Recent movies like Turning Red and Pixar's Lightyear, released in March and June of 2022, show that Disney animated features have come a long way since the days of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. That's not to say truly traditional Disney magic doesn't have its place, but the company has certainly branched beyond the storybook fairytales.

Disney is built on the backbone of fairytales, fiction, and fantasy, but that doesn't mean they haven't kept up with the times. Even Walt Disney himself experimented a time or two in his decorated career. Princesses and castles might sell movie and theme park tickets, but sometimes it's better to stray from the same-old-same-old.

Fantasia (1940)

Mickey Mouse as the Sorcerer's Apprentice in Fantasia

Although the company had its origins with films like Snow White and Pinocchio, Walt was always one for new innovations and experimentation in the animated medium. In the vast realms of Disney movies, there is perhaps no greater example of this statement than with the concert feature Fantasia.

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Collaborating with maestro Leopold Stokowski, Disney put his artists and animators to the test by creating this experimental art house film. Known for its "Sorcerer's Apprentice" segment, the movie not only showed what white animation could be capable of but also revitalized the career of Mickey Mouse in the process.

Dumbo (1941)

Dumbo is held by his mother in the beginning of the film.

Fantasia was an immense creative endeavor that change the way audiences have looked at animation, which can't be denied. However, it wasn't the financial success Walt expected it to be. So, Disney went back to the storybook narrative. However, Dumbo wasn't a fairytale in the traditional sense.

Considered one of Disney's greatest underdog stories, the tale of Dumbo the flying elephant is an adorable classic born out of creative necessity as it would be one of the last traditional films from the studio before WWII. Regardless, it resulted in the creation of one of the company's most adorable characters.

One Hundred And One Dalmatians (1961)

The dogs all watching TV in 101 Dalmatians

By modern standards, the original 101 Dalmatians is something of an animated classic. In 1961, however, this was a decidedly different avenue for Disney to take. An adaptation of Dodie Smith's novel, the film had the same Disney brand of fun with catchy tunes and talking animals, but the look, time period, and animation were all new.

Although Walt supposedly wasn't a fan of the designs, the sketchbook animation style paired with the jazz-inspired soundtrack made for a visually distinct and unique feature. Pair that with one of the first applications of xeroxed animation, and it stands out as an important piece of Disney history.

The Black Cauldron (1985)

The Horned King in The Black Cauldron lunges at the viewer.

When it comes to a different side of Disney, it doesn't get much further from the studio's core than The Black Cauldron. While it might be a fantasy film, it's about as far from the traditional Disney film as a movie can possibly get. The 80s were an age of D&D and dark fantasy with films like The Dark Crystal and Excalibur on the scene, and Disney was only trying to keep up with the times.

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That being said, this sharp turn into darker waters nearly killed Walt Disney Pictures' animation department due to its graphic content. As weird and out of Disney's comfort zone as it was, it was still a project that allowed the studio to experiment and try new things.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Jack Skellington holding a snowflake in The Nightmare Before Christmas

The Black Cauldron might have been a failed experiment, but this stop-motion masterpiece from Tim Burton and Henry Selick became one of the company's most popular cult films. Jack Skellington's twisted Christmas tale has become a yearly tradition for many fans, and it was certainly a different flavor from Disney in 1993.

While it might have been considered too dark for the Disney logo when it was first released, it became a fan favorite that soon dominated the fandom. From the animation style to the story and script by Tim Burton, it showed that Disney didn't mind taking a walk on the weird side.

Toy Story (1995)

Buzz and Woody fly in Toy Story

The marriage of Disney and Pixar was a match made in animation heaven, and the springboard for that partnership came in the form of Toy Story. Along with introducing a revolutionary new studio, the film changed the way viewers saw CGI and animation as a whole. Though the film's effects might be primitive by today's standards, it revolutionized the animated medium.

This project was a huge gamble on Disney's part. If it succeeded, it would be a game changer for the industry. If it flunked, it would just be known as "that CGI movie." Fortunately for Disney and Pixar, Buzz and Woody ended up becoming part of one of the company's most successful films.

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (1996)

Quasimodo frees his bird in The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Fantasia showed that Disney could be artistic, The Nightmare Before Christmas showed they could be dark, but The Hunchback of Notre Dame showed that they could use their marvelous animation to tell a mature story with an epic scale. Although it's a very loose adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel, it was a Disney movie ahead of its time.

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The movie dove into mature topics of religion, lust, social acceptance, and heartbreak in a way both kids and adults could comprehend. Far from the G-rated material audiences were perhaps used to seeing from the company, but easily one of their most cinematic contributions to date.

Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)

Milo leads the team to Atlantis in The Lost Empire

If Atlantis only had more marketing, it would have been the big animated smash of 2001. It had all the right ingredients for Disney's next immortal animated classic, yet it just couldn't find its audience until years later. Fortunately, its cult-film status has kept it out of the dregs of obscurity.

A steampunk adventure by way of Jules Verne and Indiana Jones with artwork by Hellboy's Mike Mignola, the movie should have been one of the best action films of the decade. No song and dance numbers, no talking animals, but with an epic sci-fi story worthy of a hard-hitting graphic novel, it was an underrated and underappreciated gem.

Lilo & Stitch (2002)

Lilo and Stitch relax in a big hammock

Lilo & Stitch is a movie that could be best described as "wonderfully weird." The idea of a destructive alien crashing on a tropical island paradise and becoming friends with a little girl is ridiculous on paper, but it became one of Disney's most popular fixtures, and Stitch saturates media and merchandise twenty years later.

Based on a concept by animator Chris Sanders, the film works best if audiences submit to the silliness and allow themselves to become swept up in the fun. Aliens running amok on the shores of Hawaii isn't exactly standard Disney fare, but it certainly made for one of their best.

Zootopia (2016)

Nick and Judy standing with the cast of Zootopia

While movies featuring talking animals are nothing new for Disney, one that uses them to illustrate social issues to provide a surprisingly adult commentary certainly is. The dazzling sights, sounds, and species of Zootopia aside, the film is arguably one of the most poignant and culturally significant to come from the house of mouse in recent years.

Nick and Judy might be the stars of the buddy-cop comedy, but they're also vehicles of an anti-prejudice message that's as important to younger viewers as it is to the adults in the audience as well. While it's not the first Disney film to tackle such subjects, it's one fo the most successful.

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