Top 10 Most Romantic Disney Moments

This list is a combination of what I consider to be the most heartwarming, beautiful and romantic Disney moments ever. The list is made up of moments from both Disney classics and Disney Pixar features. Obviously, every fan will have their own personal favourites but I'll do my best to include ones that every fan will appreciate. So here are my most loved ones <3

10. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

The very final scene of Disney's original classic in which Snow White is awakened by true love's first kiss by her Prince. This is Disney's first ever full length animated feature and it contains all of the things we have come to expect and adore in Disney features, including romance.The sweet way in which the Prince places a kiss upon his true love and her reaction of pure happiness and delight to see him as she awakens is so charming to see. This, combined with her bitter sweet farewell to each of the dwarfs and the building reprise of the song "Someday My Prince Will Come" makes this an unforgettable moment in movie history

9. Tarzan (1999)

This movie is really underrated in my opinion. The opening scene in particular is so emotional and I think Phil Collins soundtrack is tremendously good. The part of this film, that is so romantic, is the scene in which Tarzan meets Jane. Of course, everybody will know the term "Me Tarzan, you Jane" and how they integrated this famous line into this lovely scene was terrific. The most touching bit for me as a viewer, was when Tarzan removes Jane's now ruined glove and holds his hand against hers, showcasing his unique way of introducing himself to her.

8. The Aristocats (1970)

This movie is one of the cutest movies ever made. Firstly, it's about a family of cats, so automatically, if you're an animal lover you'll adore it. I love the character of Thomas O'Malley in particular, he reminds me of a 17 year old cat that lives between my mother and aunt's houses called Sparky. Lets face it, with that swagger, charm and velvety voice, Duchess didn't have any chance to resist him. The scene that follows the infamous "Everybody Wants to be A Cat" sequence in which Thomas and Duchess discuss the possibility of him become part of her family and he offers himself up as Papa to her kittens is such a lovely moment. The cherry on top of this scene is when Thomas affectionately curls his tale around Duchess's tail and they place their heads side by side. What a suitably romantic moment for such a purrrrfect couple!

7. Wall-E (2008)

I saw this film with a friend and her little sister and her friend when I was 17 in the cinema. I'm not sure whether it was the sentimentality we had from being somewhat older or what but that movie really made my friend and I very emotional and teary eyed, and definitely didn't have the same effect on the younger girls. I guess, the subtly of this film and quietness of it is harder for pre teen girls to appreciate but I think it is really effective. The scene I consider to be so romantic is when Wall-E and Eve meet. I find this scene so wonderful because of how flipping adorable they are together. The fact that Wall-E has been alone for so long and all he wants is someone to spend time with just breaks my heart and the opening of this movie makes it one of the hardest for me to watch due to how emotional I get, but somehow when Wall-E meets his Eve for the first time, you get this feeling that you know everything is going to be okay and they are meant to be together. Plus his attempt to say "Eve" without the aaaaaa at the end, is so cute and funny, beautiful moment. 

6. Sleeping Beauty (1958)

Disney's 1958 "Damsel in Distress" classic is kind of controversial in how much it splits audiences opinions. I personally think it's really good, not brilliant like Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast, but still a solid and entertaining animated movie and a must see for all Disney lovers. The moment in particular that I found so lovely and romantic in this film was is the "Once Upon A Dream" where Aurora and Phillip first encounter each other. The elements of how infatuated they clearly are with each  other, the beautiful song and the sweetness of the animals dancing and messing around with Aurora before she meets Phillip are all wonderful and enjoyable to watch. As a side note, Prince Phillip was the first Disney character I had a crush on......Yes, I'm woman enough to admit it, this probably added to my liking this scene so much 

5. Tangled (2008)

Tangled is the kind of predecessor to Frozen as it has similar animation, and a similar style of story telling, I don't think it was as successful as Frozen, but it was still a really lovely movie. For me, one scene stands out in particular and that is the "I See the Light" scene where Rapunzel and Flynn are in the row boat watching the lanterns in the sky. That song is so magical and it really hits such a romantic note. I feel Mandy Moore's voice was the perfect choice for Rapunzel and it gave us a reminder of how she was one of the few late 90s teen queens who could actually sing. The phrase in the song that is particularly touching is "All at once everything is different, now that I'm with you" I mean, that is a perfect sentiment for a moment like that.

