The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) - ★★★★½

Director: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise
Writers: Victor Hugo (Novel)
Voices: Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Tony Jay, Kevin Kline, Jason Alexander, Paul Kandel, Charles Kimbrough, David Ogden Stiers

Of all the movies I've seen on my Disney Blogathon, The Hunchback of Notre Dame was the biggest surprise of all. It truly is one of the most beautiful animated features ever created. I was in complete awe of the meticulously detailed, gorgeous animation of the city of Paris, the characters that wandered the streets, the 3D bells and shots of Notre Dame, and the stunning angles and techniques that occur scene by scene. The music that encompass this film sends chills down my spine, for it has such a mature, haunting sound, which suits this tale of oppression and longing to perfection. I was surprised mostly because this film used to make me upset as a child, but as an adult, I noticed masterful aspects that I hadn't seen before. This is honestly one of the most underrated movies of all time.

The Little Mermaid (1989) - ★★★★★

Directors: Ron Clements, John Musker
Voice Actors: Jodi Benson, Pat Carroll, Samuel E. Wright, Jason Marin, Buddy Hackett, Christopher Daniel Barnes

The Little Mermaid was the beginning of the Disney Renaissance, a period between 1989 and 1999 which contains a large portion of the greatest films that Disney ever made. As the first of its era, this movie still stands as one of the most beautiful creations in the history of animated cinema. While Ariel longed to be part of our world, as a child I longed to be part of hers. This movie still captivates me to this day, with its sweeping score, groundbreaking animation, and wonderfully entertaining characters. I get emotional at many Disney movies, but The Little Mermaid manages to make me blubber in tears more than almost any other. While its message isn't a particularly admirable one for little girls, it's still a story that many young people can relate to. The longing to break free and discover new things. While many of my childhood favourites faded into mediocrity, The Little Mermaid still ranks as one of the best.

Hercules (1997) - ★★★★

Director: Ron Clements, John Musker
Voice Actors: Tate Donovan, Susan Egan, Danny DeVito, James Woods, Rip Torn

It's official! Even after 10 years, Hercules is still one of my all time favourite animated movies! Visually and musically, Hercules is just so different to all the other films Disney has ever made, sporting a great use of 3D monsters, and also wonderfully catchy soul-music. I was pleasantly surprised at just how emotional the film made me. It doesn't quite reach the same league as Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King though, due to its lack of beautiful dialogue, powerful scenes, and most importantly, originality. Some of the jokes are a bit too cheesy and childlike for me, but I used to find them hilarious when I was younger, so I can forgive that. As a child, Hercules would have been one of my top 10 favourite movies to watch over and over on video-tape. To this day, the powerful wave of nostalgia makes me love it all the more.

Mulan (1998) - ★★★★★

Director: Tony Bancroft, Barry Cook
Voices: Ming-Na Wen, Eddie Murphy, Miguel Ferrer, Lea Salonga, Harvey Fierstein, Donny Osmond, June Foray, James Hong, Miriam Margolyes, Pat Morita, George Takei

Mulan has been my undisputed favourite Disney movie since I was a child. It's an absolutely phenomenal film that brings so much more than any Disney princess movie before it. Its soundtrack is one of the greatest I've ever heard, the animation is stunningly beautiful, the character's are hilarious and interesting, and the story is just so grand in scale. There are two things in this movie that make it stand as one of the all time greats of animation. One is its leading character Mulan, who goes through what I consider the greatest challenge any female Disney character has ever had to face. The other is her mentor and friend, Mushu, who is by far the funniest Disney character I've ever seen. This exquisitely crafted film deserves to be praised as one of the all time greats of animation.

Loveless (2005) - ★★★½

Director: Yuu Kou
Writer: Yuji Kawahara
Voice Actors: Katsuyuki Konishi, Junko Minagawa, Kana Ueda

Loveless is a show that grew on me. The themes and characters annoyed the hell out of me at the start, but as the story developed I became more invested with each episode. I thoroughly enjoyed the show, but its disturbing premise really prevented me from ever loving it. It's a shounen-ai anime, which translates to 'boys love.' The romance aspect was more disturbing than entertaining, but I'll elaborate on that later. What makes this a great show is the magical, action-packed storyline and the questions each episode raises. When I finished the show, I was pretty devastated. I really wanted to know what happened next in the story, but unfortunately it wasn't renewed for a second season. From what I've seen, Loveless is one of the best anime's of its genre.

No.6 (2011) - ★★★★★

No. 6 is the most mature, beautiful shounen-ai anime I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot of them. Its animation and storyline is unmatched by any other anime of its kind (or Yaoi anime for that matter). On top of that, the characters are beautifully developed and easy to fall in love with. I was absolutely hooked after the first episode, and ended up watching every other episode in a row (that's about 4 and a half hours worth of episodes). I guess I just loved everything about No. 6. The theme songs that played in the opening and ending credits, the hilarity, the romance, the music... it just thrilled me. You'd be hard-pressed to find another yaoi/shounen-ai anime that's of a better quality than this. I think it's the best anime of its kind, the cream of the crop. Put it this way. As I was nearing the end of the series, I started to feel anxiety because I'd never see a new episode again. Now that's what I call a powerful show!

