A flawed but respectful goodbye to a character Disney is unlikely to recast. Skip the critics; if you love Raiders , you will enjoy this. 6. Haunted Mansion The Underrated Horror-Comedy Disney has been trying to capture the lightning of Pirates of the Caribbean for two decades. Haunted Mansion (2023) is their best attempt yet. Ignore the trailers—this film is genuinely scary for a PG-13 rating.
A beautiful, rainy afternoon watch for families tired of the Descendants franchise. 9. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania The Bottom of the Barrel We have to include it because it is technically a Disney movie, but Quantumania was the wake-up call Marvel needed. It signaled "superhero fatigue" had finally arrived. disney movies 2023 top
Which of these films did you watch? Did Elemental make you cry, or was Wish a waste of time? The debate is open. A flawed but respectful goodbye to a character
Unlike the CGI-heavy spectacles that dominated the year, this film had a heart made of starlight. The story focuses on Rocket Raccoon’s tortured origin. It features the best villain of the year in the High Evolutionary (a terrifying Chukwudi Iwuji) and concludes the arcs of Star-Lord, Drax, and Nebula with perfect grace. Haunted Mansion The Underrated Horror-Comedy Disney has been
This is not a film for children who want slapstick. It is a meditative, surreal journey through grief, legacy, and the creative process. The hand-drawn animation is breathtaking—specifically the sequences of the "Warawara" floating through the sky. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, beating out Disney’s own Wish .
It is the sleeper hit of the year on streaming. For fans of the ride, the Easter eggs (the Hatbox Ghost, the busts in the graveyard) are perfection. 7. Wish The 100th Anniversary Misfire How do you rank the movie meant to be the top Disney movie of 2023 —the one celebrating 100 years of Disney—when it lands at #7? Wish tried to blend classic 2D watercolor backgrounds with 3D characters. The result was gorgeous, but the story was paper-thin.
It crossed $569 million globally and proved that diverse casting is not a "liability" but a strength when the talent is undeniable. 4. Elemental (Pixar) The Comeback Kid When Elemental opened in June with a paltry $29 million, critics declared it Pixar’s first bomb. Then something magical happened: word of mouth. The film stayed in theaters for four months, slowly crawling to nearly $500 million worldwide.