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Home » Disney movies

The 10 Best Disney Sidekicks

June 9, 2016 By Toby Isaacson Leave a Comment

It became an unwritten rule that every good hero needs a good sidekick. This is mostly a good thing, for audiences in particular, but it usually ends up backfiring in the case of the protagonist. Why would it backfire, you ask? In a lot of times, the sidekick is written as a comic relief as well.

In the good ole days, that’s all the purpose they served to the story, but the evolution of storytelling allowed for the creation of much more in-depth sidekicks. In other words, they often steal the hero’s thunder through their humor and nature that’s much closer to real human nature. Some of the best Disney sidekicks abide by these rules, as well. Who are they? Read ahead to find out.

#1 Timon & Pumbaa, “Lion King”

Best Disney Sidekicks

Image Courtesy of Disney

We’re right off the bat and there is already a little bit of cheating going on here. It’s impossible to separate Timon from Pumbaa and this is precisely why they’re totally worthy of topping this list. They had personality, they had humor, they contributed to Simba’s story, and they gave us a memorable song. Hakuna matata, everyone!

#2 Kronk, “The Emperor’s New Groove”

It’s clear by now that we’re going by the humor these Disney sidekicks bring to the table and Kronk might just be one of the funniest. He also manages to stand out through the fact that he is actually the sidekick of a villain instead.

#3 Linguini, “Ratatouille”

Best Disney Sidekicks

Image Courtesy of Disney

Linguini is a funny dude, yes, but the reason why he’s so high up on the list is because he’s the only sidekick here that’s actually a human – and a sidekick to a rat, nonetheless. This automatically gives him a certain level of depth that makes him three-dimensional and relatable.

#4 Tinkerbell, “Peter Pan”

We’d like to continue the “different” pattern and address the fact that Tinkerbell is truly a fantastic character. She doesn’t speak, she’s not that funny, but she breaks the stereotype by being humanly selfish, jealous, and bitter. There’s a lot of depth in that tiny body.

#5 Olaf, “Frozen”

Best Disney Sidekicks

Image Courtesy of Disney

Olaf is almost as marketed as Elsa and Ana and that says a lot. He didn’t necessarily have that much of an impact, but he was endearingly optimistic and his innocent aspiration to see what summer’s like made us all smile bitterly.

#6 Sebastian, “The Little Mermaid”

Traditionally, the sidekick is a little less bright and the hero. In turn, the hero is forced to clean up the messes caused by said sidekick. The roles are reversed when it comes to Ariel and Sebastian, who rather resembles a wise advisor trying to keep the red-haired mermaid out of trouble. Plus, Under the Sea makes the whole movie.

#7 Mushu, “Mulan”

Best Disney Sidekicks

Image Courtesy of Disney

A tiny dragon acting like a huge dragon with the voice of Edie Murphy? Sign us up! While Mulan’s personal journey was undeniably inspirational, it was Mushu who often kept us smiling through the various hardships that the warrior princess had to face. And if you think Mushu’s funny as it is, think about the fact that he was initially supposed to have two heads.

#8 Genie, “Aladdin”

The Genie is the definite trademark symbol of Aladdin and it’s understandably so. He’s hilarious, unique in design, and the fact that he’s voiced by the ever so talented legendary Robbie Williams is a fantastic bonus.

#9 Baloo, “The Jungle Book”

Best Disney Sidekicks

Image Courtesy of Disney

Baloo is, arguably, the best example of what we were talking about in the beginning – a sidekick much more popular than the story’s protagonist. Mowgli was an overall nice kid, but it was difficult to steal the spotlight from one of the best pun-based songs ever, Bare Necessities.

#10 Lumiere & Cogsworth, “Beauty and the Beast”

In perfect symmetry, we conclude this list with yet another inseparable duo. Perhaps these two work even better together, for the simple fact that their personalities are so different that they perfectly contrast each other. Who would’ve thought a talking candlestick and a clock would become so endearing?

