For this, I took the 5 most likely elements of magic in the Disney Princess films and added 1 category for the awareness of each 6 elements. This is because the more prominent magic would be in a story (or the world in the story), the more people should be aware of the magic as it would be hard to miss. Here are the 12 put together:
1. Magical Powers- Meaning that magic can be done without the use of items (like wands) or spells (i.e. done with the mind &/or flick of the wrist).
2. Magical Power Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of magical powers.
3. Magical Items- Meaning there are items or non-living things that possess magical qualities; not that there are items that can be enchanted (which I'd consider a spell.)
4. Magical Item Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of magical items.
5. Magical Beings- Meaning there are magical creatures such as witches, fairies, mermaids, genies, trolls, etc.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of magical beings.
7. Magical Spells- Meaning that magic can be applied to any person or thing for a temporary time or able to be "broken", including enchanted objects or transformed people that have been temporarily spelled. Usually performed by power, wand, potion, etc.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of magical spells.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Meaning that animals can magically talk like humans, being fully understood, without being spelled or enchanted. This doesn't count maneuvers and gestures etc. unless the animal shows distinct human intellect beyond a normal pet, in which I'll give it a half point.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of the magically talking animals.
11. Magical Locations- Meaning locations that could only exist with the existence of magic (like Atlantis). A half point for fictional locations made up that don't exist in the real world.
12. Magical Locations Awareness- How aware the characters in the story are of the magical or fictional locations.
So according to those factors above here are my personal rankings:
12. Mulan: 1.5/12
1. Magical Powers- None
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- None
4. Magical Item Awareness- None
5. Magical Beings- Spiritual Ancestors
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Somewhat. Many members of Mulan's families are seen praying to their ancestors so it's clear that they do believe they have some influence though I don't actually think they are quite as "alive" as they are. This is why I gave it a 1/2 point for this.
7. Magical Spells- None
8. Magical Spell Awareness- None
9. Magically Talking Animals- None (Mushu is an ancestor.)
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
11. Pocahontas: 3.5/12
1. Magical Powers- None
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- None
4. Magical Item Awareness- None
5. Magical Beings- Grandmother Willow
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Somewhat. Pocahontas seems to be the only one aware of her Grandmother Willow until introducing John Smith to her. I don't know if other individuals can talk to their ancestors as well or not so I only gave this a 1/2 point for Pocahontas' awareness.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the medicine man in Pocahontas' tribe does a spell to learn more about the "new enemy" and the spell told a story.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes, many people in the tribe watched this spell and it wasn't a secret.
9. Magically Talking Animals- None
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
10. Beauty and the Beast: 4.0/12
1. Magical Powers- Yes, the enchantress at the beginning seems to be able to disguise herself at will without an item or spell.
2. Magical Power Awareness- No, no one seems to know of or believe in anything magical.
3. Magical Items- Yes because of the magic wand that the enchantress has. (Thank you MaidofOrleans!) Not really sure if the mirror and rose were enchanted to begin with or enchanted as a result of the curse though.
4. Magical Item Awareness- No because whether the mirror and rose are enchanted or not, no one seems to know about them but the enchantress herself or the people she gives them to.
5. Magical Beings- Yes, the enchantress is a magical being.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- No because no one seems to know or talk about such beings existing. They don't even believe in the "beast".
7. Magical Spells- Yes as a magical spell is put on Adam, all of his employees and his entire castle and grounds right around it.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- No, only by the people who have been spelled.
9. Magically Talking Animals- None
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
9. Cinderella: 4.5/12
1. Magical Powers- None. The fairy godmother can't seem to do anything without her wand or singing a spell.
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- The fairy godmother's wand is clearly magical as she needs it to perform her spells.
4. Magical Item Awareness- None that I know of.
5. Magical Beings- The fairy godmother.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Somewhat so half point here. When Cinderella first met her fairy godmother, she knew exactly what to call her though at first she had a hard time believing she was there, it seemed. It seems like they are similar to the ancestors in Mulan, believed in but not believed to be real?
7. Magical Spells- Yes the spell on the carriage, dress, animals etc. ended at midnight. Except those shoes which did not expire and transform at midnight. I suppose they were a gift?
8. Magical Spell Awareness- No because it doesn't seem that the fairy godmothers are believed in enough for the characters to be aware that they have the power to spell things.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Yes. Cinderella has full conversations with the birds and mice as well as they sew, sing and do tons of other things pets cannot do. I am admittedly being lenient with the point here as Lucifer doesn't seem to talk but he does point and communicate beyond any normal cat.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- No. Cinderella seems to be the only person aware that the animals can speak. Lady Tremaine doesn't seem to speak to Lucifer nor are there any other interactions between other people and the animals.
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
8. Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs: 5.0/12
1. Magical Powers- None. The evil queen cannot do anything without a spell.
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- The Wishing Well? & Magic Mirror & Spelled Apple
4. Magical Item Awareness- Snow White seems to believe the Wishing Well has power and she believes the apple given to her by the Queen in disguise has magical properties so it seems there are known magical items in this "world"/film.
5. Magical Beings- None. The evil queen isn't really a witch in my opinion because she needs to cast spells from a book.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- None
7. Magical Spells- The witch's disguise and the poison apple are both spells cast that are temporary and have a way to be broken. (With the evil queen being as vain as she is, we can assume that disguise wasn't permanent.)
8. Magical Spell Awareness- This one is tricky for me. I give it a half point because it seems to me there is an awareness that spells could be cast (with the wishing apple) perhaps but there is no confirmation of this.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Half point. None of those forest animals could really help Snow clean, do laundry, bake, etc. which all goes full well beyond any pet that I've ever known of. However they don't actually speak so I see them as half magical.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- Yes, everyone seems to know the animals are not like real-life animals. Florian and Snow send the dove to each other; Snow initiates conversation with the animals; the dwarfs realize immediately that the animals are trying to speak to them and send some sort of semi-intellectual message to them.
