Top 10 Rarest Disney Movies Ever Made 2024: The year 1937 marked the beginning of film production for Walt Disney Pictures, which has since grown to become a household name all over the world.
Numerous Disney films have fallen into obscurity as a result of the company’s extensive film library, which has become even more extensive following the acquisition of Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, Fox 2000 Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures, National Geographic Documentary Films, Miramax Films, Dimension Films, and ESPN Films, amongst other film studios and production companies.
There are hundreds of Disney films that are less well-known that are not available on their streaming service Disney+ and are no longer in print.
This list provides a brief taste of some of the Disney films that are the most difficult to track down in circulation today.
Note that this list, with the exception of the Disney film which is the rarest on this list, has been sorted in alphabetical order for your convenience.
Top 10 Rarest Disney Movies Ever Made 2024
1. The Watcher in the Woods
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: April 17, 1980
- Directed By: John Hough and Vincent McEveety
- Starring: Bette Davis, Carroll Baker, David McCallum, Lynn-Holly Johnson, and Kyle Richards
- Run Time: 84 Minutes
Since Disney does not typically produce live-action horror films, the rarity of The Watcher in the Woods can be attributed to the fact that it is a film in an unusual film genre for the company.
Both critics and moviegoers despised the beginning and the end of The Watcher in the Woods when it was first shown in theatres on April 17, 1980.
They felt that the movie was poorly structured overall. Disney made the decision to re-edit the movie and film a new conclusion to the story.
After then, on October 9th, 1980, the movie was made available in theatres once again. The Watcher in the Woods was reworked, and the improved version received more positive feedback.
In the 1980s, The Watcher in the Woods was made available on video cassette, having previously been shown in theatres. There are currently no plans to include it on Disney+, despite the fact that it was also distributed on DVD in North America and certain regions of Europe in the early 2000s.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
A cult following has emerged for the film The Watcher in the Woods in recent years, despite the fact that the film was poorly received by critics and that it was only made available in restricted quantities.
2. Victory Through Airpower
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release due to depictions of World War II
- Original Release Date: July 17, 1943
- Directed By: James Algar, Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, and H.C. Potter
- Starring: Alexander de Seversky
- Run Time: 70 minutes
It’s an unusual piece of Disney film history called Victory Through Airpower, and its primary purpose was to serve as propaganda for the American war effort during World War II.
The audience in the United States was supposed to gain knowledge about military aviation and long-range bombing from seeing the movie.
The film was an adaptation of the non-fiction book of the same name authored by Alexander de Serversky, which served as the basis for the film.
The majority of the scenes in the movie are animated; however, there are a few live-action segments that feature Alexander de Serversky.
After its initial theatrical run in 1943, Victory Through Airpower did not become accessible on home media until the DVD release of the film in the year 2004.
According to Disney, Victory Through Airpower will not be made available on Disney+ because it contains sequences from World War II, and these scenes could be considered unpleasant to those living in current Germany and Japan.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Because Disney’s primary distributor, RKO Radio Pictures, turned down the opportunity to distribute Victory Through Airpower, the studio went to United Artists instead.
As a result, Victory Through Airpower is the first and only Disney animated feature film to be distributed by a movie studio other than RKO or Walt Disney Studios.
3. The Spirit of Mickey
- Reason for Rarity: Direct to video, never released again
- Original Release Date: July 14, 1998
- Directed By: Various
- Starring: Wayne Allwine, Tony Anselmo, Corey Burton, Jeannie Elias, Bill Farmer, Diane
- Michelle, and Russi Taylor
- Run Time: 83 Minutes
Since its first release in 1998 as a direct-to-video movie, The Spirit of Mickey has never been made available again for public consumption.
The Mickey Mouse Club, The Wonderful World of Disney, and A Goofy Movie all provided footage that was significantly edited and incorporated into the film.
Orphans serve as the audience for each of the Mickey Mouse shorts, which are all given by Mickey Mouse and his pals.
The animated shorts were produced several years before this collection was made available to the public and all include Mickey Mouse in some capacity.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
The only Mickey Mouse home video to have 11 different Mickey Mouse cartoons is called The Spirit of Mickey.