Filed Under: movies Tagged With: disney, disney characters, Disney movies, disney sidekicks

Top 10 Disney Movie Villains Who Deserve Their Own Movie

May 17, 2016 By Anne Burwell Leave a Comment

They say that a story is often as good as its villain. We’re way past traditional storytelling that pits the obvious knighted good guys against Sauron-type antagonists who only wish to destroy the world as we know it. Well, unless you’re Disney, that is. It’s true, the bad guys are less flashy and obvious these days (remember how shocked we were all after Hans’ betrayal in Frozen), but you can pinpoint the antagonist from a crowd of thousands.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad thing, though. A villain can be wholly evil and nonredeemable. As long as we kind of get it and as long as they instill in our hearts the dread and intimidation they’re supposed to, they’re doing their job right. After the success of Maleficent, we can’t help but want to see more of Disney’s timeless villains be given more depth. These are the Top 10 Disney Movie Villains Who Deserve Their Own Movie.

#1 Scar, “Lion King”

Disney Movie Villains

Courtesy of Disney

Scar is arguably Disney’s greatest villain, if only for the fact that he was able to murder his own brother in cold blood via stampedes. We are given a detailed peek into his backstory through the book A Tale of Two Brothers, but it would all translate even better on the big screens. The vicious lion’s biggest flaw might just be his alleged one-dimensional personality, which would easily be countered through a movie that unfolds the growing hatred for Mufasa and his descent into darkness.

#2 Hades, “Hercules”

Face it, Hades was one of your favorite characters in Hercules. It’s difficult not to like him – he is a completely different, cranky, and comical version of the God of the Underworld and it all works surprisingly well. A backstory movie on Disney’s Hades would be like a full-length feature film with Loki. Would anyone have any complaints to that?

#3 Claude Frollo, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”

Disney Movie Villains

Courtesy of Disney

The dark undertones in this movie were mostly thanks to Claude Frollo, so make no mistake – a movie all about him probably wouldn’t be that much of a family-friendly production. This possibility opens the door to a movie that tackles down powerful and sensitive topics such as religion and corruption, a foundation for a heavily-themed and profound motion picture.

#4 The Queen of Hearts, “Alice in Wonderland”

Every single character from Wonderland deserves to have a spotlight shine on them, but it’s always interesting to see how the bad guys of the story came to be what they are today. How did the Queen of Hearts rise to power? Was it hereditary? Did she take it by force? Is her favorite way of execution, decapitation, just a fancy quirk or does it have roots in her childhood? There are so many aspects to explore that we get excited just thinking about it.

#5 Mother Gothel, “Tangled”

Disney Movie Villains

Courtesy of Disney

The wicked witch who keeps Rapunzel locked in a tower in order to benefit from the magical youth-inducing powers of her hair can be so much more than, well, a wicked witch. Mother Gothel confused us all with the contrast between her obvious evil vibes and the strange feeling that, deep down, she may have cared for Rapunzel even a little bit. Where her obsession with eternal youth comes from and how she really feels about Rapunzel would all make excellent topics for a film.

#6 Yzma, “The Emperor’s New Groove”

Some villains are menacing while some are… so much better than that. The Emperor’s New Groove was a radically different story from what we normally get from Disney and arguably the biggest stars of the movie were Yzma and her simple-minded sidekick, Kronk. Just the story of how Kronk came to be in Yzma’s service would be amazing, but it’s safe to say that a movie whose main focus is Yzma has the potential to be one of the most hilarious Disney products ever.

#7 Davy Jones, “Pirates of the Caribbean”

Disney Movie Villains

Courtesy of Disney

Yes, we all tend to forget this sometimes, but Pirates of the Caribbean is a Disney movie. Davy Jones was intimidating and ruthless, something that apparently was the result of his heart getting (literally) ripped away by the goddess Calypso whom he’d fallen in love with. From the love story to the typical pirate adventures, the descent into darkness, and how Davy Jones came to become the captain of the Flying Dutchman, this tale already sounds fascinating.

#8 Ursula, “The Little Mermaid”

When you think about it, was she really a villain? Sure, it was her magic that rid Ariel of her voice and threw in some complications in her quest for love, but if it weren’t for Ursula, none of it would have been possible to begin with. Ariel had to learn the harsh way that you can’t gain something without losing something else in return. But what we’d really love to see, aside from a movie set underwater full of mermaids and corals and colorful fish, is how Ursula came to earn her reputation in the kingdom underneath the waves.

