of the finest tunes Disney has ever come up with.  Every tune from "When You Wish Upon a Star" to "I've Got No Strings" are so well known that they are borderline mandatory to know children's songs.

Songs in the Movie

"When You Wish Upon a Star"
"Little Wooden Head"
"Give a Little Whistle"
"Hi-Diddly Dee"
"I've Got No Strings"

Songwriters: Leigh Harline & Ned Washington


8. The Lion King (1994)

Bet you all weren't expecting The Lion King to be this low, did you.  This film is proof as to how difficult to put together this list was.  The Lion King was one of the first soundtracks I ever owned and was probably the cassette/CD I broke the most as a kid.  I know these songs like I do my own parents, and yet, I can picture 7 Disney Animated Films with better songs.  That is not a knock on this movie AT ALL!  The Lion King has some of the most briliantly written songs of all time, and that is nothing to be ashamed of.

Songs in the Movie

"Circle of Life"
"I Just Can't Wait to Be King"
"Be Prepared"
"Hakuna Matata" 
"Can You Feel the Love Tonight?"

Songwriters: Elton John & Tim Rice


7. Cinderella (1950)


Why was Cinderella such an enormous success when it first came out?  It's the same as asking why is it so beloved today as it was 20 years ago: the music is incredible.  Whether we know it or not, the songs written for Cinderella have been with us a lot longer than we'd think.  After all, what other kid out there tried to say "Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo" so many times to get it right?  This film was among the first I ever remember seeing as a child and it has left a lasting impact on me and practically everyone I know.  Much like Snow White and Pinocchio, these are some of the first songs we are ever taught.  And they are songs that will stick with us until we pass these songs onto our children.

Songs in the Movie

"Cinderella"
"A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes"
"Oh, Sing Sweet Nightingale"
"The Work Song"
"Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo"
"So This is Love"

Songwriters: Mack David, Jerry Livingston, & Al Hoffman


6. Frozen (2013)


I must give credit to this film when it deserves it, and the soundtrack for Frozen more than deserves the praise and craze it's started.  This film has songs that actually sounded like Disney Songs for the first time since the 1990's, and will ultimately serve the purpose The Lion King and Aladdin did for us: for parents to introduce their children to Disney's legendary music for the first time.  Almost every single one of these songs is beautifully crafted and well written masterpieces in of themselves, and have virtually no current competitor in terms of animated musicals.

Songs in the Movie

"Frozen Heart"
"Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?"
"For the First Time in Forever"
"Love is an Open Door"
"Let it Go"
"Reindeers are Better Than People"
"In Summer"
"Fixer Upper"

Songwriters: Robert & Kristen Lopez


5. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

You knew that "The One that Started It All" was going to have a place on this list.  After all, every single animated musical, and even the concept of movie musicals in general wouldn't exist without the successful music used in this movie.  The songs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs are among the greatest ever written, and are just as singable now as they were 75 years ago when they first reached the ears of our grandparents and parents.  Regardless of our prejudice against older Disney movies, no one can ignore the lasting impact this film had on not only film musicals, but the way quality animated movies are told.  A treasure as old as treasure can possibly be.

Songs in the Movie

"I'm Wishing/ One Song"
"With a Smile and a Song"
"Whistle While You Work"
"Heigh-Ho"
"Bluddle-Uddle-Um-Dum"
"The Silly Song"
"Some Day My Prince Will Come"

Songwriters: Frank Churchill & Larry Morey


4. The Little Mermaid (1989)

Much like the impact Cinderella had when it first came out in theaters after the hiatus of the post-war era, the songs written in The Little Mermaid had an incredibly similar impact on the world after nearly 30 years between Disney Fairy Tales and nearly 20 years inbetween the last good Disney Musical.  The songs are some of the greatest ever written and among the most acclaimed of all time, introducing kids like me to a wide range of types of music, from Calypso and Reggae to traditional Broadway songs.  The film ultimately set the bar for all following Disney Musicals, and in essence, film musicals in general.  The Disney Animated Musical was back, with a vengeance.

Songs in the Movie

"Fathoms Below"
"Daughters of Triton"
"Part of Your World"
"Under the Sea"
"Poor Unfortunate Souls"
"Les Poissons"
"Kiss the Girl"

Songwriters: Howard Ashman & Alan Menken


3. The Jungle Book (1967)

When Walt Disney first thought of doing a film version of Rudyard Kipling's masterpiece, he wanted to put his own special touch on it.  After all, this is probably as FAR someone can possibly stretch a classic piece of literature, and yet still find some kind of likable thing in it.  But Walt's own taste came out in full force when it came to the music in the movie, which is the single best group of songs any of his films came out with.  Written by the Sherman brothers, these songs are not only loaded with catchy tunes and snappy beats, but also highly memorable lyrics and wonderful phrases.  Not a single Walt Disney film comes close to matching the incredible power of these songs.

