Disney is on a years-long mission to remake all of its classic animated movies in live action. So far, Lilo & Stitch, Aladdin, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and others have received this treatment, and the studio is not slowing down. One problem with these remakes is that few of them are even necessary. The original, animated versions of Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, for example, are classics, and we wouldn’t change anything about them. A remake could almost certainly only be worse.
Videos by ComicBook.com
If Disney insists on this plan, we have a few ideas for other, more deserving projects that would actually benefit from a do-over. These movies aren’t necessarily bad, but they could use an update in one way or another.
3) The Black Cauldron
This 1985 film based on the Welsh history-inspired Chronicles of Prydain was the most expensive animated film ever made upon its release, and it vastly underperformed at the U.S. box office. Its release was so poorly received that it almost killed Disney’s animation studio completely.
But it’s not that bad. We think modern kids would fall in love with the plucky and able Princess Eilonwy, and the skeletal Horned King is one of Disney’s scariest villains. The Black Cauldron even contains an adorable little pig friend, and the pig friend can see the future. What’s not to like?
A remake would give Disney an opportunity to tighten up the story, sell a lot of pig toys, and make a version of the Horned King that is even more terrifying than the original (or less, if they don’t want to traumatize another generation of children).
2) Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet was reviewed well, but it wasn’t a box-office success. We still think a remake could work because the basic idea – sci-fi Treasure Island, where John Silver is a dangerous cyborg – is good. And the decades of progress in special effects since its original release in 2002 mean that its already lovely universe would look even better.
Despite its impressive science-fiction setting, we think Treasure Planet would still benefit from an update. The mix of hand-drawn animation and CGI was still a little jarring in 2002, and a modern version could be more seamless. We’re also pretty sure the internet would go bonkers over a live-action Captain Amelia.
1) Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons is only Disney’s second fully computer-animated film (after Chicken Little), and it looks it. The human characters have plain, textureless skin, the environments look like screensavers, and everything just seems very plain.
The story is good, though. It has time travel, solid gags, and even a T-rex with subtitled dialogue. It would mainly benefit from a visual upgrade to bring its look up to date with modern standards. Even live-action characters against CGI backgrounds, like a reverse Dinosaur, would look great and introduce the story to a new batch of viewers who wouldn’t wonder why all the people look like they’re made of erasers.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image via THQ Nordic -
image courtesy of 20th Century Studios -
Image courtesy of 2th Century Studios
