I like ranking lists, I love the 2010's era of Disney warts and all, and you all seem to enjoy hearing my thoughts about a certain Disney film with a spunky full of personality princess with 70 ft of hair. So I'm going to give my take on the past 10 years of 10 disney animated films. To paraphrase Schaff, Disney was far more consistent in quality compared to Pixar. And after the shakey decade of the 2000's it finally seemed Disney has gotten on their footing overall in presenting hallmarks of animation despite the age of 2d animation finally going away. So let's dive in shall we?

10. The Lion King (2019)

Chances are you forgot this was an animated movie. After boasting about this being a live action, they realized their best bet at an Oscar was a painfully average sequel. And then switched the narrative to it being an animated film. And while yes the animation is realistic and impressive, it completely strips away all the charm and wonder the original had, with its emotional facial expressions carrying the scene without any words. I legit cannot tell when Simba is crying or pissed off. Like wtf were they thinking with this film. On one hand its just a boring stale movie, but comparing it to the original tour de force in animation absolutely destroys this film. The songs are hilariously awful (except for Spirit, I personally enjoyed it) There is no charm or wonder, if I had to sum it up. The songs lack any color. There is a lack of life. Be Prepared, by far my favorite song in the original, is butchered into the cringiest poetry slam I've ever seen. Hakuna Matata is fine....the new actors do try their best with this one so I will acknowledge that. There is no distinction or style to Beyonce's singing. It doesn't feel like Nala. I honestly can't say if Donald Glover is an improvement, they are honestly pretty much on the same level in acting. Overall its a painful reflection of a once grand and powerful medium of animation, that I have avoided ever since my original viewing up to this point on my rewatch.

9. Ralph Breaks The Internet (2018)

Ralph Breaks The Internet honestly might be the worst Disney sequel ever made. Mostly because they have only like 4 official canon ones. The comedy in this one almost never lands. The only source of positive comedy is Spamley who is just great. But apart from that, its just slap stick (idk how to say it) humor that doesn't land whatsoever. I like everything, everyone else likes the disney princesses are great and funny except for one tiny major issue which is more of a me thing. The one line with Rapunzel talking about being saved by a man. And before you cancel me, the line isn't the problem because its absolutely true. But its not true in terms of Rapunzel. The entire story pivots on the decision to leave with Eugene, if he didn't show up, she wouldn't have had the nerve to leave. Literally have any other princess say this, Snow White, Cinderella, FREAKING POCAHONTAS. But like I said its more of a me thing and I really don't hold it as a issue to the film. The manifestation of Vanellope and Ralph's conflict becoming the villain while it could've been handled better, is a really powerful message. But the whole splitting the characters is just irrational and completely out of character. The characters aren't really likeable and they completely side line all the good and fun characters. I'm sorry but why this out of all franchises, deserved a sequel? There was a lot of doubts when it came to doing a Tangled sequel and I'm ever so glad they did one. It honestly doesn't feel like they put much effort, the script feels like a first draft, if I'm being honest. And I'm so glad people really shied away from this and looked for more compelling works of art like Spider-Verse which earn their praise wholeheartedly.

8. Big Hero 6 (2014)

I'll admit, I really liked Big Hero 6 on my first viewing, but opinions change drastically over time, I used to not be a fan of Red By Taylor Swift, and now I easily see it as a masterpiece. With that said, I don't really get the hate for the film, OVERALL. The bad stuff in this film is really bad. The twist villain is honestly the worse in my personal opinion. The characters have no real hint of a personality. The humor sucks. But idk man there's just a lot of charm to it, most of it comes from Baymax. Who is one of the strongest supporting characters I've ever seen. His comedic timing is on point. And this film had one powerful opening. But after that, everything takes a complete nosedive. The action isn't as creative as I thought before. The climax is both dumb from a motivational and visual perspective. When it comes to stories like these, everything really stems down to how well your antagonist is, and when it is the most predictable shit ever, it crushes the entire experience. The most praised films of Marvel are the ones with truly exceptional villains, Winter soldier has Bucky, Infinity War has Thanos, and Guardians 2 has Ego. To paraphrase a schaff quote, Callahan is everything people hate Cassandra from say Cassandra is. I watch it as its a semi strong baby movie I can watch with some of my younger relatives who pee their pants anytime I try to watch Darth Maul from clone wars.