4. Beauty and the Beast (1991)

With all the hype over the new remake of Beauty and the Beast, I had to recently rewatch it and as per usual, I enjoyed every second of it. The remake will unfortunately never surpass the "Tale As Old As Time" scene, as it is truly tender and romantic and that isn't something that can be easily said in most films. My favourite part of this scene is when Belle gently rests her head on Beast's shoulder, his reaction is so cute and genuine. Angela Lansbury's rendition of the timeless song works so well when combined with the groundbreaking animation is so wonderful, you can see why this film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture and why it has some of movie history's most romantic on screen moments

3. Aladdin (1992)

The magic carpet ride scene in Aladdin works so well because of the chemistry between the two characters, how they were able to convey such amazing chemistry between two animated characters is outstanding. They genuinely come across like they are falling for one another and the setting of the two flying on the magic carpet through all of these exotic places as well as the classic song "A Whole New World" are all so beloved by all Disney fans. I would recommend anybody who hasn't seen it to watch the singing voices of Aladdin and Jasmine, Brad Kane and Lea Salonga perform the song over 20 years later on Good Morning America. They still sing it beautifully and it completely recreates the moment for all of the movie's fans.

2. Lady and the Tramp (1955)

This is officially one of the most adorable movies ever made. It is a love story of course between a Lady (a cocker spaniel dog who lives in a nice home with a well to do young couple) and a Tramp (a mixed breed street dog who gets his meals between different homes and restaurants around the neighbourhood). I personally love dogs and other animals so much, so a Disney movie about two dogs in love feels like it was tailor made for me and I'm sure many other's feel that way too! The infamous spaghetti and meatballs moment in the movie is probably on everyone's list of great romantic moments, it's so tender and affectionate. Lady and Tramp going for a meal at Tony's italian restaurant where they serve up their tasty grub to the dogs and they serenade them with the lovely "Bella Notte". It would make the perfect date for anybody and I'm sure many a couple has recreated that spaghetti string moment on a lovely bella notte together

1. The Little Mermaid (1989)

My all time ultimate favourite Disney romantic moment has got to be "Kiss The Girl" in The Little Mermaid. The song is one of the best Disney songs ever written from one of the greatest Disney scores ever composed. I love every song in The Little Mermaid and often walk around my apartment singing them for no particular reason. The setting of this whole scene, the back up singing of the other animals, Sebastian's voice encouraging the other animals and the audience to "Sing with me now" and the way the animators made the characters of Ariel and Eric look so infatuated with each other is so great to watch. 

Romero Britto Disney Figurines

Romero Britto is an artist born in Brazil. He is quite well known for his paintings and sculptures among the neo pop art community. Britto has done several designs for popular products for companies such as Audi, Evian, Coca Cole and of course Walt Disney! He began his relationship with Disney by doing some paintings of several Disney characters in a pop art style. I personally love pop art, it reminds me of old animators such as Chuck Jones and Mary Blair



I first came across Romero Britto's work when I purchased a gorgeous figurine of Snow White on the main street of my town where I bought my Jim Shore items. I had just finished my exams for Animal Science in college and decided to treat myself to the statue that I had been eyeing up in the window for a few weeks. There were three of the same type statues, which were of Cinderella, Belle, and Snow White. Although Snow White is a lovely character, she wouldn't be my favourite Disney princess, but her design was just so unique and pretty that she was the one I wanted the most. I love in particular the colours used for her, as the don't veer too far away from her original colours, but there is still something really one of a kind about this figurine. The detailing in Britto's work, such as the way the skirt of the princess looks like it has folded in and flared out just in the right areas for the way she is posed is very realistic and shows really wonderful attention to detail by the makers/designer.

These collectibles would make a really excellent addition to all Disney fan's collections, because, like the Jim Shore designs, they are classic Disney but with a twist and they're so beautiful to look at. The Snow White item I bought was €39.00 but obviously the prices will vary depending on what country and website you are purchasing from. I still think that's a really decent price for something so unique and interesting as this collectible. I want to add more to my Romero Britto collection eventually. I have my eye on a Lilo and Stitch mini figurine of his that I might purchase and talk about in the new year as a little treat to myself.

You can read about Romero Britto and his work/style here:

https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/brazil/articles/a-splash-of-colour-the-work-of-romero-britto/

Book Review: Fairest of All by Serena Valentino

Book Review: Fairest of All by Serena Valentino

Snow White is a story that everybody knows, even if you haven't seen the Disney version, you will mostly likely have read or seen one of the tellings of this tale at some point in your life. You may not however be as familiar with the Evil Queen's back story, and maybe that's not such a bad thing.