Songs in the Movie

"Colonel Hathi's March"
"The Bare Necessities"
"I Wanna Be Like You"
"Trust in Me"
"That's What Friends are For"
"My Own Home"

Songwriters: Richard & Robert Sherman
"The Bare Necessities" written by Terry Gilkyson 


2. Aladdin (1992)

One of the most personal and beloved projects of the late Howard Ashman, Aladdin was to be a far different film under his watch.  He had written nearly 12 songs for the project that would be brought into others hands after his tragic death, and some of his finest tunes he would ever write would come in the final months of his life.  Tim Rice picked up where Howard left and finished adding more incredible songs to the already deep pipeline.  The songs of Aladdin are incredibly catchy and range from slow and sweet, to mysterious and ambitious, to loud and bombastic, showing off just how different this film could be to the other films of previous years.  Jazzy, toe tapping, and heart stopping are just some of the adjectives we can use to describe the wonders of the music for one of Disney's Greatest Films.

Songs of the Movie

"Arabian Nights"
"One Jump Ahead"
"Friend Like Me"
"Prince Ali"
"A Whole New World"

Songwriters: Alan Menken & Howard Ashman
                      Alan Menken & Tim Rice


1. Beauty and the Beast (1991)


Few people actually know that Howard Ashman wanted little to do with this movie at first.  After all, he was just finishing up on The Little Mermaid and desperately wanted to go off and work on Aladdin.  But when he really got into writing the songs, he was immersed in the project.  Ashman wrote the single greatest crop of Disney songs ever written just months before his tragic passing.  Every single one of these songs is a gem and make us feel like we are watching a Broadway show.  Beauty and the Beast is regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, with great thanks to the single best crop of songs ever written for an animated films.  No contest.

Songs in the Movie

"Belle"
"Gaston"
"Be Our Guest"
"Something There"
"Human Again"*
"Beauty and the Beast"
"The Mob Song"

*added in the 2002 re-release and kept in since

Songwriters: Howard Ashman and Alan Menken

Film Review #89: Up

Much like with WALL-E, when I walked into the movie theater to see Up for the first time, I didn't really know what to expect.  After all, how was I supposed to know that Pixar was about to completely shatter my expectations for their animated films and set the bar so ridiculously high that no other film can possibly reach those levels.  Not to mention the fact that the premise and after taking an initial look at the story, I had very little confidence with regards to this film.  I could not have possibly been more wrong.  Not only is Up a marvel in animation, but it's also a marvel in storytelling, character development, and comedy.  This may be the funniest film Pixar's ever produced.  And still, this is the most heartwarming and most sincere of them all.

Plot: The beginning of the film follows the exploits of a little boy named Carl and his friend Ellie.  The two both have a dream to have an incredible adventure and travel along with one of their heroes: Charles Muntz.  They make a pact that they would one day make it to the place he was last known to venture off to, Paradise Falls.  The two ultimately marry and live out the vast majority of their lives together, encountering many life problems and issues preventing them from reaching their dreams.  As time rolls by, Ellie passes away before they could enact their dream, and forcing Carl to become a stubborn curmudgeon.  As land developers and neighbors all try to convince Carl to move into a retirement home, he ties a countless amount of balloons to his roof and takes his house up in the air and moving it towards Paradise Falls in South America.

But Carl's plans for leaving hit an unexpected snag, when a boy scout named Russell ends up being roped in when he is on Carl's porch as the house takes off.  The old man reluctantly allows Russell to join him, only until he gets him to a bus station.  The house does make it to South America, but ends up on the wrong side of the cliff.  Carl and Russell take the house across the mountain where they come across a dog named Dug with a vocal collar, and a strange bird that Russell names Kevin.  Soon, Carl comes across Muntz and his army of dog followers, who plot to find the bird and return it to civilization, while Russell and the others must protect Kevin from Muntz.

What's Bad?: -_-

What's Good?: To be perfectly honest, if the film ended in the beginning when Carl and Ellie's life ends with Ellie's death, I would have been perfectly happy.  The intro to this movie is a wonder in of itself, with so many perfect things happening at once that it's really hard to fully describe.

The comedy in this movie is some of the best Pixar has ever had.  For example, the main Alpha dog is this big intimidating doberman, who I expected to be the stick in the mud who makes it boring.  But he ends up having a faulty vocal collar that causes him to have a voice that sounds like someone inhaled too much helium.  Or just the perfect personality they got for the dogs.  I imagine that if I play fetch with a dog, he'd sound exactly like Dug or one of the other dogs did when they talked about the ball.  "I want the ball!  I so want the ball!  I will fetch the ball and bring it back to you!"

But Up's most significant addition to the Pixar family is it's heartfelt center.  Be it Russell and his parents who aren't around enough for him, Carl and Ellie's relationship, or even the devotion the heroes have to Kevin, this film manages to hit the audience on all emotions at once, for a powerhouse of entertainment and enjoyment.

Overall: Up is cinematic brilliance in it's most basic form.  The film's plot isn't too difficult to manage through, the characters are engaging, and the beginning to this movie is absolutely flawless.  I can't say much else about one of the best animated movies ever made.  Just, Up!!  Flawlessness in it's most purest form.

Report Card: A++