7. Frozen II (2019)

Honestly I hate this film the most. Because when I watched that teaser trailer for this film, I was screaming YES!!!. THIS IS WHAT FROZEN WAS MEANT TO BE. It seemed as if they were taking on a similar approach in Tangled The Series. But no, this is the most vague disney film by a landslide. I still have troubling grasping majority of the plot points. It feels like it reverses all the character roles in this film. Elsa is a far more interesting character. Ana still has her great personality but is shoved in the backseat for a majority of the plot. Kristoff is only on screen when he needs to be. Olaf is slightly worse. He has a lot of funny moments. One thing I will say that I did enjoy is that there isn't a villain or at the very least a twist villain. But there isn't any actual chemistry between these characters which is pretty jarring compared to how much there was in the previous film. I honestly laughed when Olaf got Thanos snapped, because what did you expect. No one believed he was gonna die, that is an actual gutsy decision that competent writers make which these clearly aren't. Soundtrack-wise, I still far prefer this one over the first film. There is a lot more fun overall to be had with this one. The entire story hinges on this mysterious voice, and they don't even answer the question really. I'm willing to give this movie slack after watching the documentary with its production phase. But the slack only goes so far. While I prefer this over Pocahontas and Princess & The Frog, it gives me by far the least enthusiasm to watch it again which is shocking for a film like this. It had all the elements to be a tour de force in the realm of animation, but it fumbled in the end.

6. Winnie The Pooh (2011)

If I had to really sum up this movie is that it is the perfect baby film. It was clearly designed for infants, but they didn't have to go this hard into making it. Keep in mind its still a baby film with not much emotional conflict or compelling themes. But it is such a magical experience. It has a simple plot and fun characters to enjoy. Tigger is amazing. Pooh is a great protagonist. I love the owl and his crazy theories. The jokes are honestly funny which is surprising for a film of this tone. The animation of this film is honestly amazing, it looks just like a story book. I love how they flow the plot through a book. It's really creative. I honestly don't have much else to say, it's an extremely solid film. That could've crashed and burn. I don't have much of an emotional connection to Winnie The Pooh compared to others so it's a really strong 6.5/10 as of now. In time I'm sure my opinion of it will only rise.

5. Frozen (2013)

To this day I'm honestly shocked Frozen was the biggest commercial success Disney has ever had. Now I'll be the first to say, Frozen is a strong 7/10 film. This film is absolutely carried by its trio of Ana, Kristoff and Olaf. They absolutely kill it as a compelling and comedic trio. The emotional moments of these films are extremely strong. However they are shoved within tonal killer moments which work independently but not with the overall tone of this film. Ana is easily in my top 3 favorite Disney female protagonists. Kristoff is such an interesting and unique male protagonist and his delivery and personality is great. I was expecting Olaf to be an illumination clone but I'm honestly shocked at how strong of a comedic relief he is. But yeah, the biggest issue is Elsa. Every choice and action she makes in this film is unjustifiable in a writing perspective. Hans is a terrible villain. While I sorta believe Frozen 2 needs a villain. This is a story that absolutely did not need one. The conflict between the sisters is more than enough to carry the story. The reprise of For The First Time In Forever is the best evidence possible. If anything have the Duke be a conflict within the story having the reconciliation between Ana and Elsa. Soundtrack wise, this is definitely the worst since Pocahontas. Let It Go, For The First Time In Forever, Love Is An Open Door, solid A-Tier Material. The rest can rot in hell as it is some of the biggest tonal killers known to man. I still enjoy this film quite a lot, but it is in no way a masterpiece or even great for that matter.

4. Zootopia (2016)

Zootopia is honestly a film that every time I watch it, it gets worse....slowly. First time it was a phenomenal 9/10 masterpiece. Then it eventually became a great wholesome 8/10 film. Now its just a really solid 7/10 which it probably will stay till the end of time. I like the integration of human to animal life. The protagonists are the some of the strongest in the Disney Pantheon. It has the best disney princess of Nick Wilde. I actually don't mind Bellwether as a twist villain, I think the mystery of who the mastermind is, is handled fairly well. Not phenomenal like The Incredibles or Monsters Inc but some solid stuff. The relationships with out characters are really strong. The whole prejudice theme is a bit of a mixed bag as it's just painfully average and it feels like they are choking it down my throat. And at others its more nuanced and more visually enticing far more effective than words could ever be. It's biggest issue personally is pacing and story structure. I think they should've followed a similar story structure to the Dragon episode of Rick and Morty, have the reveal of Bellwether as the villain in the second act, and have them go on the run and try to stop her in the third. But it's fine the way it is I guess. Unlike Ralph and Frozen this is a film begging for a franchise with how good the world building is and how strong the characters are. At leas this could've gotten a tv series like Big Hero 6 did. It's not as great as I thought it was, but it is a film I can watch again and again.

3. Wreck It Ralph

Talk about strong world building. I love all the rules the video game world has, with its characters and how they operate. Like the details of that bar, is really neat. Ralph is honestly a complex emotionally driven character which I didn't really come to expect. His conflict in this film might be the strongest character arc of any protagonist on this list. Vanellope is wasn't as annoying as I thought she was initially. She honestly reminds me of Quasimodo with her struggles. And the way these 2 characters act is so emotionally resonant. King Candy is a delightfully evil villain who has plenty of screen time to enact his stake in the plot. The climax is enticing as I didn't know what to expect which is shocking for a film like this. Unlike it's sequel, the choices characters make are believable and genuine give the character development they go through. It's biggest issue is the pacing as the middle chunk is a bit boring ngl. I thoroughly enjoy the 1st and 3rd act, but the 2nd is pretty skippable ngl. I couldn't believe my eyes when Ralph was about sacrifice himself. I was shocked I was moved by this wacky video game character. One of the most powerful moments in any Disney film renaissance included. This film feels like everything the 2000's era of Disney films wanted to be.

