Stories you think would make good Disney Animated Features.

Must it be Disney? There are some other danged good animation houses out there. Disney's got a style and look that isn't for every story.

For Disney? I had to go with Midsummer.

I stage managed a campy '50s-inspired production of Midsummer several years back. Children's theatre. I'm still haunted by the glitter. But I did love the story.

I think whatever is next in the pipe for Disney, it's going to be vastly changed from its original form, like The Little Mermaid. Both stories had a mermaid child curious about humans who makes a deal with a witch for legs but loses her voice, and saves and falls in love with a prince who unwittingly spurns her... but in all other aspects they were totally different.

Oh, 'Romeo and Juliet'! Just to see how Disney manages to twist the story up so that neither Romeo and Juliet die, they get their happily-ever-after, and none of the sword-fights result in fatalities.

frimble3 said:

Oh, 'Romeo and Juliet'! Just to see how Disney manages to twist the story up so that neither Romeo and Juliet die, they get their happily-ever-after, and none of the sword-fights result in fatalities.

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They lampshade it, but Disney does kill characters in animation, even if they don't tend to show blood. Kocoum got shot in front of Pocahontas, the mother bear and Sitka died early in Brother Bear, and there was a death shown in shadow at the end of Tarzan... not to mention Mufasa (and Scar) in The Lion King. (And, of course, Bambi's mom...) The main characters are safe, but peripherals are fair game, especially if it goes to motivation.

As for a happy-ending Romeo, I didn't watch it, but I'm guessing that off-brand animated Gnomeo and Juliet from some years back didn't end with a murder-suicide. Or deaths in swordfights, come to think of it.

Not a fairy tale, but I could see Disney tackling Joan of Arc as a "lady warrior" kind of story, then doing a bit of hand-waving before the inferno. They're on a bit of a "strong female with no prince" kick at the moment, and Joan would qualify. She's the right age, too.

Not a problem for Disney. They've got a long history of artfully glossing over major character deaths. For Davy Crockett at the Alamo, they cut away to the Texas flag and the catchy theme song just as the entire Mexican army is about to overwhelm Fess Parker. They could easy do the same thing for Joan. Or a "Tale of Two Cities"-type ending, where she's led to the stake for the fadeout. I'm not sure how they could make a Disney Princess out of a Christian martyr, though.

'Disney Princess' is all about the look. If they don't show the martyrdom, no-one will be the wiser. Put Joan in a 'simple country-girl' dress, (with tights underneath for when she hops on her horse and rides), add a shiny cuirass on top, and there you go.
Less 'Joan as Christian Martyr', more 'Joan as Saviour of France'.

Okay, I just saw that there was an actual poll, and I voted for '12 Dancing Princesses'. Lots of princesses, which gives much room for antagonists and comic sidekicks, and if the 'real' world is done in 'standard' animation, and the underground land is done in that classic Disney 'painterly' look, would clearly define the two realms.

I voted for A Midsummer Night's Dream. I was thinking of this one versus Jorinda and Joringel and The Odyessy, because I remember watching and enjoying animated versions of all of these by non-Disney producers. But it's the first one that sparks my interest the most. But all three of these have great potential for animated feature films from Disney whether 2D or 3D animated for these days.

And just for the record, Disney actually did an animated short version of Noah's Ark in Walt's time that I watched on TV when I was much younger, and sort of touched on the subject matter of the plot of Romeo and Juliet in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, which is still a whole other story of course with a plot and ending like how others here have already mentioned of how Disney handles things.

SarahGallgher said:

And just for the record, Disney actually did an animated short version of Noah's Ark in Walt's time that I watched on TV when I was much younger, and sort of touched on the subject matter of the plot of Romeo and Juliet in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, which is still a whole other story of course with a plot and ending like how others here have already mentioned of how Disney handles things.

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Was that the version they included in Fantasia 2000, with Donald Duck as Noah?

And Lion King II was one of their best direct-to-video efforts that I saw; just a little tightening, and it would've been big screen material. (It's a shame they trashed the arc in the new "Lion Guard" movies, from what I hear...)

Brightdreamer said:

Was that the version they included in Fantasia 2000, with Donald Duck as Noah?

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I've found references to a version that was done as a Silly Symphony in 1933 and a stop-motion short they did with "found" objects in 1959.

BenPanced said:

I've found references to a version that was done as a Silly Symphony in 1933 and a stop-motion short they did with "found" objects in 1959.

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I've seen the stop-motion one, too, on one of those collection VHS tapes ages ago. For some reason, I didn't associate the stop-motion with Disney so much as George Pal or one of the others...

I think Disney should remake Wall Street as an animated film.

Okay, but then Gordon Gecko would be a real lizard. Then Geico would have to sue.

How about a Disney version of Cujo? It's got a lovable dog in it ...