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In typical Disney form, the upcoming
Oscars signal another potential award winning season as their film
"Up" is nominated for Best Picture and best animated Feature, while
"The Princess and the Frog" is up for Best Animated Feature as well.
In spite of the obvious monopoly Disney holds on the Oscars, they're
knack for creating rousing heroes and heroines is legendary and
their variety of characters are diverse and plentiful. So in honor
of their potential Oscar victory, we picked our favorite Disney
heroes.
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Aladdin
As seen in: "Aladdin"
Played by: Scott Weinger
True
Aladdin became a basic anglicized entity in a movie that
basically influenced a mid-Eastern character base, but
Aladdin is still one of the most valiant heroes in the
Disney gamut mainly because he started out as a hero way
before he actually took the throne in the climax of the
movie. Though he is a thief that is glorified by the
Disney film, he is really just a poor boy who stands up
to the authorities because he's just hungry and thanks
to his genie he gains a purpose and must stand up to
Jafar in his attempts to rule the land. Aladdin is a
great young hero of the Disney library. The future
sequels and television series depict Aladdin as someone
who could not be anything else but a hero, a young man
who was somewhat destined to reign over his land
alongside princess Jasmine and he's given a rich history
and mythos thanks to Disney.
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Boo/Mary
As seen in: "Monsters, Inc."
Played by: Mary Gibbs
Boo
is probably the most underrated heroine of the
Disney universe mainly because she doesn't do much
that would inspire many to think of her as a hero.
She's only a toddler, doesn't talk very much, and
basically just falls in to the situation in the film
by complete accident. But while the film doesn't
totally stress the fact that she's the heroine,
she's the most important aspect of "Monsters, Inc."
because she can always sense when something is up.
She is always able to sense the chameleon Randall
before anyone else does, she always manages to stay
out of harm's way in spite of getting in to close
calls, and she is the key to the major discovery
that a child's laughter is much more valuable than a
child's scream. This is something she seems to pick
up on before Sulley or Mike actually do. Not to
mention she inspires her two cohorts to be better
individuals because they gain a sense of purpose
when she enters their lives. Particularly Sulley who
is more of a subservient worker who finds that he's
actually more important to the cause than he lets
on. Boo is absolutely adorable in the film and she
represents the childhood innocence and bravery lost
on many of the characters in the story. Not to
mention she also inspires the musical Mike
eventually writes in the climax. You have to love
this character.
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Dashiell
'Dash' Parr
As seen in: "The Incredibles"
Played by: Spencer Fox
It's tough to pick
which hero in "The Incredibles" is my favorite.
There's Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, Violet, and
Frozone, but in the end the childlike enthusiasm
and utter excitement that comes with great power
makes Dash tower above the rest. The rest of the
Parr family are all either struggling with or
coping with their abilities. Violet is not sure
how to deal with hers, Elastigirl basically
ignores her own powers, and Mr. Incredible is
stifled but Dash knows well how to increase and
decrease the enormity of his speed and once he's
unleashed in the jungles of Syndrome's world he
really comes to life and displays some amazing
heroism in the face of deadly henchman. One of
the best scenes in the entire film is when Dash
runs through the jungle and realizes he can run
on water thanks to his immense speed. The
realization and laugh that follows perfectly
captures what a child's reactions would be in
the face of amazing abilities. Dash is the most
consistently entertaining character in the film
and probably the most interesting hero of the
bunch because he anxious to get in to battle and
fight evil and he's almost never afraid to
defend his family even when facing bigger more
skilled soldiers sent by Syndrome. After
witnessing so many heroes in Marvel and DC
basically want to shun their own powers in
exchange for a normal life, Dash is someone who
accepts his gifts and has a darn good time using
them.
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Simba
As seen in: "The Lion King"
Played by: Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew
Broderick
Kimba--er--I
mean Simba is one of the most
interesting characters of the Disney
universe mainly because he is given the task
of taking over his kingdom but as a youth
just doesn't want to accept that fact. He
just wants to have fun and live his life,
but destiny comes knocking down his door
when his father's death is blamed on him by
the evil Scar. It's by the care of Timone
and Pumba that he's able to re-assess his
priorities and eventually meet up with his
old friend Nala who forces him to own up to
his responsibilities and take back the
kingdom stolen from him by his uncle who has
managed to tarnish the legacy laid down by
his father Mufasa. Once he decides it's time
to get serious, it's when he manages to
really display some heroism and takes back
his land once and for all from the clutches
of the hyenas. Simba is one of the more
complex heroes in animation because in spite
of feeling personally responsible for
killing his dad, he still has a destiny to
fulfill and he does so in spades reducing
his uncle to a grisly death in the climax of
the movie. It's a shame he was tarnished in
the sequels.
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Sulley
As seen in: "Monsters, inc."
Played by: John Goodman
Sulley is
the most humble of the heroes in the
Disney/Pixar titles mainly because he
just falls in to becoming a hero. And
when you take a step back you begin to
realize that most of his hero duties
involve protecting Boo. He doesn't have
to care for her, he doesn't have to take
her under his wing. He could have
followed Mike's orders and just fed her
to the monsters, but instead he somehow
risks getting infected by her (as the
myths claim in the Monster world) and
just takes care of her and protects her
from Randall when he concocts the evil
plan to kidnap the world's children and
suck their screams out of them. Sulley
is one great character because his
paternal instincts become more important
than breaking the scream record
guaranteed to win him accolades and
praise from his co-workers. And in some
interesting way he also manages to
convince anti-human monsters like Mike
and his girlfriend Celia to also take
part in the plot to get Boo home and
keep her from becoming a victim of the
ailing monster city anxious to find a
new power source once it becomes
apparent that screams are no longer
working to fuel their world. Thanks to
Goodman's performance, Sulley comes off
as very lovable in spite of his size and
strength and he's definitely one of the
most underrated heroes of the Disney
world.
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Wall-E
As seen in: "Wall-E"
Played by: Ben Burtt
As many
of the Disney heroes, Wall-E is a
hero who doesn't even know that he's
destined for big things. He's been
programmed basically to clean Earth.
Everyday he stacks garbage upon
garbage in a world that's been
deserted and he doesn't even realize
that he has the power to stop and
that all of his efforts are
basically pointless. But when EVE
lands on Earth to search for some
sign of actual life, Wall-E finds
himself head over heels in love. And
in an attempt to win over her heart,
he stumbles in to a massive
conspiracy where the once sentient
government of Earth are really just
indoctrinating the remaining
denizens of Earth who have now
become obese mindless drones. Unlike
any normal human he manages to
experience more in his life than any
of them do, and by discovering a
small plant he becomes the foe of
many robotic drones who are
programmed to keep the charade up
that the planet is hopeless. Thanks
to him and his girlfriend Eve,
humanity is able to thrive again and
find new life in the soil. It's
really a feat from a robot who is
basically a defunct model. |
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