Disney Remakes

[Gail Allen]

In recent years there's been a lot of remakes in general, but it's struck me in particular how Disney is remaking a lot of its animated movies into live action movies and I've even watched some of them; Beauty and the Beast springs to mind as the most memorable one.

Most recently Mulan has been released as a live action movie and it's made me wonder; what do you guys think about these? Do you like them, do you dislike them? Do you think they bring something new to the movies - and do you think they should or do you think it's best if they stay entirely faithful to the original movie?
And what do you think it does? What's the reason for this? I'd be curious to hear both from people who saw the animated movies when they were young, and those who see the live action movies first or at least don't have the nostalgia of the old animated movies. I wonder if that might make a difference in how they are viewed.
I'm also curious about which Disney movies you'd most like to see remade - or least like to see remade - and do you know if it is already in the works or not?

(Remember to use the spoiler tags if you post about newer movies such as the live action version of Mulan)

[Arianna Stonewater]

While i appreciate the "updating" of these remakes with the modern references, i do think that they should pause on remaking the good classics and take a stab at remaking the not-so-great movies, or perhaps turning some of the okayish movies, like the Artemis Fowl movie, into the tv shows they deserve rather than the shoddy movie we got.

That being said, I do like the live-action movies that are not necessarily remakes, but rather the movie from another point of view, like the Maleficent movies! A group called "Starkid Productions" made a staged musical version of Aladdin from Jafar's point of view that painted him as a royal vizier trying to do what's best for Agrabah who keeps getting passed over by the dumb sultan, and there is a song where several other villains talk about how they too were misunderstood (except for Cruella. No excuses for wanting a coat made out of puppies!!)

[Prof. Sindor Aloyarc]

A friend of mine once wrote to me about the character/background story of Cruella. Now you mention her, I remember thinking some of his tidbits, reflections and ideas would make a really interesting movie! Would definitely be into some adaptations based around different characters, be they the Princes or the Villains, etc. Or simply a different take, like versions where Belle is the more internally “Beast”-like of the two.

I’ve enjoyed the novelty of the recent remakes yet have been mostly underwhelmed by them (some much more than others, with Beauty & The Beast being one of my favorites thus far of the bunch) beyond the stunning brilliance of how aesthetically pleasing they have truly. That being said, of all of them I’m the most interested in Mulan at this point, and would be curious about a Hercules movie, but again maybe from another characters perspective.

[Septima Lestrange]

I think they can be really hit or miss. To be honest I really quite liked the Beauty and the Beast remake, I know it’s gotten mixed reviews but I thought it was beautiful! There are some others that come to mind that I found less favorable. I like the facelift of the classics but frankly I just want to see them focus on putting out more new original ideas over revamping old ones. Or if they ARE going to keep doing remakes I would love to see some of the more underrated films like Atlantis, Treasure Planet, and the Blck Cauldron get remakes

[Zee Chibuike]

The new Mulan remake was amazing!!!! And it taught me that seriously, film critics and rotten tomatoes aren't to be trusted. They said it wasn't nice but it got me all teary-eyed dude, and the ship, and the everything- it was so gooooooood

Haven't watched many others, honestly, but Ive liked all the ones I've watched XD

[Prof. Maxim Trevelyan]

Depends on the remake, really. I dislike the ones where they just retell the story but in a non-animated way, like Mulan, Aladdin, Dumbo or Beauty and the Beast. I think those movies then lose the charm that comes with animation, not to mention they leave out a lot of things that made me love the movies in the first place.

However, I just adore the remakes where they retell the story in a new way, from another point of view. Movies like Maleficent and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. The only exception here is The Jungle Book, where I disliked the original animated movie, but loved the remake.

As for the future, I am cautiously optimistic and looking forward to The Little Mermaid, Cruella, Hunchback, Snow White and Hercules. For curiosity's sake if nothing else.

[Prof. Rorey Padfoot]

I am really excited to see the new Cruella movie. The preview looks amazing. I was pleasantly surprised with how Aladdin came out, because I was really worried I wouldn't like Will Smith as the genie.

[Iverian Gnash]

Most of the Disney remakes I've really enjoyed because it adds a more realistic touch to them because of being live-action. I've enjoyed seeing the new spins on classics that Disney has been able to provide and there's nothing better than having an excuse to watch both Beauty and the Beasts at once in the name of 'comparing'. Disney does seem that they are doing this, however, because they're running out of ideas for movies in general, so they've decided to just remake a lot of movies instead of thinking up a new story idea. I would prefer new movies coming out with the amount of time and effort they've put into these remakes.

[Prof. Will Lestrange]

Normally I think the original is better than the remake (at least when I know of both). I remember a few years back when the Lion King was remade into a 'live action' version (but with the live animals still given the voices of human actors, of course). I never got around to watching that live action version, but from what I've seen about it: reviews and trailers, for example, I get the feeling I didn't miss out on much! The original was a classic, and the remake pushed my suspension of belief a bit: if I'm hearing a cartoon lion sing, that's part of the cartoon universe - but if I hear a 'real' lion sing like a human? That's a bridge too far for me!

[Emily Spencer]

The original was a classic, and the remake pushed my suspension of belief a bit: if I'm hearing a cartoon lion sing, that's part of the cartoon universe - but if I hear a 'real' lion sing like a human? That's a bridge too far for me!

I have to go with Will on this one. Singing 'real' lions are just a tad too far of a stretch for me.

[Prof. Alexander Brighton]

I did like the original version of the lion king, but I have to say, I also saw the new version and I thought it was pretty good. Before it came out, I read that it was going to be a real life version and I wondered how they were going to do that with real lions. So I thought it was a bit misleading because it wasn't really a real life version. It was computer animation, but it did have a real feel to it. That's what I liked about it. The computer animation was so good that the animals looked pretty much real. I thought it was awesome.

[Prof. Scarlet Leslie-Lewis]

Other than Beauty and the Beast, my favorite Disney classic, I've found that I tend to appreciate the remakes more upon subsequent viewings. Obviously, it is difficult not to compare to the original animated version the first time I watch a live action remake. However, by the second or third watch, I finally manage to catch all of Timon and Pumbaa's silly interjections and actually listen to Jasmine's new solo song. Although I missed Mushu in the live action Mulan, I did like the addition of the shapeshifting witch.