#9 Gaston, “Beauty and the Beast”

Disney Movie Villains

Courtesy of Disney

In Beauty and the Beast, the biggest enemy was the Beast himself with his insecurities, monstrous appearance, and temper. Therefore, it’s clear that Gaston wasn’t created to be a full-fledged villain and, rather, a complication. He’s narcissistic, arrogant, all brawns and no brain, and he would make a fantastic protagonist in a movie that explains how he came to be what he is. Perhaps he was spoiled rotten – either way, whatever the reason, we would get a comical movie with a main character almost as vain and clueless as Kuzco from The Emperor’s New Groove.

#10 Lady Tremaine, “Cinderella”

The 2015 movie adaptation of the classic tale already took a different turn with the Evil Stepmother when it revealed that, in fact, she was envious of Cinderella’s kindness all along. Although there are no superpowers involved, Lady Tremaine’s backstory has the potential to be an emotional tale that can have her come out on top as the result of an unfortunate series of moments in her life. Maybe she was cursed with parents who treated her as horribly as she treated Cinderella. Whatever it was, it’s a chance to showcase a story of corruption that, ultimately, has no happy ending.

Filed Under: movies Tagged With: disney, Disney movies, disney villains

When Disney Goes Wrong: Films with Horrible Origins #1

May 31, 2014 By Fred Mitchell Leave a Comment

Disney has undoubtedly produced some of the most cherished and beautiful animations and movies of all time. Little do some people know that it has also produced its fair share of failed films. A few weeks ago we shared the Disney as you’ve Never Seen it Before article where we discussed about strange and controversial animations, but did you know that even the most popular ones (like Aladdin and Cinderella) have truly horrific stories behind their origins? As a matter of fact, the stories that children love so much all started from cannibalism, torture, and even rape. Many people think that Disney improved them to make them accessible and enjoyable to the general public, while other think that they did not do the stories justice. Here are three horrible origins stories for your most beloved Disney movies:

Dismemberment in Aladdin

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I don’t know what your favorite Disney movie was, but mine was Lion King, followed closely by Aladdin. Much was my surprise when I found out that the film involves dismemberment. It was originally called Cassim Gets Dismemberment. In case you didn’t know, Cassim is Aladdin’s father and the king of Thieves. In the original story, he gives up his gang of forty thieves to attend Aladdin’s and Jasmine’s wedding. Cassim is Ali Baba’s brother.

He finds out the secret password for entering the treasure trove, but in his excitement he forgets them on the way out of the cave. He is killed by the band of thieves, and his body is divided into many portions, outside the opening of the cave. The rest of the story is about how Ali Baba tries to sow his brother’s pieces to make it look like he died of natural causes, and how the members of the thieves’ gang get killed.

Pocahontas Raped and Killed

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Remember the exotic, beautiful and hot-blooded young woman who fell in love with the Smith? Apparently she was a lot younger than we thought. The entire story is nothing but a falsified account of the English history in the Virginia Colony. During that time, the so-called indigenous princess was only 10 years old. When Smith was captured by the tribe, he was treated kindly, and it was only 7 years later that he fabricated the story about him being rescued by Pocahontas.

When the princess turned 17 she was kidnapped, held as randsom, beaten and raped repeatedly and then sold off to an English tobacco farmer named John Rolfe. Obviously, she was also impregnated, converted to Christianity (and baptized Rebecca). She became the symbol of the tamed Virginia savage. Pocahontas died when she was only 22. Official sources say that the “cause of death was uncertain”, but in The True Story of Pocahontas, The Other Side of History, arguments of her murder are made.

The Little Mermaid Killed the Prince

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Here’s another twist to a story that so many children love. Hans Christian Andersen’s story is a little different from how Disney decided to present it. Apparently, the protagonist had her tongue cut out and was forced to live in horrific pain because her feet would bleed endlessly. Of course, the prince didn’t care much for that, so he soon married another woman. The little mermaid had a choice: to kill the prince and return to her former self, or throw herself into the ocean. In the end she commits suicide. But there is more to the story than what Hans Christian Andersen says.

