9. Sleeping Beauty- 1959

Rating: 🏆 most excellent

All is well in the kingdom when the king and queen welcome their beautiful daughter Aurora to the world. She is presented before the royal court so that her fairy godmothers Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather can present her with a gift. Flora gives her beauty, Fauna gives her song, but before Merryweather is able to impart her gift, the evil Maleficent appears and places a curse upon the princess. To avoid the curse, the fairy godmothers take the princess away from the castle to raise her and keep her safe until her sixteenth birthday.

This is a most excellent Disney movie, and let me tell you why. The animation is stunning. From the beautiful forest backgrounds, to the brooding displays of the evil Maleficent, each frame of Sleeping Beauty is captivating. The music is fire. The most notable song is Once Upon a Dream, arguably one of Disney’s most memorable songs. But most importantly Sleeping Beauty gives us a formidable villain. Maleficent is scary, exciting, and a worthy adversary for the lovable fairy godmothers and beautiful princess. Maleficent is powerful, and she has the ability to turn into a dragon. Seriously, what more could you want from an evil fairy villain with fierce horns and the ability to teleport? I love Sleeping Beauty and I strongly recommend watching this classic, now streaming on Disney+.