A TIMELESS ADVENTURE: CLASSIC AND CONTEMPORARY GEMS ON DISNEY+

The streaming anniversary of Disney+: A place where a migration of nostalgic favourites meets modern cinematic magic, where viewers do the watching and the experience feels boundless – and sky’s the limit. Disney+, June 2024.

RECENTLY ADDED CLASSICS AND MODERN MARVELS

From basic movie portraits that kick off with a hat tip to its newly minted jewels, Disney+ next welcomes in some participants in the full Walt Disney Company tradition – with films that bookend traditional fantasia and reality, beginning its newest additions with Fantastic Mr Fox (2009), which improves the Roald Dahl classic with a twist that’s welcome to the very young, and a poignant indulgence for the soon-to-be not (and, to be honest, for those not yet arrived). With the film’s stop-motion effort and core themes that hit home the complexities of society and the constant battle of identity, of who we are and who we aught to be, the movie is a closed circuit that vibrates and hums with an appeal that’s ageless.

Pulling the other way were the fans of music history, as evidenced by the restoration in 4K of Let It Be (1970), which first appeared on Disney+ in December. Here was great entertainment but also a voyage into the annals of music history: pristine, almost forensic, access to the Fab Four in a raw, unromanticised moment when one of the greatest bands of all time was also an arena of personal and artistic conflict. Here, from Paul McCartney and his surviving bandmates’ narration, were some final words about The Beatles: ‘This is the magic of music.’

Moreover, Jim Henson Idea Man (2024) recognises a man who revolutionised storytelling through puppetry and imagination, sharing beloved characters and stories that embody truth and kindness and continue to define childhoods.

EXCURSION INTO THE HEART OF POP CULTURE ICONS

The animated and the archival are joined in the nostalgic buffet by the nearly limitless repurposing of pop culture icons: X2 (2003), X-Men (2000), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003). Disney+ knows where to locate the bruised heart at the core of storytelling for all generations: the story of the hero, my hero.

Big (1988) – a dizzying comedy that plays on the dreamlike wish to ‘be big’ – features Tom Hanks in arguably one of his most enduring roles, capturing the need to grow and the unrecognised pleasure to be taken in childhood innocence.

MARVELING AT THE SUPERHERO RENAISSANCE

When the spotlight shines on the heroes in the Marvel universe, Disney+ has it covered, from Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021). From the self-interrogations of Thor to the agonising self-sacrifice of Black Widow, and the heartwarming cry of ‘we are Groot’, these superstar films tug at our emotions and demonstrate that good guys can be anything but.

EXPLORING UNCHARTED TERRITORIES WITH INDIANA JONES

Alongside Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023) and Timeless Heroes: Indiana Jones Harrison Ford (2023), Disney+ affords visitors opportunities to scale the cliffs and jungles and seek out the mysterious artefacts that Indy so enjoys finding. They also pay tribute to the legacy of one of cinema’s most enduring action adventurers. Heart-pounding action and archaeologically exploration is only a click away.

NAVIGATING A UNIVERSE OF ANIMATED AND ACTION-PACKED FANTASIES

Animation and high drama both have their place in the Disney canon, from Toy Story 2 (1999) to Logan (2017), and Disney+ offers space for these stories of friendship and heroism, against all odds.

DELVING INTO THE CLASSIC ESSENCE

Every movie on Disney+ is tied to a classic – a story, a character, a moment that defines the enduring essence of an experience, an emotion, and a generation. The classic is not just an old movie or a timeless tale – it’s the essence of our collective humanity, captured on celluloid. Good or bad, brave or cowardly, charming or cynical, the classic is the story of us. When we watch a classic, we help make it iconic. And when it’s iconic, it reminds us and teaches us who we are.

While the rest of the world seems to keep a foot in the past by constantly chasing the new, Disney+ stands ready to take us to new places in our memory and our minds by helping us to remember what was good, old, and true. Whether it’s June 2024 or much further on, we will have these old and new movies to look forward to watching.