The 10 Most UNDERrated Disney Movies

{source}

One of the first things I ask students in my preschool ballet classes is, "Who is your favorite princess?"

Most of the time I get responses like Cinderella, Snow White, Ariel...and in more recent years, Elsa {but of course!}

I was just like these little ones!

I wanted to sing just like Cinderella.

I wanted to BE Belle, and I used to make people call me Belle.

And of course I loved my other classic princesses, Aurora and Ariel...and Lion King is definitely one of the greatest Disney {or animated really!} movies of all time! 

I could recite most, if not all, of the dialogue and lyrics from all of those movies {perks of having an auditory memory}. And in fact, I am still such a huge fan of them, and they definitely deserve all of the fanfare they get. 

Okay, so I'll admit to loving Frozen the first time I saw it, too.  The characters, the songs, the fact that it was about a bond between two sisters and not all about "true love's kiss"...yeah...I did love it. But I'm not sure it was worth the three year hype that it's had.

But this post isn't going to be about all of those movies with songs that every single Disney-loving human can sing on cue. We're going to talk about those less-than-appreciated films that should for sure get a little {okay, maybe a lot} more love.

So, without further ado, here is my personal ranking of...

The 10 Most UNDERrated Disney Movies...

{ten} Fantasia 2000

The classical music fanatic in me loves this! How neat is it to see inside the minds of people who created these visuals, all from what they heard in a classical piece. Talk about brilliant! I tend to picture choreography of course, but these people asked question, if music could be SEEN, what would it LOOK like? Look what they've done with Beethoven's 5th Symphony, one of the most recognizable pieces in classical music history! 

{nine} The Fox & the Hound

I saw this movie once when I was much younger. It completely broke my little heart in half, and I never watched it again. But I don't say this to turn you off from allowing your children to watch it, because maybe it would be too traumatic ;)) Having watched it again more recently, I realized that it definitely is a very sweet movie...even though I was the one who sat on the couch bawling my eyes out, while cuddling the adorable 3-year-old I was babysitting that day {who, by the way, was not affected by the sadness factor AT ALL!}. As sad as it may be, it definitely belongs on this list! 

{P/S...watch the above scene at your own risk. You've been warned.}

{eight} Little Mermaid II

Usually I don't love sequels. And in fact, much of the time I don't even like them. But this one, about classic Disney princess Ariel's daughter, Melody, was great! 

{seven} Lion King II

Yep, another sequel! This time about Simba's daughter, Kiara. Of course, no Disney movie at all could ever come close to topping the original Lion King. But the music {especially the opening number I've posted here}, character development, and plot in this sequel make for a very good film.

{six} Lilo & Stitch

Another one that made me cry! Clearly it doesn't take much! The comedic elements in this movie are great too, but my favorite thing is that it shows that not all families are perfect. Some of them are broken and messy, but, "Still good. Yeah. Still good." Oh yeah, and it teaches us that Elvis is timeless. Added bonus :))

{five} Mulan

Want a movie about a strong, beautiful warrior girl who steps up, fights in battles, and brings honor to her family? Look no further than Mulan! AND! It has THIS..Donny Osmond singing "I'll Make a Man out of you"...I mean, COME ON NOW! Just saying.

{four} Pocahontas

No it's not historically accurate. But forget about that, and focus on the characters {I personally am I huge fan of Grandmother Willow}, and the MUSIC!

{three} Tarzan

Phil Collins does the music for this movie. Enough said.

{two} Mary Poppins

When I ask my students if they've seen Mary Poppins, and a majority of them say, "No," I am SHOCKED! I mean............WHAT?! No really though! WHAT?!

{one} The Hunchback of Notre Dame

I have way too many good things to say about this movie, which is why it's my number one here! It's a little bit darker, but I think that's what makes it great. The music is very different from any other Disney movie...and the plot line and characters are way less typical or "cliche". I recently listened to the soundtrack from the movie, which is what gave me the idea for this post to begin with! I knew right away that THIS movie would be my top choice!

So which ones am I missing?

Is there an underrated Disney movie you love that YOU think should be a part of this list?