A decade into the Disney Live-Action Remake trend, I take stock of my favorites and least favorites. Truth be told, I’m a huge fan of these films and I would give a “thumbs-up” to anything beyond the two Tier 4 films.
TIER 4 – The Trash Pile:
14. Lady and The Tramp (2019)
This movie is anachronistic, cheap, and a bad story told with very poor visual effects. I rarely get mad at a movie. I rarely use puns. But this is one of those times. Absolute dog sh*t!
13. Dumbo (2019)
Uninspired remake that wishes it could be an uninspired clone (like some others on this list). It takes the original story of Dumbo and fills it with so much CGI and distraction and extraneous characters that if you thought this was an accurate reflection of the original but only watched this film you might wonder why Walt Disney was still in business after he made the original classic.
TIER 3 – Not Great/Not Offensive:
12. Alice Through The Looking Glass (2016)
Should probably be in the trash pile but I just like Mia Wasikowska’s performance as Alice so much. It’s my favorite performance of all of the Disney princesses but this is a worse case scenario of Tim Burton trying to be weird for Tim Burton’s sake – and it’s not even Tim Burton directing! It’s just some director trying to emulate Tim Burton who was trying to remake a Disney film. A mess. But Mia W lifts it up a bit.
11. Aladdin (2019)
A fun movie that kind of is a close-enough but worse version of the animated classic. Believe it or not all of the actors really go for it in fun ways – even Will Smith as the genie is quite charming and makes the role his own. Problem for me is the original “Aladdin” is one of my all-time favorite films and no matter how good this was, it was never going to measure up.
10. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)
Not a great movie, some have argued it is awful. But its complicated portrayal of feminism and family bonds along with a very thought-out and explored mythology for both Maleficent’s “family” and the feudal world around her. Even if you hate it, you cannot deny that they put the work in here.
9. Christopher Robin (2018)
It was fine.
TIER 2 – Solid Re-Makes That Definitely Have Their Moments
8. Beauty and The Beast (2017)
A near shot for shot and beat for beat remake of the original, handsomely mounted and wonderfully cast. Still the lack of inspiration does nock it down a bit for me. And while I enjoyed all of the singing, I’m not sure even that surpassed the original. But Emma is a wonderful Belle and the Beast looks really cool.
7. Maleficent (2014)
Even though Alice In Wonderland was the first of this new generation, I think Maleficent is the one that feels like it really kickstarted the trend because it showed Disney that you don’t have to be Tim Burton to make this whole thing work (and in fact time has proved that it’s probably better if you are not). I love Angelina Jolie’s performance here. I loved Elle Fanning’s performance. Because this was one of the first, it did not feel quite so calculated and I also like that they really twisted the original film – not in any huge way that redefined the story but just told it from another perspective.
6. Alice In Wonderland (2010)
Tim Burton’s 2010 film was landmark in that it set the next decade of Disney films. But Disney execs were so surprised that it would take 3-4 years before they had a slate ready that would follow this film. It also set up unrealistic expectations. Not every Disney re-make would be able to carve its own style because of the vision of its director – but I think for the first few Disney films that was certainly the expectation. Only later would Disney realize that these remakes were a genre unto themselves and a journeyman director was just as and sometimes more effective than a visionary (even when its the visionary that directed this film, see Dumbo) – an idea that I do not disagree with.
5. The Jungle Book (2016)
Truth be told, I don’t like this film that much from a personal POV but I understand why it is good and important and did so much in terms of technical innovations. But in many ways the things that it is heightening is still animation. And for the most part the characters are still somewhat stylized and act like animated characters. The biggest and best examples are Baloo and Still, the voice-work is excellent, the cinematography is excellent but it is ultimately in service of what is essentially animation – and still using the style of animation.
TIER 1 – The Best Remakes
4. The Lion King (2019)
Look. I know I am in the minority here but I really loved the remake because it was an animated film but told in a photorealistically believable way. Much as I loved films like Beauty and the Beast and even Mulan, there are things in this film that look entirely more real than scenes on sets with actors in those films. And that is what I think makes Lion King interesting for me. The fact that the animals are still talking and singing while never breaking the look of a Nat Geo film is just so beguiling for me, but I get why it is oft-putting to some vocal critics. Though its runaway box-office success means there were a lot of people equally beguiled.
I also liked the original film but did not put it on the level of Aladdin or even The Little Mermaid and Beauty and The Beast. And I’m guessing that helped me enjoy it more.
3. Pete’s Dragon (2016)
OK I know the original was not animated but its central character and the entire marketing campaign and subsequent tie-in merch was centered around a wonderfully animated character. So I think it would be unfair to NOT include this film in the list. Directed by the awesome David Lowery, this was almost a “we’re not worthy” remake. Not because it’s so great (it is), but the original was a largely forgotten though still loved by Gen-Xer type film that your older brother or dad would tell you is so great but when you actually finally caught it on TV or on an old VHS (in the time before Disney Plus), you would find it perfectly fine, a little boring and wonder why it was recommended in the first place. But Lowery draws on his own memories of 1980s films instead of the narrative of the original – and merges them with a visually granola palette and a story that touches on things like family, home, and the importance of imagination and how just because something is not physically manifested does not make it any less real. In combining all of these things he creates what might be the best film on the list. But because it is not an a remake of an entirely animated film I did not want to place it at #1. Side note: Lowery also assembles one of the best casts in a Disney remake that all feel of the world. It’s confident casting – and not just stunt casting (which can happen a lot for better and worse in these films) including both hard working but relatively unknown actors like Wes Bentley and Oakes Fegley and stars like Robert Redford and Bryce Dallas Howard.
2. Mulan (2020)
This film is still fresh on my mind and frankly it was a bit lower on the list only 48 hours ago. But having rewatched it I think it is a film that honors tradition, not just Disney but cultural tradition, while creating its own version of events and legacy. The film is the best looking film of all of the remakes and has some of the best action sequences. Director Niki Caro’s film eschews things like musical numbers (that can sometimes be distracting and/or film like fan service in this series of re-makes) and cheap comedy bits – and is instead unafraid to stand on the legacy of genres like swashbucklers, epics, and Wuxia. And it delivers.
1. Cinderella (2015)
The best version of whatever Disney is trying to do – by far. It retells the story of the original animated film but also fills it in and adds a psychological dimensionality that comments on self-wroth, feminism, family and abuse. Add Lily James to Mia W as the two best versions of Disney casting and both embodied their characters so effortlessly yet so genuinely. They are both unknowns who would become quantities after their remakes. Add in Cate Blanchett, Richard Madden, Stellan Skarsgard, Holiday Grainger, and Helena Bonham Carter and you have a cast whose talent could pull off any one of director Kenneth Branagh’s Shakespeare production, but instead they are employed here playing an evil stepmother and a blue fairy – and they pull it off just as well as Ophelia or Portia. The film looks incredible and sounds great. It also had the wonderful “Frozen Fever” short in front of it – but that’s a story for another time.
No Scoops Club 