4. Something Wicked This Way Comes
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: April 29, 1983
- Directed By: Jack Clayton
- Starring: Jason Robards, Jonathan Pryce, Diane Ladd, and Pam Grier
- Run Time: 95 Minutes
Another Disney horror film from the 1980s, Something Wicked This Way Comes was only made available to a select number of home video purchasers.
The film was adapted from the Ray Bradbury novel of the same name. The screenplay for the movie was written by Bradbury, and Disney also consulted him with the casting and the direction of the picture.
Following the conclusion that the director’s cut of Something Wicked This Way Comes did not live up to the standards set by Disney, the film underwent extensive reshoots in addition to having its editing and scoring redone.
Something Wicked This Way Comes has not been made available for streaming on Disney+ and has only had a very limited distribution in theatres and on home video.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Disney made the announcement in 2014 that they will be remaking Something Wicked This Way Comes, and that Seth Grahame-Smith would be writing the script.
The source material from the novel written by Ray Bradbury will be the primary subject of the next adaptation.
5. So Dear to My Heart
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: November 29, 1948
- Directed By: Harold D. Schuster and Hamilton Luske
- Starring: Bobby Driscoll, Luana Patten, Beulah Bondi, and Burl Ives
- Run Time: 82 Minutes
The early Disney film So Dear to My Heart was a hybrid that had both live-action and animated sequences.
Walt Disney wanted the movie to be Disney’s first picture that was comprised entirely of live-action scenes, but his distributor RKO Radio Pictures told him that people anticipate seeing animation when they hear the name “Disney.”
So Walt Disney ultimately decided to go with the animation. Disney eventually gave in and reached a compromise with the idea of combining live-action with animated sequences.
The book “So Dear to My Heart” tells the story of life on a modest farm in the middle of the United States.
The Western actor and silent film legend Harry Carey made his final appearance in this picture, which was also his last film.
So Dear to My Heart is not quite as well-known as some other films, and it has only had limited home releases.
The movie was made accessible exclusively to Disney Movie Club members in 2008, which was the most recent time it was made available.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Walt Disney’s boyhood was spent on a small farm, and the song “So Dear to My Heart” was one of his particular favorites because it reflected that time in his life.
6. Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: October 26, 1953
- Directed By: Harold French
- Starring: Richard Todd, Glynis Johns, James Robertson Justice, Michael Gough, Finlay Currie, and Geoffrey Keen
- Run Time: 81 Minutes
The British-American action picture Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue was produced by Walt Disney Productions in 1953 and released under the title Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue.
Walt Disney had the idea to develop live-action pictures that were based on historical events after the success of Treasure Island, which was Disney’s first attempt at a live-action film.
The true story of Scottish bandit and folk hero Rob Roy MacGregor serves as the inspiration for the film Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue.
Although it was made accessible to Disney Movie Club members exclusively at one point in time, Rob Roy has not exactly seen wide distribution in the home video market. The movie cannot be streamed in any of the available locations.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
It was the final Disney film that RKO Radio Pictures distributed, and it was called Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue.
7. Make Mine Music
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: April 20, 1946
- Directed By: Jack Kinney, Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, Joshua Meador, and Robert Cormack
- Starring: Nelson Eddy
- Run Time: 75 Minutes
The eighth animated feature picture that Disney has ever distributed is titled Make Mine Music. The movie is really a collection of incomplete story concepts that were instead adapted into shorter portions that were then scored with music.
During World War II, a significant number of Disney employees were called up for military service. The ones who stayed behind were asked to create instructional and propaganda films for the United States government.
Disney made a number of anthology films, such as “Make Mine Music,” in order to keep things afloat.
Make Mine Music has had a few home releases over the course of its existence, but not nearly enough to bring the movie to the attention of the general public.
It is possible that the portion titled “The Martins and the Coys” will be removed from home-release copies of Make Mine Music.
This is due to the fact that it displays comic gunplay that is not appropriate for youngsters. The sexual imagery that was originally there in All the Cats Join In has been removed.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
The only animated film in the canon of Disney films that is not yet available on Disney+ is Make Mine Music.
