Freaky Friday (2003)

While Disney is no stranger to adaptations, the novel Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers is one that the company has made into a franchise with multiple unique adaptations for each generation since 1976. Perhaps the most well-known of these is the third adaptation of Freaky Friday from 2003, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, which was also the one that was advertised to me as a kid. Though I had always had the curiosity about it in the back of my head, I didn’t watch it in earnest until the announcement of a 2025 sequel to it, dubbed Freakier Friday. After streaming the movie through Disney+, I not only enjoyed it more than I expected, I also thought it mostly aged surprisingly well.

The Emperor's New Groove

Note: This review contains spoilers for The Emperor’s New Groove.

In 1994, Disney started production on a musical epic titled Kingdom of the Sun. Over the course of four years, however, the project went through a troubled production period (as detailed in the documentary The Sweatbox, viewable through Internet Archive), only reaching about 25% completion. As a result, studio executives stepped in and, after some discussion, the film changed direction to a lighthearted comedy. The final product, renamed The Emperor’s New Groove, would see a theatrical release in early December, 2000. Though it received a generally positive reception from critics, with an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film underperformed at the box office, making only $169.9 million on a budget of $100 million.

Although I was only eight at the time The Emperor’s New Groove came out, I distinctly remember watching it in a theater and enjoying it. However, it would be about 20 years before I would watch it again through a TV broadcast, which reinforced the fond memories I had of the film. After watching the first episode of  the Disney+ series Sketchbook, in which Story Artist Gabby Capili drew Emperor Kuzco, we felt compelled to watch the film again, which led us to conclude that even after 22 years, The Emperor’s New Groove still holds up as a Disney classic.

Holes

Of the many (many) films I had watched growing up, I have distinct memories associated with Holes. Around the time I had watched Holes during its initial theatrical run, I was reading the original novel by Louis Sachar, who also wrote the adaptation, and had actually finished reading the book in the theater right before the lights dimmed. Though I don’t remember every detail from the book, many elements of the film stuck with me for eighteen years, which ultimately led me to rewatch the film. To my surprise, Holes held up really well and stands out as an example of great storytelling that anyone can get into.

Mulan (1998)

Mulan, based on a Chinese ballad known as the Ballad of Mulan, was a film I had seen at least once when I was a kid, albeit on home video. Though it had been years since I had seen the 1998 movie, I remember liking it at the time, however I had sometimes considered re-watching it in order to pay more attention to the story and see if my opinion on it had changed. That opportunity came when a live-action remake of the movie was announced by Disney, though I would not actually jump on that chance until recently, in the wake of the remake’s release on Disney+ (for the low, low price of $30 on top of the regular subscription) in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. After viewing the 1998 Mulan again, I though it not only managed to hold up well after 22 years, it was a lot better than I remembered.

Chicken Little (2005)

In 1943, Walt Disney produced a short film based on the fable Chicken Little (aka Chicken Licken), which tells a story about the consequences of falling for hysteria. During the Walt Disney company’s more experimental years, they decided to release another take on the same source material in 2005, simply titled Chicken Little. I will admit I only recall ever seeing maybe parts of the movie beforehand, and even then, what I remember the most was the marketing for it around that time (I recall not being that enthusiastic about actually watching it when I was a kid), as well as a cameo appearance from some of the characters during a televised awards show. After watching it in full through a Disney XD airing, I will say it was somewhat better than I expected from it, however, it’s definitely not one of Disney’s stronger animated films.

Recess: School's Out

One show I had watched in some form growing up was the Disney animated series Recess; though it originally aired as part of the One Saturday Morning block on ABC (before it was rebranded as ABC Kids), I remember watching it via reruns on Toon Disney (prior to its own rebranding as Disney XD), which was one of a few formative animation outlets for me as a child. For those who haven’t seen it, the show revolved around the misadventures of six fourth-graders (T.J., Vince, Gus, Spinelli, Gretchen and Mikey) as they make the most of the school year, with a heavy emphasis on what occurs on the playground during the recess period. During the show’s run, it had received a theatrically-released movie in 2001 known as Recess: School’s Out, however I never ended up actually watching it, and even then, I had only seen it in parts when it ran on TV. After having finally seen the movie in full, on what was coincidentally a few days off from the 19^th anniversary of its US premiere no less, and spurred in part by the (as of this writing) recent passing of Jason Davis (Mikey), I found it to be a solid movie that holds up surprisingly well.

