There is so much stuff on Disney+ that, admittedly, it can get a little overwhelming.
Between new episodes of TV shows, new movies dropping exclusively on the platform, and the odd bits being sucked in from other parts of the company (like a whole host of outstanding National Geographic documentary content), Disney+ can easily overpower. But fear not – we are here to recommend some of the best, most underrated gems on the platform. From overlooked animated classics to live-action triumphs, here are some Disney treasures for you and your family to enjoy for the first time or all over again.
Below we round up 9 underrated movies to stream on Disney Plus right now.
“Flight of the Navigator” (1986)
In the wake of “E.T.” every studio wanted their own otherworldly coming-of-age story. “Flight of the Navigator” was Disney’s attempt at capturing the same vibe. While nobody would mistake this as being better than Steven Spielberg’s classic, it’s certainly weirder. (What do you expect from a movie that, for tax reasons, was shot in both Florida and Norway?) Joey Cramer plays a kid who is abducted by a UFO and returns home eight years later. It only gets odder from there. Paul Reubens voices the ship’s robotic system (it indirectly led to him being cast as Rex, the first pilot at Disney’s Star Tours attraction), there are a ton of gooey extraterrestrial critters, and beyond the soaring adventure is an interesting undercurrent of government paranoia, alongside a solid time travel subplot. Also, the all-electronic score by “Back to the Future” composer Alan Silvestri is a bop.
“Wolfgang” (2021)
One of the more underrated aspects of Disney+’s library is its deep bench of quality documentaries (more will make this list). “Wolfgang” from 2021 is one of those documentaries. This David Gelb-directed feature focuses on the life of Wolfgang Puck, the man whose breezy, upscale approach that married French cuisine with California chill and defined an era. (It also turned him into one of the world’s very first celebrity chefs.) The story of Puck is filled with highs and lows, and he fully owns up to some of the more tumultuous aspects of his life. (His strained relationship with his family is highlighted, along with his somewhat tortured upbringing.) It’s also a wonderful time capsule, with talking head interviews with one of the more obscure characters in recent Disney history: Michael Ovitz. A word of warning though: watching “Wolfgang” will make you want to make a reservation at Spago. Or at the very least grab one of his frozen pizzas on your next Target run.
“Winnie the Pooh” (2011)
If you never even knew there was a new, feature-length “Winnie the Pooh” installment released by Disney (and that it was the final traditional, hand-drawn animated feature the studio would make), that’s probably for a very simple reason: the studio scheduled it to open against the final “Harry Potter” installment. It’s a shame, too, because this “Winnie the Pooh” is terrific. Directed by future “Big Hero 6” filmmakers Don Hall and Chris Williams, “Winnie the Pooh” takes what made the original theatrical featurettes so special (wonderful characterizations, a playful visual style that physically incorporates the written word, fun songs) and both modernizes and deepens pretty much everything that came before. The songs, written by a pre-“Frozen” Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, are absolute bangers and the animation is flawless, thanks to Disney’s murderer’s row of traditional animators (including Eric Goldberg, Andreas Deja, Mark Henn and Marc Smith) only having “Winnie the Pooh” to work on. One of the very best Walt Disney Animation Studios films and one of the most regularly forgotten.
“The Journey of Natty Gann” (1985)
An underrated strain of Disney’s live-action output is Jack London-y stories of human characters interacting with wolflike dogs or actual wolves. (This very specific subgenre was most recently epitomized by Willem Dafoe’s excellent Disney+ original “Togo.”) “The Journey of Natty Gann” is one of the best (and most frequently overlooked) entries, a Depression-era adventure that follows Natty Gann (Meredith Sanger, in her big screen debut) as she travels to reconnect with her father (Ray Wise). Along the way she picks up a loveable wolfdog (who she simply names Wolf) and a human sidekick (John Cusack). This being 1980s Disney, there’s a fair amount of educational material throughout, with real-life historical touchstones and period texture (don’t worry, none of this gets in the way of the fun). But it’s also surprisingly gritty, with a great feel and texture. “The Journey of Natty Gann” was well received at the time of release (and garnered an Oscar nomination for costume design), but failed to make much of an impact at the box office or in the years since. But it’s primed for rediscovery.
