Efforts to remake beloved animated films into a new live-action experience have had mixed results in recent years as capturing the energy and characterization that makes those movies great isn’t always an easy task.
Luckily, there have been plenty of films that have managed it successfully. When you have great movies, some live-action remakes can become classics. In order to understand this better, here are the 5 BEST LIVE ACTION REMAKES OF ANIMATED FILMS.
- ALADDIN
Aladdin is a lovable street urchin who meets Princess Jasmine, the beautiful daughter of the sultan of Agrabah. While visiting her exotic palace, Aladdin stumbles upon a magic oil lamp that unleashes a powerful, wisecracking, larger-than-life genie.
As Aladdin and the genie start to become friends, they must soon embark on a dangerous mission to stop the evil sorcerer Jafar from overthrowing young Jasmine’s kingdom.
Did somebody find a lamp and wish for a live-action Aladdin? In October 2016, it emerged that a new take on the 1992 animated classic was in the works, with Guy Ritchie on board to direct.
The new film debuted in 2019 and starred Mena Massoud as Aladdin, Naomi Scott as Jasmine, and Will Smith as the Genie, filling the iconic shoes, although, does the Genie even wear shoes? of Robin Williams.
- CINDERELLA
In 2015, Disney remade its 1950 animated classic Cinderella. Like many of the remakes released both before and after, Cinderella starred an ensemble cast of high-profile actors including Lily James, Cate Blanchett, Richard Madden, Stellan Skarsgard and Helen Bonham Carter.
The Kenneth Branagh-directed film closely follows the original story. After her father unexpectedly dies, young Ella finds herself at the mercy of her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, who reduce her to a scullery maid. Despite her circumstances, she refuses to despair.
She attends a royal ball with the help of her fairy godmother and falls in love with Prince Charming much to the dismay of her evil stepmother. It even earned an Oscar nomination for costume design.
- BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
The tale as old as time got a new chapter in 2017. The 1991 classic is the first animated movie to ever get an Oscar nomination for Best Picture and it returned to theatres as a live-action musical starring Emma Watson as Belle and Dan Stevens as the Beast.
Beauty and the Beast’s cast also includes Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Ian McKellen, Ewan McGregor, Emma Thompson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Stanley Tucci, Kevin Kline, and Audra McDonald.
Belle, a bright, beautiful, and independent young woman is taken prisoner by a beast in its castle.
Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the beast’s hideous exterior, allowing her to recognize the kind heart and soul of the true prince that hides on the inside.
It went on to become the highest-grossing live-action musical film of all time.
- SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN
This isn’t your mama’s Snow White!!! In 1937, Disney released the very first full-length animated film, ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,’ which is loosely based on a Brother Grimm fairytale. In 2012, Universal took a stab at the same story with ‘Snow White and the Huntsman.
Kristen Stewart’s Snow White faces off against Charlize Theron’s evil Queen Ravenna with the help of Chris Hemsworth’s Huntsman. The film scored two Oscar nominations for costume design and visual effects and a 2016 sequel.
- MULAN
It could have told its classic 1998 story with greater depth, but the live-action Mulan is a visual marvel that serves as a stirring update to its animated predecessor.
To save her ailing father from serving in the Imperial Army, a fearless young woman disguises herself as a man to battle northern invaders in China.
Mulan got the live-action treatment in 2020, as the world premiere of the new Disney classic was held in March that year, but covid-19 pandemic delayed its theatrical release, so it was moved to Disney+ that September.
Yifei Liu took on the titular role in this action-packed and stunningly shot adaptation. She starred as the beloved warrior Hua Mulan, who disguises herself as a man and enlists in the Chinese Imperial Army to save her ailing father.
Niki Caro directed a cast that included Donnie Yen, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Jason Scott Lee, Yoson An, and Jet Li.