I bought this book in a local charity shop on my way one Friday evening to get a cocktail with my cousin. I spotted it on display in the window and the cover caught my attention, because at first glance I thought it was a picture of 50s pin up Jane Russell. Being a fan of old Hollywood stars also, I stopped and realized it was the Evil Queen, who I then realized looks quite a lot like a young Jane Russell! I went in and purchased the book for only €2.00 which was a proper bargain! Luckily, my cousin, who is also a big Snow White fan found another copy of the book to buy and we headed on our merry way. 

The story is all about the origin story of the Evil Queen and about why and how she came to be so diabolical in the first place. It begins with her as a young woman working with her mirror maker father, before she met the King and became Queen. The story then goes on to tell us of her marriage, her relationship with a very young Snow White and how it all went from so sweet to so sour. The book itself is a quick and easy read, including prologue and epilogue it only consists of 250 pages. I'm actually not sure how to explain what I feel about this book in any other way other than to just say "Meh". It was okay, the story itself could have been so much more imaginative and wicked. It feels like a good opportunity was missed here to be completely honest. The beginning few chapters and the ending are probably the worst. In the middle section, the Queen is starting to become unwound and we're seeing signs of, really who we're waiting for, which is the fantastically devilish and frightening character we had in the movie. However, those moments are too few and far between and not heightened enough to be truly entertaining. One of my major complaints about this book is regarding the supporting characters of the triplet female cousins that are used as a plot hole for everything the Queen does/has from the first film. I thought they were described as something from a Tim Burton film and I did not appreciate that for this story, they just did not fit. The final few chapters are nothing new and add nothing to the original story and I personally found them quite dull to read and left me feeling a little bit sleepy and a tiny bit grumpy. The one positive thing I could say, as mentioned previously, is that it is a quick and easy read and if you're a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs fan, it could be something to look into, if even to see what one person's theory is on why the Queen is just so gosh darn vain and so wonderfully Evil.

The Book is actually part of a series by the same author about origins of Disney Characters which also includes Beauty and the Beast's Beast and The Little Mermaid's Ursula (which I actually wouldn't mind checking out, to see if it is more entertaining than this book) You can check them out here

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Serena%20Valentino%22?Ntk=P_key_Contributor_List&Ntx=mode%20matchall

Back to my Childhood: Disney toys and Draughts

Yesterday, my Boyfriend and I went shopping in Gorey, a small town next to mine that has a tonne of small boutique style shops with unique bits and bobs, or thingamabobs. Although I did not get 20 thingamabobs, I did pick up a few presents for family and of course, some small Disney themed bits for myself.

The first Disney things I purchased were these two adorable little Disney figurines I found in a toy shop called Munchkins. The figures of produced by Bullyland, which I had never heard of. They are approximately I'd say 2 inches tall and made from PVC. I walked in the door of the shop and straight away I spotted a large glass display case full of these cute little characters from most of the Disney classics and even from modern movies like Moana and Rapunzel. The two I chose to buy were The Evil Queen from Snow White and her old Peddler (witch) woman disguise also. They cost €5.95 each which really isn't much at all. They are obviously not very rare and wouldn't be considered to be greatly detailed, despite what the many online descriptions of them say, but they are lovely little figurines for the price and I plan on collecting some bit by bit each time I go to Gorey.

The Other Disney item I got yesterday was in a book/toy store and it was a Disney Draughts Board Game. I spotted it while looking for one last small toy to pop in with my nephew's Christmas presents. It was among a bunch of for sale board games and books and was marked down from €9.99 to €6.99. I looked at my boyfriend (who is also a big board game fanatic) and said we had to get it for such a cheap price and to keep us entertained once in a while and of course because it was Disney. So, I purchased it along with my nephew's present. The game itself is literally just a game of draughts or checkers as some places call them. It has a cute little blue and navy board with a load of the characters surrounding it's boarder and 2 sets of pawns. We were far too tired from our retail therapy to play a game last night, but I'd imagine it's the exact same as any game of draughts only it has the Disney novelty which lets face it, makes everything better! The game was made by Trefl which I believe is a Polish company and I think it would make a great little present for anybody you know that loves Disney and Board games.

You can see the entire Disney Bullyland Figure Collection here

http://www.paragontoys.co.uk/disney-figures---by-bullyland-79-c.asp

You can also purchase the Disney Draughts set here

https://www.amazon.com/Linenideas-00634-Disney-Draughts/dp/B002Y739QE