Ratatouille (2007) - ★★★★

Director: Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava
Voice Actors: Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm, Lou Romano, Brian Dennehy, Peter O'Toole, Brad Garrett, Janeane Garofolo

Ratatouille is such a wonderful film. I think it probably has the least magic involved out of any Disney movie, yet it's more magical than most. Cooking suddenly becomes an enchanting world, where taste and smell are the two most important senses to a person (or rat). Hell, it made me want to eat and cook all night long. (I just ended up making jam on toast, but I was damn proud of what I achieved). I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, which won Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards. I wouldn't rate it one of Disney's best, but it's an awesome movie none the less.

The Lion King (1994) - ★★★★★

Director: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff
Voice Actors: Jonathon Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Ernie Sabella, Nathan Lane, Rowan Atkinson

So far in my Disney Blogathon, The Lion King takes the prize for making me cry the most. I hadn't seen this movie in like 10 years, so it was quite a shock to be as emotional as I was. It's an indescribably beautiful film that's much more than your average Disney movie. These aren't just the rambling events of cartoon animals, but rather a masterful story that could not have been told in a better way. I was just completely blown away at how much this movie affected me, which is why it is easily one of the greatest movies ever made.

The AristoCats (1970) - ★★½

Just O'Malley pitching woo to Dutchess

Director: Wolfgang Reitherman
Voice Actors: Phil Harris, Eva Gabor, Sterling Holloway, Scatman Crothers, George Lindsay, Pat Buttram

Believe it or not, when I was a kid The AristoCats was my favorite movie of all time. No matter what videos were on the shelf, I'd always be drawn to picking this movie. I guess I'd put that down to the fact that I've grown up with cats all my life. Upon re-watching this movie, I can't help but wonder what I ever saw in it. I mean, it's alright, but nothing special in my eyes. By now you'll know that it doesn't matter how childish or musical a film is, I'll probably like it anyway. This movie just isn't really funny, isn't all that enchanting, and it's a little bit boring.

Toy Story (1995) - ★★★½

Director: John Lasseter
Writers: Huge collabaration, (but it includes Joel Cohen and Joss Whedon)!
Voices: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles, R. Lee Ermey, Wallace Shawn, Jim Varney, John Ratzenberger

When people talk of their favorite animated movies, odds are someone's going to say Toy Story. I completely understand why, the story is incredible! This was one of my favorite movies as a child. It made me laugh, it scared me, and most importantly, it amazed me! Today, I realized something quite sad... this movie isn't as relevant today as it was back in 1995. There are still many children out there with toy dolls, army men and what not, but let's face it, everything's becoming electronic now. So for me, the ending of this movie was quite bittersweet. One thing this movie did make me do was treat my toys with love and respect.

Beauty and the Beast (1991) - ★★★★★

Director: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise
Writers: (Huge collaberation)
Voice Actors: Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Richard White, Jerry Orbach, Angela Lansbury, David Ogden Stiers

Here it is! I'm gonna call it now! Beauty and the Beast is the greatest Disney movie ever made. I'm barely a quarter way through my Disney Blogathon, yet I can't see anything else beating this. There are a few contenders I suspect will challenge this film (The Lion King, Cinderella), but deep down I feel that Beauty and the Beast is even better than all others. The music is perfect, the animation is unmatched, the story is beautiful, the characters are hilarious! No matter what I say, I feel I can't do this movie justice. I'll just go right ahead and point out what makes this my pick for "Greatest Disney Movie Ever Made."

Peter Pan (1953) - ★★★★

Director: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Writers: J.M Barrie (Play), many other writers (adaptation)
Stars: Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, Hans Conreid, Bill Thompson

"It will live in your heart forever." I could not think of a better line to describe Peter Pan than this. When I was a little boy, I used to watch this movie at least once every couple of weeks. Alice in Wonderland may have the most imagination, but Peter Pan has more magic. This movie just gets me so excited! There was so much in this film that was funny and awe inspiring. It was also a little sad for me to watch, for I was around the same age as the young characters when I first saw this film... now that I'm 18, that means I'm a grown-up. There's something so beautiful about being a child forever... I guess this is a fantasy that adults can relate to as well.

Alice in Wonderland (1951) - ★★★★

Director: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Writers: Lewis Carroll (Story and Adaptation), plus a whole bunch of other writers. 
Voice Actors: Kathryn Beaumont, Verna Felton, Sterling Holloway, Ed Wynn, Jerry Colonna, Richard Haydn, J. Pat O'Malley

Woah-ho-ho! This is one of the craziest, creepiest, cutest, scariest and loveliest movies Disney ever made. Alice in Wonderland is the third movie on my Disney Blogathon list, and so far I've found that all of these movies are exceptional. I really enjoyed Alice, with its zany wit, it's awesome life lessons and of course, the incredible story. This movie has arguably the greatest cast of memorable characters in the history of animated movies. For that, I think it's a solid film that deserves accolades as one of Disney's finest.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) - ★★★★½

Director: David Hand
Writers: (Too many to list)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is the second film on my Disney Blogathon quest. It's undeniably beautiful, absolutely magical, and downright hilarious. Yes, the nostalgia of it all got to me... believe it or not, I shed a few tears at the end of the film. It's just one of those movies you come to truly appreciate upon multiple viewings. Not only did it set a benchmark for animated feature films, but it also stands as one of the best animated movies ever created.

