Cinderella (1997)

There are many Cinderella adaptations, but none have Brandy, Whitney Houston, and Bernadette Peters in the same movie, save the 1997 version featuring that exact cast. Cinderella, played by Brandy, toils under her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, until her fairy godmother, played by Whitney Houston, comes to the rescue. I’m sure you know the rest by now, but this is the definitive version of it… at least in my estimation!

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Ella Enchanted

Ella Enchanted holds up better than most movies we all loved as kids. It stars Anne Hathaway as Ella of Frell, a young girl cursed to do whatever it is people ask of her. Taken advantage of by people her whole life, Ella fights back against the curse bestowed on her at birth, and goes on a journey to find her freedom once and for all. As an added bonus, she’s accompanied by the dashing Prince Charmont, who soon finds he’s in for more than he bargained for.

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Encanto

Encanto was just about all anyone could talk about when it was released in 2021. The Madrigal family lives in the mountains of Colombia in a magical place called the Encanto, which bestows the various children of the Madrigal family with special gifts. Mirabel, however, is the odd duck out, until she’s called to save Encanto when danger threatens to ruin her family’s paradise.

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Enchanted

In the land of Andalasia, Giselle is a lovestruck woman set to wed her prince charming, Edward. On the day of their wedding, however, Prince Edward’s stepmother casts a curse on Giselle and banishes her to the real world, where there are “no happy ever afters.” Trapped in New York City, Giselle meets a grumpy divorce lawyer, and romantic shenanigans ensue.

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Ever After

Speaking of Cinderella adaptations, Ever After takes the classic formula and twists it, removing any fairytale elements and instead portraying it as a historical, Renaissance-era drama. Drew Barrymore plays Danielle de Barbarac, who lives in 16th century France and is worked to the bone by her evil stepsisters and stepmother after the death of her family. Despite the familiar elements, the real world setting makes for a fantastic feminist retelling of the tale.

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Holes

Stanley Yelnats is wrongly accused of a crime he didn’t commit, and sent to a punishing summer camp where he’s forced to dig holes in the desert alongside other kids. They suspect there’s something sinister at work in the camp, and through a series of flashbacks and discoveries, Stanley learns the true nature of the work they do, and the unlucky fate that seems destined to befall his family.

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Home

Did you know Rihanna made an animated kids movie, and it also stars Jennifer Lopez? In Home, an alien race called the Boov conquer Earth and abduct all humans they manage to find, save a singular girl. Tip, played by Rihanna, meets a rogue Boov who defies his people, and together they form an unlikely alliance as they set out to find Tip’s mother.

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Hook

Robin Williams gave the world so much, especially with Hook. In the clever twist on the classic Peter Pan story, the boy who never gets old is all grown up. When Captain Hook abducts his children to lure him back to Neverland, middle-aged Peter reunites with the Lost Boys and re-discovers his inner child (with a little help from his friends.)

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Lilo & Stitch

Lilo is a young girl who lives in Hawaii with her older sister. One day, their peaceful lives are interrupted by an alien that crash lands on Earth, who Lilo names Stitch. Despite their extraterrestrial differences, Lilo fights to save Stitch from the intergalactic forces that hunt them, and together they learn the true meaning of “ohana.”

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Luca

Luca is a touching tale of a sea monster with a human form, who bonds with the children of a seaside town on the Italian Riviera. They laugh, play, and explore without a worry in the world, until Luca’s identity threatens to overturn the carefree life he and his friends have built.

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Moana

Headstrong Moana is determined to save her people when she discovers she’s been chosen by the goddess Te Fiti to go on a magical quest to save the goddess’ heart. Along the way, she seeks the trailer demigod Maui, who stole the island's heart in the first place, and together they must conquer various challenges before an evil blight claims her homeland for good.

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Ponyo

Ponyo is another Hayao Miyazaki masterpiece about rising above our differences, and making friends in the unlikeliest places. Goldfish Princess Ponyo has been forbidden from seeing the surface world. Rebellious, she sneaks out and meets a new friend, the human child Sosuke. When her father hunts her down and brings her back, she defies him and in the process of escaping to the world above the ocean, unleashes a torrent of magic that threatens her new friend and his home.

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Shrek

Is there a movie more quotable than Shrek? If I were to guess, probably not. Based on a picture of the same name, it follows the titular Shrek, an ogre who’s evicted from his beloved swamp by a host of fairy tale creatures. When he learns that the evil Lord Farquaad is to blame, he cuts a deal with the menace to save his future bride from a dragon, in exchange for the swamp. However, will Shrek save the future queen from the dragon, or Farquaad himself?

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Space Jam

In this film definitely based on true events, Michael Jordan is recruited by the Looney Tunes to play a game of basketball against an evil alien theme park owner who they challenged to a match. Bonkers premise aside, the film is a classic for a reason, despite its somewhat questionable reboot in 2021.

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Spirited Away

Spirited Away is a classic coming of age tale by legendary director Hayao Miyazaki. 10-year-old Chihiro visits an abandoned amusement park with her parents, where they are taken from her as she’s whisked away to a world that’s both familiar and totally alien. Fiercely independent, Chihiro fights to free her family from the clutches of the with Yubaba, meeting various friends and spirits through her time on the other side.

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

The latest iteration of these beloved pizza-obsessed crime fighting turtles is perhaps​​ the best yet, specifically because so much of the dialogue was improvised and written by the kids playing the turtles. After years of hiding underground, the crime fighting Ninja Turtles surface in New York City, where they set out to be accepted by their peers while fighting a mysterious crime organization. Funny, funky, and unlike any other animated movie out there, Mutant Mayhem is a comedy masterpiece.

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The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid has never looked better than in the live-action remake of the classic animated story. Ariel, the youngest of King Triton’s mermaid daughters, longs to see the human world. When the undersea witch Ursula offers her a chance at life on land in exchange for her singing voice, she learns that sometimes a dream takes sacrifice, and wishes are not always so simple.

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The Parent Trap

Every millennial knows The Parent Trap by heart. Now, those same millennials are having kids, and it's high time to pass on the tradition of endless rewatches of the iconic Lindsay Lohan vehicle. Twins Annie and Hallie are long separated, until they are reunited by fate at summer camp, where they concoct an identity swap to meet the parent they never knew growing up, and maybe, reunite the family they never had.

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The Princess Bride

In the kingdom of Florin, Buttercup is smitten with the farmhand Westley, until he seemingly dies at sea when he goes off to seek fame and fortune. Years later, she’s wed to the crown prince, Humperdinck, only to be captured by bandits with their own motives in stealing away the future ruler of the kingdom. Pursued by a mysterious masked man and her betrothed, what will come of Buttercup indeed?

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The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Funny enough, The Super Mario Bros. Movie could be considered a remake of the original Super Mario Bros. movie, as brothers Mario and Luigi are plumbers in Brooklyn transported to a magical world of talking turtles, princesses, and anthropomorphic mushroom people. There, Mario is recruited by the fiery Princess Peach to defeat the evil Bowser and save his brother from the Koopa king’s clutches, with a little help from some allies they meet along the way.

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Annabel Iwegbue is an editorial assistant who covers entertainment, beauty, fashion & astrology. When she's not writing, she's either deep in her TikTok FYP or harassing people for their birth chart info. Follow Annabel on Instagram here where her account is mostly dedicated to posting Britney Spears songs on her story.

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