The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men

Release Date: March 13, 1952

I have loved the story of Robin Hood as long as I can remember. The multiple stories that have been written and movies that have been made are a testament to the timeless appeal to this story. It was a perfect choice for Walt Disney's second live action film. As with Treasure Island, this movie was made using the funds that were frozen during World War II. Walt wanted to make the film as authentic as possible by actually filming it in Sherwood Forest.

The movie is a delight to watch and holds its own decades later. Richard Todd plays the titular character perfectly and is easy to cheer for. He portrays Robin Hood with wonderful confidence and a charismatic smile that makes him instantly likeable. It's no wonder that he went on to star in two other films by Disney. Walt hand picked Joan Rice to play Maid Marian, and although certain members of the cast were not fans of her acting, I think she is wonderful in her role and her chemistry with Richard Todd is great in my opinion. Hubert Gregg does an excellent job portraying the evil and conniving Prince John, with Peter Finch playing his henchman, the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Everything to love about Robin Hood is in this movie--the battle with Little John on the bridge, the fight with Friar Tuck, the capture of the Sheriff and his "invitation to dine" with the merry men. My favorite scene is probably when Robin and his men "help" the sheriff make a large donation for the king's ransom. It is so fun to watch Robin and his men outsmart the traitorous prince and his sheriff, and to see them do so with laughter and wit.

I personally find the poster for this movie hysterical. It portrays a shirtless Robin Hood in the stance of shooting an arrow from his bow, with Maid Marian hanging onto him. It makes the movie look sensual, when in reality the movie is very family friendly. It isn't the only Disney movie that featured the actor shirtless on the movie poster, so clearly someone thought seeing the actor shirtless would help draw in audiences to see the movie. It is funny to me!

Alice in Wonderland

Release Date: July 26, 1951

Walt Disney was inspired by Lewis Carroll's stories about Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass from very early on in his career. His first big breakthrough in animation was his Alice comedies, where a young live actress found herself in the animated world. When he began making feature length animated films, Walt wanted to do Alice in Wonderland. Many attempts were made to get started, but the style wasn't quite what Walt was looking for, and soon World War II put everything on hold.

After the war, animated projects that were put on hold were taken off the shelf. This time, Mary Blair was put in charge of the art style. Her use of colors and whimsy were exactly what Walt was looking for in his film. The animators and artists in the studio brought Mary Blair's vision to life and created the Wonderland that we know today.

The voice cast for this movie was golden. Walt wanted an English actress to play Alice, but also wanted someone whose accent wouldn't be too jarring for American audiences. He found the perfect voice in Kathryn Beaumont. Sterling Holloway, a familiar voice in the Disney studio, voiced the Cheshire Cat. Comedians such as Ed Wynn and Jerry Colonna were brought on to voice characters such as the Mad Hatter and the March Hare.

There is a fun story about Ed Wynn in this movie. The actors who supplied the voices were also used as models for the animators. They would set up a simple set and record the actors saying their lines and interacting with props to guide the animators in bringing the movie to life. While Ed Wynn's parts were recorded, he had everybody laughing. When they did the official voice recording for the movie, Ed Wynn's humor didn't come across as strong. So they decided to use the recorded audio from the live action reference instead--and that is what we hear when we watch the movie! This might be why the unbirthday sequence is one of the most memorable scenes in the film!

Another interesting fact about this movie is that it holds the record for the most songs in a Disney movie. Most of the songs are very brief and perhaps forgettable, but other songs have become timeless classics in the Disney catalog. There are other songs that didn't even make it into the movie! The music and songs are an important part of this movie because they add to the quirky atmosphere in Alice's Wonderland.

Although the movie was not a huge success when it was first released, today it is beloved by Disney fans all over the world. I admit that this movie has grown on me over the years. I watched it as a child, and there were parts of the movie I really liked, but there were other parts of the movie that I found to be dull. As I have grown older, I have come to appreciate the movie a lot more, and I especially appreciate all the work that went into making it and bringing the story to life. Some of the humor that went over my head as a child is very funny to me now!

My favorite scene in the movie is probably the tea party sequence with the Mad Hatter and March Hare. This is easily the scene I quote the most, especially the Mad Hatter's lines! But I also love the scene where Alice gets stuck inside the White Rabbit's house and poor Bill the lizard is tasked with getting her out. My third favorite scene is probably when the cards are painting the roses red. I also love that at the end of the movie we see all the characters we've met throughout the film.

Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland has, in a way, come full circle. It began with Walt's Alice Comedies, where a live young actress entered the world of cartoons. Then a full-length animated feature was created. Then Walt created, not just one, but two attractions at Disneyland based on the animated film. Now guests from around the world can have their own adventures in Walt's Wonderland!

Cinderella

Release Date: February 15, 1950

Walt's animation team had grown leaps and bounds since their first full animated feature. But whenever a new movie was released, the press always seemed to compare it to Snow White, and the new movies just didn't seem to compare. Walt, who was focused on the progress and improvement of the art of animation, grew frustrated that the progress seemed to be ignored. That all changed with his second princess movie: Cinderella.

The Cinderella story is a story that never gets old. I personally have no idea how many movies, plays, books and more have been done based on the Cinderella story, but Walt found a way to make it his own and to make it stand out among all other versions. Now when most people in America think of Cinderella, this is the movie they think of!

One cannot think of Disney's Cinderella without thinking of the supporting cast of characters--especially the mice Jaq and Gus. Ward Kimball, drawing inspiration from his own cat, brought the mischievous Lucifer to life in a way that simultaneously makes him a villain and a comedic character. He makes the best faces in the film and they make me laugh every time I watch the movie.

The voice cast for this film is also legendary. Ilene Woods knew the two composers who wrote the songs for the movie, and they asked her to sing the demos for the song. Walt listened to everyone who auditioned for the role of Cinderella, but he didn't like anybody as much as he liked Ilene Woods, and she ended up getting the part. She brought such a beautiful quality to Cinderella's character. My personal favorite moment is during the song Sing, Sweet Nightingale, which she sings in harmony with herself. My other favorite voice actress in the film is Eleanor Audley, who was a perfect choice for the Wicked Stepmother. She brought such richness to the character and made her a truly terrifying villain.

This movie also contains Walt Disney's favorite piece of animation--the transformation from Cinderella's rags to her beautiful ball gown. As I mentioned previously, Walt was irked when brilliant advancements in the art of animation went unrecognized. It must have been very satisfying to have the audience fall in love with a film that also showed so much progress in animation.

This movie proved that the Disney studio would have some of its greatest success with movies depicting fairy tales. Unfortunately, many years later (in my lifetime), the "Disney Princess trope" would be disparaged. People have spoken out about the danger Disney princess movies pose to a rising generation of girls, who feel that they need a man to whisk them away from all their problems. Such an idea is even made fun of in recent Disney films.

First of all, I think it's incredibly unfair to act like Disney is the only studio to use a "damsel in distress" trope. Most Hollywood movies of the early 1900's depict women being inferior to men. In fact, the most "helpless" and "dependent" women I've seen depicted in film weren't in movies done by Disney at all! So I personally really don't like that Disney has gotten a bad rap for that.

Second of all, one who says that Cinderella is just another Disney princess waiting for a prince to solve all her problems is missing a huge part of the story. Cinderella is trapped in an abusive household. Anyone in an abusive relationship understands how hard it can be to escape. At no point in the movie is she expecting to be rescued by a prince. In fact, when she's at the ball she doesn't even realize she is dancing with the prince! In her mind, she gets to escape her abusive situation and truly enjoy just one night of her life. When she discovers that the man she was dancing with was the prince and that he is looking for her, she is so shocked that she drops the tray of dishes and has a glimmer of hope to leave her awful life behind forever.

The fact that Cinderella marries a prince and becomes a princess is not what makes her such a timeless heroine. It is her fortitude to keep trying to be her best self when everyone around her treats her like dirt. As she sings, "No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing the dream that you wish will come true." At a particularly low point, a soft choir is singing these words to Cinderella, and she responds through sobs, "It's just no use. No use at all. I can't believe. Not anymore. There's nothing left to believe in. Nothing." At this moment, after years and years of abuse, she feels like she has finally broken. And at that moment, her fairy godmother appears and everything begins to change for her.

Cinderella's fairy godmother appeared because of who Cinderella was. Cinderella was rescued by Jaq and Gus at the end because she was kind to them. It was not the prince who saved Cinderella; it was her own faith and goodness that brought her a happy ending. I feel like this is made even more apparent in the 2015 live action remake, but it is all right there in the original animated film.

Cinderella deserves its place as a timeless Disney classic. It rightfully serves as a reminder that happy endings are possible to those who never stop believing in their dreams, and that find strength in kindness.