Sleeping Beauty (1959) - ★★★★½

Director: Clyde Geronimi
Writers: Charles Perrault (Story), Erdman Penner (Adaptation)
Voices by: Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Mary Costa, Bill Shirley, Barbara Luddy, Barbara Jo Allen

Sleeping Beauty is the first film on my Movie Blogathon list. I didn't think it possible, but I liked this movie better than I did as a child. Mainly because of how kick-ass the villain Maleficent (Eleanor Audley) is. Even today that woman's voice gives me chills! Anyway... I really loved this movie. The songs, the animation, the story, the characters, everything gets to me. It stirs so many feelings, so many memories, I think nostalgia is one of the best things about this movie. Looking at this from an outsiders point of view, I'd still call it a near-perfect film. The animation may not live up to today's standards, but I still prefer it to most Disney movies post 1970.

Disney Movie Blogathon!

That's right guys! It's time for my first ever Movie Blogathon! I thought to myself, what haven't I seen in a while that would be awesome to watch non-stop for a few days? A few things came to mind: Horror, Quentin Tarantino, Akira Kurosawa, Film Noir, Spaceship Flicks... in the end, I chose one of my favorite movie companies: Disney! Hopefully you'll join me in watching these movies, I look forward to discussing them with you all.

It's a long list, but I have a feeling that the time will just fly by!

• Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (1937) | Watched on 22nd May, 2013 | ★★★★½
• Pinocchio (1940)
• Fantasia (1940)
• Dumbo (1941)
• Bambi (1942)
• Cinderella (1950)
• Alice in Wonderland (1951) | Watched on 23rd May, 2013 | ★★★★
• Peter Pan (1953) | Watched on 24th May, 2013 | ★★★★
• Lady and the Tramp (1955) | Watched on 8th June | ★★★½
• Sleeping Beauty (1959) | Watched on 21st May, 2013. | ★★★★½
• 101 Dalmations (1960)
• The Jungle Book (1967)
• The AristoCats (1970) | 26th May, 2013 | ★★½
• Robin Hood (1973)
• The Rescuers (1977)
• The Fox and The Hound (1981)
• The Black Cauldron (1985)
• Basil - The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
• Oliver and Company (1988)
• The Little Mermaid (1989)
• Beauty and the Beast (1991) | Watched on 24th May, 2013 | ★★★★★
• Aladdin (1992)
• The Lion King (1994) | Watched on 26th May, 2013 | ★★★★★
• Pocahontas (1995) | Watched on 5th June, 2013 | ★★★
• Toy Story (1995) | Watched on 24th May, 2013 | ★★★½
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
• Hercules (1997)
• Mulan (1998)
• A Bugs Life (1998)
• Tarzan (1999)
• Dinosaur (2000)
• The Emperor's New Groove (2000)
• Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
• Monster's Inc (2001)
• Lilo and Stitch (2002)
• Treasure Planet (2002)
• Brother Bear (2003)
• Finding Nemo (2003)
• The Incredibles (2004)
• Valiant (2005)
• Chicken Little (2005)
• Cars (2006)
• Ratatouille (2007) | Watched on 27th May, 2013 | ★★★★
• Meet the Robinsons (2007)
• WALL.E (2008) | Watched on 24th June, 2013 | ★★★★★
• Up (2009)
• Tangled (2010)
• Mars Needs Moms (2011)
• Frankenweenie (2012)
• Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
• Brave (2012)

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) - ★★★★★

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writers: Gary K. Wolf (Novel), Jeffrey Price (Screenplay)
Stars: Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Charles Fleischer, Joanna Cassidy

Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a funny, clever and nostalgic masterpiece. Fans of Disney and The Looney Tunes would no doubt get a kick out of seeing all of their favourite characters playing extras in this movie. It's a mixture of old Hollywood noir and modern comedy. As a child, this was my absolute favourite movie. As an adult, I can honestly say that this is one of the greatest movies of all time.

Wreck-It Ralph (2012) – ★★★★½

Director: Rich Moore
Writers: Rich Moore, Phil Johnston, Jim Reardon (Story), Phil Johnston, Jennifer Lee (Screenplay)
Stars: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jane Lynch, Jack McBrayer, Ed O’Neill, Alan Tudyk

Wreck-It Ralph is a hilarious comedy from Disney which is a childrens movie for grown-ups, and a grown-up movie for children. Anyone who is a fan of retro and modern gaming is bound to love the clever references to the genres, and of course the nostalgic characters that are brought back into the spotlight. It’s both bright and bubbly, with a hint of darkness looming around the corner. It’s a clever little story that peaks our imagination about arcade games the same way that Toy Story did with out stuffed animals and figurines. This is one of the best animated movies I’ve seen in years.