3 Disney Movies That Were an Artistic Success but a Commercial Failure

We all know Disney, the biggest and most famous animation studio that has filled the childhood of millions of children with magic through its stories. At this point, it is almost impossible to have been born in the 21st century and not have seen Disney movies in childhood. The studio, its characters and films are already part of pop culture and the lives of millions.

Although many of his most famous films were created in the second half of the 20th century, even children born in the last decade enjoy films like Snow White. Today, many of his classics have adapted into non-animated films, both to revive these stories and present them in a new format, and to adapt them to modern concepts.

Due to technology, you can enjoy the series of titles that Disney has released over the years. Previously, to enjoy the movies, you depended on external agents such as the movie theatre, distribution permits, schedules, and other inconveniences related to logistics. However, now it is possible to enjoy streaming services online, and there are even add-ons and applications to be able to watch free without ads, for that, you can pick up the perfect ad blocker here. One of the most significant drawbacks when watching free movies is the ads that interrupt the content, but with the add-ons and apps to block ads, this problem is solved.

Even with Disney’s popularity and the increasing growth that has allowed it to expand and acquire other great franchises such as star wars and Marvel, it is very likely that there will be movies that you don’t even know about it. Excellent titles that for various reasons were not as successful as other films from the studio and have gradually forgotten. If you are a Disney fan, a movie buff or you are simply looking for something good to watch, it is essential to take a look at the films you have not seen from the most famous animation studio.

1. Fantasia (1940)

Source: bowers

The third film directed by Walt Disney, it is considered an animation classic. However, Fantasia was not as successful or popular as its predecessors or the successive deliveries. The problem has two sides that made its distribution difficult, the Second World War and the lack of theatres equipped to broadcast it. The audio of the film was recorded using multiple audio channels and required a particular system called Fanta sound to play it.

Fantasia is a film with great artistic content, to the point of being considered culturally and historically significant. The film is an anthology of small stories that reference episodes of classical literature directed by a central theme, music. It consists of eight pieces of classical music performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra and directed by Leopold Anthony Stokowski. Each short film has a high aesthetic value and symbolic content that relates it to the musical piece it represents.

You can also enjoy Fantasia 2000, a film made in commemoration of Fantasia’s 60th anniversary and is also considered a Disney classic. The format is the same and even has one of the clips of the original “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” which is also the most famous of the film, divided into eight fragments, each represented and accompanied by a classical piece, although it also includes contemporary music such as Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin.

2. Treasure Planet (2002)

Source: imdb

Unlike the previous ones, which were focused on a more adult audience, Treasure Planet records the usual children’s animated film format that the studio manages. Both at the animation and plot level, it is a film mainly for entertainment purposes. The film is an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel Treasure Island and directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, acclaimed directors who have worked on Disney hits such as Moana and The Little Mermaid.

Although Treasure Planet is considered a Disney classic and has an exciting cyberpunk history, it was a box-office flop that cost the studio millions of dollars because it failed to raise enough money to cover the costs of its production. The film uses a mix of traditional and 3D animation techniques, but even visual innovation was not enough to attract the audience.

The film has a somewhat more complex plot than the usual ones handled by the studio in most of its deliveries, focusing on Jim Hawkins, the main character, a rebellious teenager who is involved in a space trip towards the search of the planet of the treasure, which ends up unveiling more mysteries than any of the crew could have imagined. The relationship between John Silver, the ship’s cook, and Jim

The film is entertaining and has a large number of followers, even becoming a cult film that every Disney, cyberpunk and space pirate fan should see.

3. Atlantis, the Lost Empire (2001)

Source: imdb

From the beginning, Atlantis was a completely different bet to the previous works of Disney, with almost no musical elements and with a content that, although it is not for adults, could not be catalogued as completely childish either. Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, the film inspired by Jules Verne’s novels, especially Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. A language was created for the movie by linguist Marc Okrand, who has also worked on artificial languages for other big franchises such as Star Wars.

The film was not a resounding failure at the box office like Treasure Planet, with its large amount of CGI animation that was popular at the time, it was able to attract the attention of a larger number of viewers, but it was still not enough to be considered a success, leading to the cancellation of subsequent projects related to the film.

The plot revolves around Milo Thatch, a cartographer and linguist, who researches Atlantis and has an ancient manuscript with his address, which is ridiculed by the scientific community, frustrating their research. A millionaire who knows his intentions decides to finance his expedition and thus forms a team in search of the lost city.

Whether it is at the level of experimental and fine art, children’s animation, or cinematic innovation, the films mentioned above went down in history as classics and cult films despite the commercial failure of their productions. Since they are not mega-successful, they do not receive the attention that other studio titles that are also classics do, but these titles are among the best Disney has ever made, and given the possibility of watching them for free on the Internet, the opportunity cannot be wasted.