According to a tale called Undine, by Friedrich de la Motte Fouque, a knight married a water spirit who received a human soul. Trouble is soon to follow, and the knight falls in love with Bertilda, Undine’s half-sister. To protect the two, Undine throws herself into a raging river. The trouble is that the knight marries Bertilda, which is a big no-no for water spirits. Undine is forced by her water spirit relative to take her nixie form and kill her ex-husband. After he is buried, she transforms into a tiny stream that circles his grave.

Filed Under: movies Tagged With: Disney movies, disney origins, fairytales gone wrong

Three Disney Fairytales with Horrific Origins #2

May 29, 2014 By Fred Mitchell Leave a Comment

We recently published an article about the Disney fairytales that enchanted your childhood and the true stories that lie behind them. As you’ve surely seen, the true fairytale that served as inspiration for each Disney movie was more realistic (to put it lightly) and presented the situation in a completely different manner than Walt Disney did. Happy endings as we have come to know them were virtually nonexistent in the stories of the Grimm brothers (think of the Little Match Girl). Instead of happily ever after’s, the authors decided to show the events as they would have logically happened. Here are three more stories with similar scary inspiration:

1.     Cinderella

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There are in fact several versions of Cinderella- the Grimm’s version, the Charles Perrault version and the Giambattista Basile version and in each of these versions events unfold differently. Disney decided to base their movie on the Perrault version (which coincidentally plays out almost the same). In the Grimm’s version, the prince covers the palace steps with tar in hope that his love does not flee but when he is left with just her shoe, he goes in search for her.

The two step-sisters of Cinderella, trying to win the prince over cut their toe and their heel so as to fit into the slipper (but the prince notices the blood thanks to Cinderella’s birds). Because of their deceit, the sisters get their eyes pecked out. In Giambattista Basile’s version, however, the story unravels completely different. Cinderella is convinced by her governess to murder her stepmother (by breaking her neck with a large wooden chest). The governess then marries Cinderella’s father and brings her seven daughters along- they all mistreat Cinderella and send her to the kitchen to work as a servant. From here on, the story ends as we all know it.

2.     Sleeping Beauty

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Disney’s 1959 rendition of sleeping beauty was based on the Grimm’s version (the princess pricked her finger and fell in a deep sleep for a hundred years, during which countless men met their slow deaths in the brambles of the briar hedge while trying to “gaze upon” the princess- it is only after the hundred years that the brambles, turning into flowers, allow the prince passage to his princess) but there is another Sleeping Beauty tale which is gruesome. Sun, Moon and Talia was Giambattista Basile’s version and here, the princess is raped during her sleep and gives birth to twins.

One of the babies removes the enchanted splinter that was keeping the princess bewitched and she awakens. Once the queen hears about this, she decides to burn Talia alive, kill the babies and feed them to their father- this does not come to pass thanks to the king saving the day, so the queen dies instead of Talia.

3.     Snow White

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The version we all know is based on the Grimm’s version (which is bloody in itself)- the hunter is ordered to bring the lungs and liver of Snow White but he brings those of a pig instead, and the Queen instantly devours them. She actually tries to kill Snow White three times: by pulling her corset so tight that she passes out, by brushing her hair with a poisoned comb and by poisoning the apple. For her cruelty, the Queen is put to in iron shoes and made to dance until she dies.

The original story however belongs yet again to Giambattista Basile and differs greatly. Snow White is cursed as a baby by a fairy to die before her seventh birthday- so as the girl turns seven, while her mother was combing her hair, it becomes lodged in the girl’s skull. Fearing she had killed her, the mother locks her in one of the caste chambers and gives the key to her brother telling him never to open the door.

His wife finds this key and stumbles across a young woman inside the glass coffin- believing her husband was keeping the girl locked there for sexual pleasures; she breaks the spell when she drags the girl out by the hair. She then cuts her hair, whips her, makes her a slave and beats her daily. As Snow White is sharpening the blade to kill herself, her uncle overhears her and after sending his wife away, he marries Snow off to a rich man.

Indeed, the stories were not so attractive to begin with- so much so that they wouldn’t have received such positive critique by the audience. But now you know how the original stories actually unfolded.

Filed Under: movies Tagged With: Disney fairy tales, disney movie origins, Disney movies

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