I confess – I prefer Disney live action movies to the animated ones. Some people never grow out of their love for Disney’s animated movies, but I did and there’s very few I can sit through these days, although I still absolutely love The Jungle Book. Put me in front of some of the live action movies and I’m as happy as Larry. Some I can just watch over and over. Here are some of my favorite Disney live action movies – I wonder if you enjoy them too?
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
You know when sometimes a person is so perfect to play a certain part? I think that about Peter Ustinov as scallywag pirate Blackbeard in this little gem of a movie. The great (late) English actor was a master of characterization and he portrayed the rum swilling no-gooder so brilliantly. He was the perfect foil for a perennial favorite in Disney live action movies, Dean Jones. Together they thwart the dastardly plans of a local hood and save the day for Blackbeard’s descendants. Just jolly good fun all round!
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
I think this movie is Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! It doesn’t matter than Dick Van Dyke has the worst cockerney accent ever – that just adds to the charm. This is a story of old London town and the life of two kids who dream of the perfect nanny, while all along craving the attention of a hardworking and strict father. Of course, it’s a Disney movie so the fairy tale comes true. After jumping in and out of pavement drawings, disrupting a fox hunt, floating up to ceilings and starting a run on a bank, it all comes good when they go fly a kite!
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
In my opinion, this is the movie that set the standard for live action animal adventures. We were so used to Disney working his magic with his oh so life-like animated animal characters that when he presented us with this amazing story of three four legged friends, we just didn’t know what to expect. But boy does it deliver. It’s high on story content, amazing Canadian scenery, wonderful narration and inspiration as we follow the 200 mile trek that 2 dogs and 1 cat make to find their way back to their human family. Truly, it’s enchanting.
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
There’s always a massive groan if this comes on TV when I’m with other people, but I brush those protests aside. Starring the favoured female child star of Disney live action films, Hayley Mills, Pollyanna is a rare one indeed. This is a Disney movie without a happy ending! Shock! Horror! Gasp! Pollyanna is a shining light who brings an oppressed community together and helps a hard hearted woman find a reason to smile. While she has the town enjoying the Glad Game, she meets with a terrible accident and … well that would spoil it for you if you haven’t watched it (but don’t worry, she doesn’t die!).
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
Who doesn’t love spotty dogs? Why of course, Cruella de Vil! OMG, how deliciously evil did Glenn Close make our evil fur-loving-fashionista villainess? When I first heard that Disney was going to make a live action version of 101 Dalmatians, I was skeptical. There are always so many things that can be done in animation that are difficult to recreate in live action. But I wasn’t disappointed. All those funny canine characters and the malevolent humans in the cartoon version were brilliantly recreated by a host of big name actors and actresses. Even the follow up is enjoyable – despite the ghastly character played by Gerard Depardieu.
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
If there was ever a brilliant and wildly wacky chase among the Disney live action films, it happens in One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing. Think early 20th century London, English nannies, a secret formula, precocious kids, and Chinese intelligence agents – yes seriously! With a cast that reads like a who’s who of great British actors from the mid-1970s, this movie is full of laughs as a diminutive nanny drives a full sized dinosaur skeleton through the crowded streets of London and the British countryside to prevent the secret formula falling into the wrong hands. Funny, madcap and totally unbelievable, but who cares!
On iTunes at: itunes.apple.com
Was it the genius of the Disney studios’ team to cast Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, or the inspiration of the man himself to base his character on hard drinking, hard womanizing, roguish Keith Richards (legendary guitarist from the Rolling stones) that elevated Pirates of the Caribbean from a mere story of pirating folk to an absolute classic and fan favorite? I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love these movies. I do think they perhaps ran their course at the end of the third one, but the 4th one arrived. A change of cast can often kill the continuity of a movie series and for me, it happened with On Stranger Tides. Still, it hasn’t affected my enjoyment of the first three and I will continue to watch them.
I could have easily included The Love Bug, That Darn Cat, Greyfriars Bobby, The Moon Spinners, Escape to Witch Mountain (the original), Candleshoe, Rocketman, and on … and on … and on… Which are your favorite Disney live action movies?
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