In my childhood, my parents constantly set me down in front of the VHS player, and watch movies. Memories of "The Little Mermaid" playing over and over and over is the main memory, but I vividly remember watching other movies too. Movies that caught my 5-year old attention, and had me captivated for hours on end. This is a list of movies that I watched in my childhood, that don't get enough recognition today.
"FernGully: The Last Rainforest"
Bats with mental instability, humans a with good taste in music, and even a spirit of destruction and pollution; what more could you want? The comical animated movie is based in a rainforest that is target to deforestation. Zak, Batty and Crysta work together to prevent the destruction of the FernGully, the fairies home. In between musical numbers consisting of "Toxic Love" and "If I'm Gonna Eat Somebody (It Might As Well Be You)", Crysta and Zak learn about each others difference in cultures, and become love interests. Full of bright colors and witty lines, this movie was definitely one of my non-Disney favorites as a child.
"Atlantis: The Lost Empire"
Set in 1914, Milo Thatch believes that Atlantis exists, even if others dismiss it as a myth. His wildest dreams come to fruition when a friend of his grandfather asks Milo to come on an expedition with a quirky crew, to find the lost city of Atlantis. While they are challenged by the Leviathan, actual Fire Flies, and angry natives, they succeed on finding Atlantis. Trouble spikes due to the greedy Commander, forcing the natives and the rest of the crew to pick a side. Milo and Kida must find a way to save Atlantis before the entire city, and culture, is destroyed.
"A Bug's Life"
Once a year, bully grasshoppers invade an anthill to eat what the ants have collected. A clumsy ant named Flik causes the currents year food supply for the grasshoppers to fall into the water, never to be seen again. When the grasshoppers arrive, they threaten the ants and give them a second chance at harvesting food. Flik is tired of the colony being bullied, so he searches for warrior bugs, to help them get rid of the grasshoppers for good. He finds a group of traveling circus bugs and mistakes them as warriors. Even with a phony group of warriors, the bugs all manage to stand up to the grasshoppers once and for all.
These movies are not only some of my favorites, but they are less mentioned too. The old style of animation is phenomenal, and gives the right dose of nostalgia when watching. While Disney is the reigning champion of kids animated movies, they still have hidden treasures that not many people know about.