Treasure Planet

Since first being published in 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island has gone on to become one of the most ubiquitous novels, receiving a number of adaptations in the coming centuries while also arguably setting the initial default for pirate stereotypes; one of the most famous of these adaptations is Disney’s live-action film adaptation of the same name in 1950, with Disney’s own Pirates of the Caribbean from 2003 arguably overwriting the pirate stereotype into Jack Sparrow clones. The year 2002 would see Disney adapt Treasure Island again, this time fully animated and given a space/steampunk aesthetic under the name Treasure Planet. I had somewhat of an interest as a kid when it first came out, however I never ended up actually being able to watch it until recently, after having heard how good it actually was. Though it’s not without flaws, I did find myself enjoying it for what it was.

Tarzan (1999)

In the midst of the Walt Disney Company’s countless releases, a number of them have fallen off the radar for one reason or another, even those once popular enough to spawn their own successful franchises. We’ve covered some of them on this blog before, but the one we’re looking at here is Tarzan (1999), released at the very end of what is known as the Disney Renaissance, a decade where the studio had been a critical and box office powerhouse. I remembered watching Disney’s Tarzan when it originally released in theaters, but was motivated to watch it again when I noticed we owned a sealed 2005 DVD copy, meaning it had been 14-20 years since we had last seen it. After finally re-watching the film, I can confidently say that it not only held up well after 20 years, it’s also an underrated Disney classic that deserves renewed recognition.

Lilo & Stitch

When Lilo & Stitch first came out in 2002 (following Atlantis: The Lost Empire), I will admit I was not too interested in it as a kid, mainly due to its advertising campaign, however I was aware enough of it and its subsequent franchise that I knew who the character of Stitch was without knowing his full backstory. However, after seeing the character make appearances in the Kingdom Hearts series as well as positive word of mouth in recent years, I decided it was time I actually gave the film a chance. To my own surprise, the movie was far better than I initially expected it to be.

Toy Story 2

Note: The following review contains spoilers for Toy Story 2.

Following the success of the original Toy Story, it seemed inevitable that Pixar would want to cash in on that with a Toy Story 2. Though a Toy Story sequel was in development during A Bug’s Life, it was initially envisioned to be a direct-to-video feature, however Disney, who had a distribution deal with Pixar at the time prior to the later buyout, later wanted it to be a theatrical release following test footage. Pixar wanted to change things, however Disney insisted on the release date they had already set, leading Pixar to rework the movie and somehow finish it within a span of nine months. Despite these circumstances, the movie that came out of it was surprisingly good.

A Bug's Life

Note: This review contains spoilers for A Bug’s Life.

Three years after the release of Toy Story (1995), Pixar released their second animated feature, A Bug’s Life (1998), which also happened to be the first film I had ever seen in a movie theater. Though critically acclaimed at the time, it seems to have generally fallen off the radar in recent years when the works of Pixar are discussed. The same rang true for us until we caught part of a recent Disney XD airing and decided to watch the movie in full through our DVD copy. Now that we’ve seen it all the way through again after several years, it seems to have held up surprisingly well, though it’s also a little rough around the edges.

Meet the Robinsons - Keep Moving Forward

When I first saw trailers for Meet the Robinsons, I wasn’t really sure what to make of it. I was aware it had been based on a William Joyce book I vaguely recalled reading, A Day with Wilbur Robinson, though I didn’t know how well the book could be translated to feature length. I didn’t end up seeing the movie in a theater when it first came out in 2007, though I had been reminded of its existence when taking a handful of college animation courses. I had recently taken a Disney XD airing as a chance to finally watch the movie, to which I found it to be a bit better than I initially expected.