CAA: Christian Anime Alliance

Believe it or not, there was a time when Disney's live-action movies were actually worthwhile, not the big jokes they are these days. Since I'm a Disney buff, I've seen some of their classic live-action movies, so I know what I'm talking about. Which ones do you think were the best.
Note: for the purpose of this discussion, let's leave out the ones that were done by subsidiaries like Touchstone or Miramax. I also think we should leave out the movies like Pete's Dragon or Mary Poppins which involved both live-action and animation.
Here's a few of my favorites:
1. Watcher in the Woods--If you don't think Disney can do scary movies, rent this one sometime. Bette Davis pulls off a stellar performance and the pacing is well done. Plus, it's not overdone with gore like many of today's horror films.
2. Pollyanna--Haley Mills at her best. Her performance is actually a great way to make a character likeable without making her annoying at the same time. It's even better than the Parent Trap, imho.
3. The Three Lives of Thomasina--A story told from a cat's pov about the three families that took care of her. The fact that it has a great opening song doesn't hurt either.
4. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea--Oh yeah! This is one of the best adaptations around. Captain Nemo is played in a rather menacing way, rather than the anti-villain you see in other versions, but it's pretty good.
5. Treasure Island--yes they did the original story and they recycled it in space. And both versions are done well.

If we're leaving out Mary Poppins then...I really don't have anything to add.

Hey guys let's say what the best live-action Disney movies are except let's disqualify the best ones just because I don't like them.

no, nate. That's not the point. I do like Mary Poppins. But I want to concentrate on what's not as well known. Trust me, watch Watcher in the Woods. It's a great horror film.

I was thinking he was disqualifying them because either a.) they weren't "really" made by Disney or b.) they weren't completely live action? It seems reasonable to me. *shrug* edit: whoops, seems rocklobster and I were posting at the same time. Never mind...lol.

I did enjoy 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea a lot. James Mason's Nemo is awesome. And Peter Lorre playing a very wholesome character is pretty fun, too.

Swiss Family Robinson is one of my all-time favorites.

Also, Moonspinners is a Hayley Mills movie from when she was a little older than most of her Disney film appearances, and I liked that one quite a bit, too. A very chaste, suspenseful romance.

The one that immediately leaps to my mind is the original Disney rendition of The Parent Trap. I liked both it and Pollyanna as a kid, but unlike the latter, I still enjoy watching The Parent Trap. ^^

The Journey of Natty Gann- this one is pretty not well-known, about a girl who travels from Chicago across the country, looking for her father during the Great Depression. Pretty realistic depiction of life then (according to my Grandma), and a very, very good film.

Newsies- a very overlooked musical that they put out, Newsies is a wonderful song-and-dance film about kids who sell newspapers, 'Newsies', standing up for their rights against the newspaper giants of the day. Some very poingniant moments in it, if you're looking, and overall a strong, uplifting film. Maybe not for the entire family, as it does touch on the violence that happened (there is attampted rape- doesn't get farther than pulling her into the alley,l and kids do get beaten up by the hired thugs)

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey- one of my childhood favorites, centers around three pets who must find their way home after believing that they'd been abandoned by their masters. THe animals can "talk" to eachother, but humans can't understand them- it sounds like barking or meaowing or whatever noises the animal normally makes.

The Flight of the Navigator- A boy is abducted by aliens, only to be returned home 8 years later, when most of his friends and family have grown up. Escapes after the government decides to keep him for study. He finds his way back to the family, and decides that, regardless of the consequences, he must travel back in time to when he left for everyone's sake.

I also adore Watched in the Woods, and enjoy Pollyanna

Oooh! I forgot about Newsies and The Incredible Journey. Those were amazing.

Atria35 wrote:Bedknobs and Broomsticks

Sadly, Atria, I regret to inform you that as much as I love that movie and would put it at or near the top of my list of favorite live-action Disney films, rocklobster has decreed it is disqualified and eternally banished from this thread because it has animation in it. It saddens me as well as you, but alas, we must press on, to find a thread where we are free to like Disney's best live-action movies without being discriminated against.

EDIT: And people wonder why I say I have so many enemies on this site. XP

Nate (post: 1425427) wrote:Sadly, Atria, I regret to inform you that as much as I love that movie and would put it at or near the top of my list of favorite live-action Disney films, rocklobster has decreed it is disqualified and eternally banished from this thread because it has animation in it. It saddens me as well as you, but alas, we must press on, to find a thread where we are free to like Disney's best live-action movies without being discriminated against.

