Disney Humor

It seems that Disney really didn't have much of a reputation for funny cartoons later on, especially with contemporaries. While there were a few good series such as the Goofy shorts and Donald shorts, there were some formulas which began to permeate the disney shorts. I think a lot of animation bloggers have commented on the low level of humor(Walt being from a farm background relied a bit on butt jokes, and animal instruments). Not that I dislike it, but it definitely shows the difference in humor.

While the disney movies are whimsical, I don't know if funny is the right word to describe them.

That being said, what are some of the funniest moments in disney animation?

edited 27th Sep '12 4:35:30 PM by blueflame724

The Emperors New Groove

The whole of it.

Not quite as funny to me now (though I certainly get more of the references), but as a kid I thought Genie in Aladdin was the absolute funniest thing in the whole world.

The bit in Sleeping Beauty with the collapsing birthday cake. The fairies hem and haw about how it didn't turn out the way they expected, and then with perfect comic timing, Fauna, in the midst of replacing the lit candles as they slide down the handle of the broom she had used to prop the whole thing up, explains, "Of course, it will be much stiffer after it's baked."

edited 27th Sep '12 9:40:06 AM by Karalora

Darkwing Duck has some very good superhero parody and action slapstick comedy.

I really liked the humor they were going for in Dave The Barbarian.

As far as the films and the shorts from the 40's and 50's go, I think it's just that "Disney humor" isn't wild. It's not the laugh-out-loud humor of Warner Brothers or Tex Avery, it's more the kind of humor you smile at. There are exceptions, of course; just look at Ward Kimball's "Symphony Hour."

Or if you don't have enough time to watch the whole thing, just look at my avatar.

Where is it from, btw? I'd love to watch that!

"Symphony Hour," the classic short Robbery mentioned. It's on Youtube.

When it comes to shorts, I think a lot of classic Disney humor is centered around the schadenfreude of watching characters have unfortunate things happen to them - in comparison, Looney Tunes have that too, but Disney's presentation is more "slice of life"-ish, resulting in it being a bit less "laugh out loud," as someone in this thread said.

Plus, the best way I can put it is that the humor is more "silly" than "zany," if that makes any sense. What comes to mind when I'm talking about that is, say, "Boat Builders."

edited 30th Sep '12 1:36:13 PM by KnownUnknown

"Symphony Hour" made my sides hurt the first time I saw it; it's a crime that they won't show it on TV anymore with it's (in my opinion) funniest scene — the scene in Karalora's avatar — intact.

What I've noticed is that Looney Tunes nearly all revolve around one character deliberately antagonizing another. Disney shorts have that too in some cases (especially in the Donald Duck cartoons), but they also have plenty of scenarios where the "antagonist" isn't doing it on purpose, or isn't a character but a natural occurrence or the situation itself.

The wacky humor in Disney comes and goes in waves due to new talent trying something "fresh and new" in the hopes it would take the company to unexplored audiences and then failing. They produced the "Roger Rabbit" shorts with Amblim Entertainment, but only 3, and a fourth short was canned. No short like "Runaway Brain" will ever be made again at that studio.

I dunno...did you ever see "How to Hook Up Your Home Theatre," a Goofy theatrical short from 2007? The unfortunate fact is, neither WB or Disney is in the business of making cartoon shorts anymore...and to an extent, I think they're missing a bet. Marketed through something like I-Tunes, and given the quick-bite appetite of today's entertainment consumer I think that short form cartoons could have some renewed success.

That was wacky and funny, and also poked fun at how convoluted today's tech has gotten, but it wasn't edgy. It was still very "safe".

You forget the CG Looney Tunes shorts the WB is making. Also, Disney still tries to create shorts whenever they can, such as "Paperman".

edited 1st Oct '12 11:25:01 AM by kyun

Disney being edgy would also be a bit of a zero sum game, in that if they do it they get accused of aping WB, much as if WB were to try gentle humor they'd get accused of aping Disney. Trapped by their own success.

Phineas And Ferb. Just Phineas And Ferb. Funny stuff.

If recent shows are allowed, then I'll say that I find Gravity Falls one of the funniest shows since Whose Line Is It Anyway. (And considering my opinion of Whose Line, that's high praise.)

Also, while The Emperors New Groove isn't my favorite, it's got some really funny moments (mostly anything involving Yzma and Kronk, particularly the "I'LL SMASH IT - WITH - A HAMMER!" scene). I also say Genie and Timon and Pumbaa are funny, and I enjoy Lion King One-and-a-Half.

edited 3rd Oct '12 7:00:15 PM by Zarek

Top 3 funniest Disney productions off the top of my head:

• Thats So Raven That's not animated, so I'm gonna say The Three Musketeers
• Cinderella 3
• The Lion King 1 1/2

Gravity Falls is also a good example of Disney stepping out of a comfort zone in terms of humor and subject matter. It feels like it would be more at home on Cartoon Network humor wise, but has this adventure-story streak that feels distinctly Disney.

It's like the two companies took a look at the same kind of show and came to different characteristic spins on it: Adventure Time and Gravity Falls are similar in humor styles and atmosphere, but Adventure Time while being adventurous is slightly more humor/absurdity based, and Gravity Falls while humorous and absurd is a bit more adventure based. If that makes any sense.

edited 3rd Oct '12 8:20:10 PM by KnownUnknown

Well it is created by a Cartoon Network alum and has a bunch of CN voice actors and crew members on it.

It DOES make sense. There are degrees to this stuff, but most people don't notice them. That's why the Animation Age Ghetto exists, sadly. (Even as a kid, I could tell the difference, but other kids couldn't. As if wasn't enough of a nerd already. )

To me "Donald's Tire Trouble" is the funniest Donald short. The humor comes from Donald's temper making what would be a simple job to a normal person into a huge ordeal full of Epic Fail.

Bump

Toby Tortoise Returns is fairly funny for a Disney cartoon. With cartoony animation to boot!

edited 27th Jul '14 8:21:52 PM by teddy