Oh this part of the list I was dreading, do I go with my absolute favorite or the objective best?

I love both of these films near equally.

2. Tangled (2010)

Tangled in a sense, this decade's Little Mermaid, it is what saved the studio after so many critical failures in both praise and box office. A strong contender for my all time favorite animated film, screw it all time favorite film regardless of animation. It has all the hallmarks of the Disney Renaissance. Strong characters, strong songs, a fun yet compelling story. Similar to schaff, my favorite works of art, are the ones that tell mature themes, yet have a fun aspect to them. This film accomplishes that to a T. After finishing the TV series, Rapunzel easily takes the cake for in my personal opinion the objective best Disney Princess. She has far more personality compared to others. Gothel isn't as menacing as Frollo or as funny as Hades but she's great in her own right. Flynn is third to the beast and Quasi in terms of male protagonists. But he has far more personality than your average male protagonist. Literally the visual storytelling amazing. How Gothel always goes for Rapunzel's hair when they hug. And Eugene brushes it aside in I see the light. It's one of my absolute favorite soundtracks, so many jams packed into this strong overall package. When Will My Life Begin is a great I want song. Mother Knows Best is the shit don't @ me. I've Got A Dream is actively hilarious. An unadmired trait this film has its score carrying the scenes with no dialogue similar to HTTYD. The most obvious being the dance scene in Corona which is simple yet so magical and rich. Then we have I see the light, one of the greatest scenes in all of Disney. I remember watching this in theaters. At that point my 7 year old self was into the MCU, shitting his pants at two face and the joker in Dark Knight. I was the dullest kid imaginable only looking for action adventures and I hated that I had to go watch Tangled, and while I was enjoying the film overall up to this point, I see the light was the beginning of absolute adoration for disney and musicals in general. The vocals so powerful. The visuals: spectacular. And one thing I've never hear anyone talk about. Is how each song keeps building to this moment, where she finally achieves her dream. And when we reach this emotional climax, it is breathtaking, spine chilling. The greatest theme without a doubt in 2010 films. And that emotional climax in the tower is so powerful. Where she finds a new dream, the way they build up that simple line is enough to bring me to tears. It is a film I can watch endlessly. It is on par with the greatest of the disney renaissance, and in my opinion why the #1 film on this list is #1 at all.

1. Moana (2016)

Moana arguably the only disney musical that is truly about the journey, rather than the destination. Tangled is the opposite, it has a build to it's destination but it's not as compelling as I'd like it to be. Here Moana's journey across the sea is easily the best part, and it's climax is just as strong. We don't have to worry about a massive cast like Big Hero 6. It doesn't have a true villain or at least a twist villain like a lot of the modern Disney output. The biggest thing people complains about is how the ocean could easily save the day. But I've always liked to think if it did that, no one would even know, and her people would not want to be voyagers again. The animation is absolutely stunning, best of any film and that's saying something as a fair amount of films have come after it as advancements in animation are getting better and better. Maui is an a-hole who is complex and flawed and his progression throughout the story is great. The comedy is just great, all memes aside its a phenomenal blend of laugh out loud and stript back. And while personally there aren't any scenes as powerful as the one in Tangled, this film has so many emotional moments that aren't far behind in terms of sheer emotion that it doesn't even matter. Then we have the segment of Tamatoa. This is what I'm talking about in masking dark themes in hysterical humor. Tamatoa is absolutely hilarious, I'm shocked not many see that. He is so meta, the way he breaks the fourth wall is so absurd, it's reminiscent of the humor in The Emperor's New Groove. The climax while not as strong as the one in Wreck It Ralph, has its own emotional moment with Moana walking slowly towards Te Ka, gives chills and I'm honestly holding back a tear or 2. Moana was a true return to form not really in terms of musicals, as I still enjoy Frozen but animation in general, a majority of the animated films outside of Disney films were either mediocre or decent. At least Tangled it came out between Toy Story 3, Shrek Forever After, Megamind and HTTYD. There was little to be found in terms of quality during the period of 2014-2015. Animation embraced the illumination style with putting minimal effort in their films with poop jokes littered throughout it. Moana was a breath of fresh air and a sigh of relief proving that animation hadn't totally gone to shit, and I had a reason to be invested in these films. I love Tangled and I will much rather watch it than Moana, but I had to give the number one spot to the film that in my personal opinion saved animation itself.