Welcome to the debut episode of “Ruminations,” a podcast on movies, politics, and religion, discussed over a glass–or three–of some type of adult beverage. In this inaugural episode, co-hosts Chris and Steve (previously known on this site as Flipp) discuss the 57 animated films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. This conversation has been 5 years in the making, as it was the summer of 2014 when Chris and Steve began a chronological journey through Disney’s official filmography, starting with 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This endeavor finally came to its conclusion last fall (December 2018, to be exact) with the release of Disney’s most recent movie, Ralph Breaks the Internet.
For ease of discussion, each co-host compiled an individual ranking from best to worst; a combined average was then taken to create a single master list. The master list’s Bottom 10 and Top 10 will be highlighted specifically in this episode. For additional notes, and movie clips, follow the show notes link below. For now, please listen and enjoy!
| Rank | Master | Chris | Steven |
| 1 | Aladdin (1992) | Aladdin | Aladdin |
| 2 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | The Hunchback of Notre Dame |
| 3 | Beauty and the Beast (1991) | The Lion King | Beauty and the Beast |
| 4 | The Lion King (1994) | Beauty and the Beast | Pinocchio |
| 5 | Cinderella (1950) | The Little Mermaid | Alice in Wonderland |
| 6 | The Little Mermaid (1989) | Sleeping Beauty | The Lion King |
| 7 | Sleeping Beauty (1959) | The Black Cauldron | Cinderella |
| 8 | Pinocchio (1940) | Cinderella | Emperor’s New Groove |
| 9 | Hercules (1997) | Hercules | Hercules |
| 10 | Mulan (1998) | Mulan | Sleeping Beauty |
| 11 | Alice in Wonderland (1951) | Tarzan | The Little Mermaid |
| 12 | Tarzan (1999) | The Princess and the Frog | Mulan |
| 13 | The Black Cauldron (1985) | Pocahontas | Pocahontas |
| 14 | Pocahontas (1995) | Pinocchio | Tarzan |
| 15 | Emperor’s New Groove (2000) | Robin Hood | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs |
| 16 | The Princess and the Frog (2009) | Lilo and Stitch | The Princess and the Frog |
| 17 | Robin Hood (1973) | Dinosaur | The Great Mouse Detective |
| 18 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) | Emperor’s New Groove | The Black Cauldron |
| 19 | Lilo and Stitch (2002) | Alice in Wonderland | Robin Hood |
| 20 | The Great Mouse Detective (1986) | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Lilo and Stitch |
| 21 | Zootopia (2016) | The Fox and the Hound | Wreck It Ralph |
| 22 | Peter Pan (1953) | Peter Pan | Zootopia |
| 23 | The Fox and the Hound (1981) | The Jungle Book | Ralph Breaks the Internet |
| 24 | Wreck It Ralph (2012) | Zootopia | Bolt |
| 25 | Dinosaur (2000) | 101 Dalmatians | Tangled |
| 26 | Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018) | Oliver and Company | Peter Pan |
| 27 | Bolt (2008) | The Great Mouse Detective | The Fox and the Hound |
| 28 | 101 Dalmatians (1961) | Wreck It Ralph | Fantasia |
| 29 | Tangled (2010) | Ralph Breaks the Internet | Dumbo |
| 30 | Dumbo (1941) | Bolt | Atlantis: The Lost Empire |
| 31 | Fantasia (1940) | Dumbo | Frozen |
| 32 | The Jungle Book (1967) | Brother Bear | 101 Dalmatians |
| 33 | Brother Bear (2003) | The Rescuers | Dinosaur |
| 34 | Frozen (2013) | Fantasia | Brother Bear |
| 35 | Oliver and Company (1988) | Tangled | Meet the Robinsons |
| 36 | The Rescuers (1977) | Frozen | The Rescuers |
| 37 | Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) | Lady and the Tramp | Fantasia 2000 |
| 38 | Lady and the Tramp (1955) | Fantasia 2000 | Lady and the Tramp |
| 39 | Fantasia 2000 (1999) | The Aristocats | The Jungle Book |
| 40 | Meet the Robinsons (2007) | Bambi | The Aristocats |
| 41 | The Aristocats (1970) | Meet the Robinsons | Moana |
| 42 | Bambi (1942) | Moana | Oliver and Company |
| 43 | Moana (2016) | Atlantis: The Lost Empire | Bambi |
| 44 | Home on the Range (2004) | The Sword in the Stone | Big Hero Six |
| 45 | The Rescuers Down Under (1990) | Home on the Range | Home on the Range |
| 46 | Big Hero Six (2014) | The Rescuers Down Under | The Rescuers Down Under |
| 47 | Treasure Planet (2002) | Treasure Planet | Treasure Planet |
| 48 | The Sword in the Stone (1963) | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh | The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad |
| 49 | The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) | The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh |
| 50 | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) | Big Hero Six | Winnie the Pooh |
| 51 | Winnie the Pooh (2011) | Winnie the Pooh | The Sword in the Stone |
| 52 | The Three Caballeros (1944) | The Three Caballeros | The Three Caballeros |
| 53 | Saludos Amigos (1942) | Saludos Amigos | Saludos Amigos |
| 54 | Make Mine Music (1946) | Melody Time | Make Mine Music |
| 55 | Melody Time (1948) | Make Mine Music | Fun and Fancy Free |
| 56 | Fun and Fancy Free (1947) | Fun and Fancy Free | Melody Time |
| 57 | Chicken Little (2005) | Chicken Little | Chicken Little |
Episode I Show Notes
Music Credits
Intro
“Sanctuary of the Sky Gods” by Nathaniel Wyvern, CC BY 4.0 via freemusicarchive.org
Intro quotes:
The Big Lebowski (Gramercy Pictures)
Inglourious Basterds (The Weinstein Company)
Goldfinger (United Artists)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Buena Vista Pictures)
The Shining (Warner Bros)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (New Line Cinema)
Game of Thrones (Warner Bros/HBO)
Disney Songs:
“The Three Caballeros” by Manuel Esperón and Ray Gilbert, The Three Caballeros
“I’ll Make a Man Out of You” by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel, Mulan
“I Can Go the Distance” by Alan Menken and David Zippel, Hercules
“When You Wish Upon a Star” by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington, Pinocchio
“Once Upon a Dream” by Jack Lawrence and Sammy Fain, Sleeping Beauty
“Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” by Al Hoffman, Mack David, and Jerry Livingston, Cinderella
“Under the Sea” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, The Little Mermaid
“Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” by Elton John and Tim Rice, The Lion King
“Be Our Guest” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, Beauty and the Beast
“Heaven’s Light/Hellfire” by Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, The Hunchback of Notre Dame
“Never Had a Friend Like Me” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, Aladdin
“Friends on the Other Side” by Randy Newman, The Princess and the Frog
“Try Everything” by Sia Furler, Tor Hermansen, and Mikkel Eriksen, Zootopia
“The Bells of Notre Dame” by Alan Menken, The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Image credit:
Fireworks show over Cinderella Castle at closing hour / Disney World, Orlando 2010 / © Jorge Royan / http://www.royan.com.ar / CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
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