My Take on Tangled: From a Disney Freak

If you know me you know I'm a Disney FANATIC! I don't think I know anyone who knows and loves Disney as much as I do. My mom owned almost all of the Disney Classic videos when I was growing up, and now I own all of the Classic DVDs AND their sequels (but one). That's right. Did you know that Mulan 2 was REALLY good? Not nearly as good as the first of course, but WAY better than your average Disney sequel.

Anyway. Some people like the perks of having a "mom blog" because they get free stuff. I don't care so much about the stuff as I do some of the opportunities. So when I saw that one of my friends got to see Tangled I was like "What?! Where's Disney and why didn't they write to ME?!" I'm their biggest fan! And I was so hurt!!

I've been anticipating this movie for over a year. I heard it was going to be called "Braided" and I kept calling it that for awhile. I was looking at some of these concept-art pictures and was SO EXCITED. About it.


Luckily, this blogger is a good friend of mine so she got me in touch with her contact and I wrote to him saying "What about MEEEEEE?!!" In so many words. And then they apologized and got me in touch with the people in charge of the Texas screening and there I was last night, Little J in my lap, watching Tangled two weeks before the official release. And let me tell you it was GOOD! SO GOOD! In my opinion it's the best Disney movie since The Lion King. No joke!

So good in fact that I need to re-do my Disney top 10. In fact, I've been re-watching many of them over again these past few months (especially over maternity leave) and there's a lot of re-working I need to do.

1. The Lion King (1994): Surprise surprise (not really)! I'm not sure this movie will ever be replaced. To this day this movie is amazing to watch. It makes me laugh and cry. It's got a great message, great music, beautiful artwork. Just amazing!

2. Aladdin (1992): Princess Jasmine, the Genie, and of course Aladdin are characters I fell in love with. I will watch this movie any time I catch it on TV, and it ALWAYS makes me laugh. Even though I've seen it a million times, and even though I know it by heart. Some Disney movies have a lull part I want to skip over (like that "Can You Feel the Love Tonight scene in Lion King, or the Be Our Guest scene in Beauty and the Beast) this one doesn't have one of those scenes for me. I love it from start to finish!

I can't believe I'm doing this but...

3. Tangled (2010): Yes, Tangled has made my top 3 in Disney movies, and therefore one of my top 3 favorite movies of all time. I'll have to see it again, and again and again to make sure the excitement of it doesn't wear off but it really was good. It had me laughing, tearing up, and wanting to jump up and sing. All of the beautiful qualities of Disney Classics, plus my favorite aspect--A love story. But they didn't skim it over, they really let you get to know the characters and fall in love with each of them. But it's not too girlie like other princess movies, it has more than enough humor for little boys. It was enchanted like Beauty and the Beast and... Ok, I'll stop and let you see it.

I was comparing it to my other favorites and I like it more than everything after this, surprisingly. It was that good (to me). I think the biggest reason was because of he humor. Lil' J had fallen asleep and I tried not to wake her but I still couldn't help but laugh out loud at so many parts. Music, humor, and plot score higher points with me than the depth of the "message." Which I think some of these others on my list do a better job of developing and conveying.

 4. Mulan (1998): I know it's a newer one too, but music is one big thing I love about Disney movies and this one didn't have a song I dislike. The storyline is great too. The horse in Tangled today reminded me of the one in this movie. I think it's cute how you see a lot of the same characters cross-appear in Disney movies (or maybe I'm the only one who noticed).

5. Beauty and the Beast (1991): I don't really need to give this one a description. Everyone loves this movie. Its a classic. Nuf said.

6. Pocahontas (1995): I love this movie. I love the Romeo and Juliet-style romance, and how strong Pocahontas seems as a woman. Great message about nature, and we really sure resurrect this classic seeing as how we're all "green" focused these days. I'll always love this movie regardless.

 7. The Little Mermaid (1989): My mom says this was the first movie she and I saw together that I could comprehend, and that must have been why I decided to dress up as a read-headed mermaid with "nude" colored (of course meaning a white shade on my dark skin, but I didn't care cause I was Ariel!) for Halloween my Kindergarten year. I re-watched this movie recently and wasn't as captivated as I used to be but it will always be a favorite.

8. Tarzan (1999): My favorite thing about this movie was the music. It also is really just plain hilarious. It's one of those movies that doesn't need a "princess" to be good. It's actually one of Disney's movies more geared towards boys but I like it just the same.

9. Lady and the Tramp (1955): The oldest Disney movie to make my list, but oh it will always be a good one. Not as many songs as some of the others but oh so cute! I haven't seen the sequels yet, even though I own them, I need to get on that.

10. Toy Story 3 (2009): I actually liked this one better than the first one. I don't like many of the Pixar movies as much as the classics (which is why this is the only one on the list) but this one had a sweet message, a great story line, and was hilarious. It's the only Disney movie I don't have in my possession at this time but I hope to change that by Christmas!

Honorable Mentions: The Princess and the Frog, Wall-E, Up, Cinderella.

Honestly, I watched Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and Cinderella recently and I fell asleep during them. Could be the sleep deprivation, but I think they just aren't topping some of these new ones to me!

So there's a new top 10 Disney Classics list from a Disney critic. I will say one thing I DIDN'T like about last night's movie and that's seeing it in 3D. It was not necessary and actually made me a little dizzy. I'd much rather see it again in 2D and just enjoy it!

What's your Disney Top 10, 5, or 3?