8. The Happiest Millionaire
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: June 23, 1967
- Directed By: Norman Tokar
- Starring: Fred MacMurray, Tommy Steele, Greer Garson, Gladys Cooper, Geraldine Page, Hermione Baddeley, John Davidson, and Lesley Ann Warren
- Run Time: 118 Minutes
The Happiest Millionaire is a musical comedy that was produced as a live-action film and distributed by Disney in the late 1960s.
The life of Philadelphia millionaire Anthony J. Drexel Biddle served as the inspiration for the plot of this film.
The narrative was derived from the book “My Philadelphia Father,” which was written by Cordelia Drexel Biddle, the author’s mother and Anthony Biddle’s daughter.
Walt Disney had no intention of turning The Happiest Millionaire into a musical at first, but after the success of Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, and The Sound of Music, he changed his mind and decided to go forward with the adaptation anyway.
There is a longer version of the movie that clocks in at 172 minutes, and there is also a shorter version of the movie that clocks in at 118 minutes.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Due to the fact that Walt Disney passed away during the filming of The Happiest Millionaire, the film is the last live-action musical that Walt Disney made.
9. The Gnome-Mobile
- Reason for Rarity: Limited home release
- Original Release Date: July 12, 1967
- Directed By: Robert Stevenson
- Starring: Walter Brennan, Tom Lowell, Matthew Garber, Karen Dotrice, Ed Wynn, Richard Deacon, and Sean McClory
- Run Time: 84 Minutes
Before his passing in 1966, Walt Disney personally oversaw the production of a number of films, including one called The Gnome-Mobile.
The novel The Gnomobile, authored by Upton Sinclair, served as the inspiration for the film. The comedy-fantasy film tells the story of two youngsters and their lumber tycoon grandfather who encounter a pair of gnomes in what is now the Redwood National Park, which is located north of San Francisco.
These gnomes may be the last of their kind. After some time, the gang finds a village of gnomes in a different section of the woods.
The grandfather decides to give the gnomes 50,000 acres of forest that were about to be cut down for timber.
However, for a short period of time, members of the Disney Movie Club were able to watch the unusual film that was never made generally available on home video.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber, who previously played Jane and Michael Banks’ children in Mary Poppins, portrayed the youngsters in The Gnome-Mobile. This was the final film that Garber worked on.
10. Song of the South
- Reason for Rarity: Never received a home release in the U.S. because of racial issues
- Original Release Date: November 12, 1946
- Directed By: Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson
- Starring: James Baskett, Bobby Driscoll, Luana Patten, Ruth Warrick, and Hattie McDaniel
- Run Time: 94 Minutes
Due to its portrayal of racist and insulting caricatures of Black people, Disney’s Song of the South is possibly the most infamous and difficult to find of all of the company’s films.
From the moment it was first made available to the public in 1946, the film Song of the South has been met with disapproval from a diverse group of viewers.
Song of the South has received consistent criticism since its premiere, and as a result, Disney has never made the picture available on home video in the United States.
On the other hand, Song of the South was made available on VHS in certain regions of Europe and Asia as recently as the year 2000.
These bootleg DVDs and VHS copies of Song of the South can be found for sale on the internet from time to time.
Occasionally, bootleg VHS copies of the film can also be found. However, in an official capacity, Disney has stated that at this moment there are no plans to release Song of the South on home video or through the streaming service Disney+.
Splash Mountain, a ride at many of Disney’s theme parks around the world, was modeled after the film Song of the South for a number of years, despite the fact that the film itself is no longer in circulation.
In the year 2020, when people in the United States were marching for racial justice, Disney made the announcement that they were going to remove the elements of Song of the South from Splash Mountain and replace them with The Frog Princess. This was the first Disney film to show a Black princess.
Did It Cross Your Mind?
Joel Chandler Harris gathered and adapted a collection of African American folktales called Uncle Remus to create the basis for Song of the South.
Top 10 Rarest Disney Movies Ever Made [UPDATED]- Newshub360.net
Related Post
Credit: www.Newshub360.net