EDIT: And people wonder why I say I have so many enemies on this site. XP

Oh yeah, that was mentioned, wasn't it? Ah, well! Edited it out.

It has been a veritable eternity since I've seen any of the movies of this category. That being said, I didn't see very many, and some of them (such as "Darby O'Gill and the Little People") were pure weirdness. These are based off of what I remember liking as a kid, and not necessarily what I would like if I rewatched them now that I'm in my 20's.

Tron
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and sequels
Newsies (Actually, I never saw this as a kid. I first watched the whole thing when I was maybe 20 or so, and I really liked it)
Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey ("Shadow was a chump." Anyone? Anyone?)
Cool Runnings
Angels in the Outfield (We should all be thanking this movie for Joseph Gordon-Levitt.)

Also, I think we should allow the Pirates of the Caribbean films (at least the first one) and The Greatest Game Ever Played, even though they are recent.

Yuki-Anne wrote:Pirates of the Caribbean

That would be disqualified for having CG in it.

Is The Black Hole too far outside the bounds of "classic Disney" to be mentioned? That was one of the formative films of my geeky, geeky childhood.

Yes, we can count the Black Hole. I haven't seen that one in ages! It's like Disney doesn't even want to acknowledge its existence. They've never once aired it on their networks! Even before the "network decay" fad started. Why? Just because it flopped? So did a lot of Disney movies from that period!

Yuki-Anne (post: 1425524) wrote:Angels in the Outfield (We should all be thanking this movie for Joseph Gordon-Levitt.)

Dude, it is so weird that you mentioned that, because I only just realized last night that he was even in that movie. XDD It sort of blew my mind. XD

Also, Cool Runnings is amazing. XD

Also I notice that no one has mentioned The Kid! That movie is so fantastic. XD

Nate (post: 1425556) wrote:That would be disqualified for having CG in it.

Hey, just because Keira Knightley looks like a cartoon character...

Heck yeah, Flight of the Navigator. That's a fun little movie.

Since we are not counting Mary Poppins *sadface because I think that is the greatest live action Disney movie ever, guys, for obvious or not so obvious reasons*, one live action Disney movie I always enjoyed was the original (1965) of That Darn Cat.
I would also love to say the live action version of 101 Dalmations, but then I remember that had some CG stuff in it. :\

WAIT...

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was adapted into a cartoon, we should disqualify that too!
XD

You could search through the list on Wikipedia for film summaries: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Disney_feature_films

Mikevuono (post: 1425796) wrote:.Two kids are unhappy with their parents, and go into the woods where they can choose new families. They go through two or three different families, ultimately to realize at the end that their original family was the best all along.

She thinks it's from the 80's or 90's. I've never even heard of it. Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks everyone.

After looking through a list of Disney films from those decades, I think that if it is a Disney film, then it would probably be Night Crossing. However, the premise of that one is slightly different from what she's described. If the description she provided is accurate, then I don't think it's a Disney film- I didn't see any films with that particular plot to it that were in their lists of movies from those decades.

The Great Locomotive Chase

The Parent Trap

Big Red

Candleshoe

Tron

Flight of the Navigator

The Rocketeer

White Fang

The Mighty Ducks

The Muppet Christmas Carol

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

The Three Musketeers

Cool Runnings

Iron Will

Hocus Pocus

Angels in the Outfield

The Santa Clause

Operation Dumbo Drop

Air Bud

The Rookie

Miracle

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But Tron is disqualified for having CG.

I mean, if he's going to disqualify live-action movies that have animation in them for no good reason, he has to disqualify CG too, otherwise that would be hypocritical.

Nate (post: 1425999) wrote:But Tron is disqualified for having CG.

I mean, if he's going to disqualify live-action movies that have animation in them for no good reason, he has to disqualify CG too, otherwise that would be hypocritical.

I think the joke is understood at this point; is it cool if we move on? XD

Not until I can legitimately post Bedknobs and Broomsticks in this thread. :l

Nate (post: 1426003) wrote:Not until I can legitimately post Bedknobs and Broomsticks in this thread. :l

Come on, Nate, be a rebel! XD Don't let The Man tell you what to do! Post it anyways and let it be! XD

This thread was a failure up until this moment:



The Rocketeer.

Aw yeah, I loved that movie. Timothy Dalton was a great villain in it (I think he played the villain, right?)

Cognitive Gear (post: 1426008) wrote:This thread was a failure up until this moment:



The Rocketeer.

When did that movie get old enough to vote?! I watched that in theaters?

Gravy, I've gotten old...

By the way how is it that Return to Oz hasn't gotten mentioned yet? Has no one else seen it or what?