“Mighty Joe Young” (1998)
Disney was not immune to the late-90s craze of remaking old monster movies for modern audiences. Of course, when the first one out of the gate was Roland Emmerich’s “Godzilla,” it led to Universal hastily canceling Peter Jackson’s “King Kong” (which they would revive years later) and the dismal box office returns for Disney’s “Mighty Joe Young.” Which is a shame, because “Mighty Joe Young” is super charming and one of the last big Hollywood movies whose chief special effect is a guy in a very elaborate suit (designed and built by the legendary Rick Baker). This new version of the 1949 original stars Charlize Theron as a woman who has grown up alongside Joe, an abnormally large gorilla. (Both of their parents were killed by the same evil poacher.) Facing increasing danger, she takes the offer of a zoologist (Bill Paxton) to relocate to the United Sates. Of course, things don’t go as planned, which leads to many fun sequences of Joe out in the urban jungle of Los Angeles. Far cuter than something like “Godzilla” and sporting a tamer PG-rating, it didn’t do much business despite being sold by the company as “this year’s holiday movie event.” But it deserves a second look. You’ll wish more modern movies were made this handsomely.
“Pete’s Dragon” (2015)
Of the slate of recent Disney remakes, “Pete’s Dragon” is the very best and probably the least discussed. A remake of the 1977 oddball live-action/traditional animation hybrid, this new version was directed and co-written by indie darling David Lowery and maintains the title, the name of the dragon, and very little else. Oakes Fegley plays a young boy who is orphaned when his parents die in a car accident and who has grown up in the woods alongside an invisible dragon called Elliot. He’s taken in by a kindly park ranger (Bryce Dallas Howard) and her father (Robert Redford), but the mistrusting townspeople (led by Karl Urban) want to capture and kill the creature. Lowery emphasizes the lyrical over the concrete, creating a dreamlike atmosphere out of the lush cinematography (with New Zealand standing in for the American Northwest) and gorgeous visual effects (courtesy of Weta). Less bombastic than the other big budget remakes, this one deserves more love.
“The Rocketeer” (1991)
In 2021, “The Rocketeer” celebrated its 30th anniversary. There wasn’t much in the way of acknowledgement from the company, aside from a few pieces of commemorative merchandise (mostly pins), but that’s okay. “The Rocketeer” has always been an underdog. When it was released theatrically, the tale of a stunt pilot (Billy Campbell) who takes control of an experimental jetpack and becomes a hero in 1938 Los Angeles, “The Rocketeer” got clobbered by “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.” In the years since, though, more and more have come around to appreciate the Joe Johnston-directed adventure. And there really is a lot to cherish here, from the art deco production design to the introduction of real-life history (Terry O’Quinn plays a terrific Howard Hughes) to the very knowing performances by Jennifer Connolly, Alan Arkin, and Timothy Dalton as an Errol Flynn-style Nazi sleeper agent. There’s even an animated sequence, by Walt Disney Feature Animation (as it was then known), depicting a Nazi invasion of the United States. Chances are if you’ve seen “The Rocketeer,” you love it. And if you haven’t seen it yet, get ready – it’s one of the best and least heralded action movies of the 1990s.
“Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” (1991)
If you’ve never seen “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken,” which, fair enough (it made less than $8 million domestically), you probably still remember it from its prominent placement in the opening moments of “The Wonderful World of Disney.” The movie itself is competently made and emotional. It’s an old fashioned, based-on-a-true-story weepie about Sonora Webster Carver, who made a name for herself in the early 1920s as one of the first female horse divers. What’s even more incredible is that (spoiler alert!) Carver lost her sight and continued doing the horse diving. It’s inspiring and well-acted (Gabrielle Anwar plays Carver), the kind of old fashioned, heart-tugging drama that Disney is so good at when they want to be. Carver was alive when the film came out and gave it a middling review, but “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” is the kind of movie that shows little girls that they don’t have to be a princess or Captain Marvel. They can be strong and smart and creative in an entirely different way.
“The Mouseketeers at Walt Disney World” (1977)
This “Magical World of Disney” episode (which is filed under the “movies” tab on Disney+) is maybe the single greatest thing on the streaming service. An absurd time capsule that follows the Mouseketeers (after the Annette Funicello years but before the Britney Spears era) as they visit the Vacation Kingdom of the World, it features so many gloriously WTF-worthy moments that it borders on the overwhelming. (Adding to the overall experience is the fact that, for some reason, the original commercials are also included.) Watch as they sing “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” from the deeply cursed “Song of the South” while they ride the monorail through the Contemporary Resort, marvel at their pursuit of leisure activities (EPCOT Center wasn’t even open at this point so there was a lot of downtime) and get entangled in the soap opera-y dynamics of the various Mouseketeers. It’s an unfettered joy from start to finish, made during arguably the drabbest time in the company’s history.
