A Short Conclusion

Well, we've/I've reached the end. 38 movies have been finally watched. For a while, it seemed like I wasn't going to finish, but I did. And despite not being on time, I am happy to have had this experience these past few months.

This conclusion should be more or less focused on the reviews themselves and my general feelings of the Disney Classics in the 20th century. It serves no purpose but to kind of add closure to this project, so I can finally look at this page and say, "it is finished. It is complete."

I believe the history of the Disney Classics in the 20th century can be divided into five phases: The Golden Age, the Package Age, the Silver Age, the Muddy Age, and the Renaissance. Each of these stages were unique in that they each showed us a different side of Disney-- a different way of seeing the world of animation and entertainment.

The Golden Age began with, of course, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and ended with Bambi. That's only five films, but they are five of the most treasured films in the entire collection. The animation was raw; the comedy was very low brow, but very amusing; the music was vintage and cheerful; and these films stole our hearts indefinitely. Looking back on these movies, I can only label them as the most open. That is to say that they could hit any demographic with ease and give them something to enjoy and love forever.
Best films from this age: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi, Dumbo

The Golden Age was followed by six films all following the same format: 70-minute features broken into segments ranging from five minutes to forty. The effects of the war on the animation became obvious: less dynamic characters and a downsized general effort into the works of art. By Disney's standard, they were not at all fantastic movies. They could function as television shorts if produced three decades earlier, but they could hardly suffice as cinema classics.
Best films from this age: Make Mine Music, Fun and Fancy Free, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

After muddling through the 40s, Disney resurfaced in 1950 with Cinderella, launching the Silver Age of animation. The Silver Age would dominate the next 25 years or so, producing an assortment of phenomenal princess tales and family films. This, without a doubt, is my favorite of the five stages. The stories are incredible from Sleeping Beauty to 101 Dalmatians to The Jungle Book, and they produce what I believe to be the best characters of the whole series. Music illuminates these wonders, the best songs coming from The Jungle Book, Peter Pan, and Cinderella. Never again would Disney see something as incredible as the Silver Age. This, despite the title, was its prime.
Best films from this age: Peter Pan, The Jungle Book, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, 101 Dalmatians, The Aristocats

What came next was a Disney era with no defined united characteristic. That's why I call it the Muddy Age-- not because all films produced during this time were terrible, but because the quality was inconsistent. For example, some films, though nothing compared to the Golden/Silver Age films, were pretty darn good. Others stooped to lows unseen since the Package Age. So while this era was a short and undefinable one, it still exists because I know for a fact the films included belong neither in the Silver Age nor the Disney Renaissance.
Best films from this age: The Fox and the Hound, Oliver & Company

And then we come to the Disney Renaissance, the "rebirth" of all good things Disney. And what a rebirth it was. I still cannot believe how amazingly super-fantastically drastically the animation quality increased. That is the beauty I saw in films like The Lion King and Tarzan. The Renaissance is also noted for being the turn into the modern era of entertainment of Disney. This change is most reflected, undoubtedly, in the soundtracks. New age pop songs became the standard, best exemplified in Hercules. In general, the films became more musical-- Beauty and the Beast, Pocahontas, and Aladdin, all largely reliant on the music. So while I only put a few of these films up there with Silver/Golden Age films, I don't deny that the changes made were revolutionary and overall a great step up for Disney.
Best films from this age: Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Hercules

So there you have it! The Disney Classics Project has come to an end, I hope you enjoyed it. I know it required patience, but I hope you thought it was worth it. If you have any comments, questions, or requests for another project, e-mail me at citycolour@live.com.

And now I look at this site and I say with a smile: It is finished. It is complete.