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
7. Princess and the Frog: 5.5/12
1. Magical Powers- None
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- None
4. Magical Item Awareness- None
5. Magical Beings- Mama Odie?, Voodoo Shadow Man & Shadow Creatures aka Friends on the Other Side
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, from what I could tell. When Naveen told Tiana that his frog form was a result of his making a deal with the "shadow man", she didn't seem shocked at all but rather upset that he had put her in this position.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the voodoo magic is very spell-based as it's temporary or can be broken.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes, if the people are aware of the man who practices voodoo magic then they must be aware of the voodoo magic itself, if not familiar with it.
9. Magically Talking Animals- None, the animals don't talk until Tiana becomes one and "speaks their language".
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None
11. Magical Locations- Maldonia: 1/2 Point.
12. Magical Locations Awareness- Yes.
TIE 5. Brave: 6.5/12
1. Magical Powers- Yes. The woodcarving witch is able to snap her fingers and transform her woodcarving cottage into a witch's cottage without using any wands or chanting a spell.
2. Magical Power Awareness- None that I know of. It doesn't even really seem like people are aware of the witch, let alone her powers.
3. Magical Items- None
4. Magical Item Awareness- None
5. Magical Beings- Yes the witch as well as the will-o-the-wisps.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, half point. Fergus is able to not believe in magic showing it's not prominent but Elinor is a very reasonable person and spoke of the will-o-the-wisps to Merida and clearly believed it as well as believed Merida when she said she saw one.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the spell that turned Mor'du into a bear as well as Elinor.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes, half point again because everyone seems to be aware of the legend that the bear Mor'du is the dark prince though they might not all believe it.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Yes. The witch's crow talks.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- No one is aware of this but the witch unless they hear it like Merida.
11. Magical Locations- "DunBroch Kingdom" seems like a fictional place based on Scotland to me so 1/2 Point. Open to correction. :)
12. Magical Locations Awareness- Yes.
TIE 5. Tangled: 6.5/12
1. Magical Powers- None. Even Rapunzel has to sing in order for her healing powers to work which is essentially a spell and therefore temporary.
2. Magical Power Awareness- None
3. Magical Items- Yes, half point. Though the flower needs to be sung to for some odd and unexplained reason, it is enchanted as I assume because of the type of flower it is? Also since the Queen's consuming of the flower made Rapunzel born with that capability, it seems worthy of the half point here.
4. Magical Item Awareness- Yes since the guards or whoever knew to look for this flower as well as Mother Gothel.
5. Magical Beings- None. I don't count Rapunzel since she is spelled but open to debate and change this.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- None
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the flower and Rapunzel's hair both need the enchanting spell to be sung in order to enact it.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes for same reason as "Item Awareness"
9. Magically Talking Animals- Half point because Pascal is magically helpful, points, discusses with Rapunzel and really goes beyond a normal pet/chameleon. Also Maximus seems to go beyond a normal horse as well and none of the guards nor Eugene is shocked by that.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- Yes, they are aware to the extent of it, it seems.
11. Magical Locations- Corona: 1/2 Point
12. Magical Locations Awareness- Yes.
4. Frozen: 7.5/12
1. Magical Powers- Yes, Elsa is clearly born with her ice powers that occur even when she's not trying to use them. The trolls also seem to have the ability to transform from rock to troll at will. The main troll also seems to have more powers than the rest that don't require chanting or a wand etc.
2. Magical Power Awareness- Yes, although the people are unaware of Elsa's powers, they seem to be aware of the trolls' powers. Also the trolls ask "born with the magic or cursed" showing some people are born with magical powers in their universe/film.
3. Magical Items- None
4. Magical Item Awareness- None
5. Magical Beings- Yes the trolls are magical beings.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, the parents were able to look up the trolls and where to find them in a book when Anna was struck with Elsa's powers.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, since the trolls asked "born with the magic or cursed", it shows that they know people can be affected by magical spells and we know some of Elsa's magic can be broken like a spell.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes for same reasons as with the trolls and their power awareness.
9. Magically Talking Animals- None. Sven is the only animal that gets close to talking and it seems to be more because of the close attachment with Kristoff that is more similar to a horse-pet than a magical pet.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None
11. Magical Locations- Arendelle & Southern Isles: 1/2 Point
12. Magical Locations Awareness- Yes.
3. The Little Mermaid: 8.5/12
Note that this one is obviously biased as it does take more from the mermaid point of view in this film than the human point of view.
1. Magical Powers- Yes. Triton needs his trident to perform magic but it seems like Ursula has a natural "magical talent" that doesn't require spells etc. though it's not as strong as her spelled magic.
2. Magical Power Awareness- Yes, the underwater community is at least aware of Ursula's powers so I'd say half point?
3. Magical Items- Yes, Triton's Trident.
4. Magical Item Awareness- Yes, everyone seems to know the trident has powers.
5. Magical Beings- Yes! All of the mermaids and Ursula.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, somewhat. The sailors on land seem to be well aware of the mermaids existing and even know Triton's name as well as they know that he "controls the sea". Of course, this could just be a legend passed down to them that was once known to be fact, hence the correct name of Triton. Eric wasn't aware of this legend until the sailors told him though, yet he didn't seem that phased by the fact that Ariel did in fact turn out to be a mermaid. So overall, I give it a half point here.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the spells Ursula performs are all temporary and can be broken as shown by the end of the film.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes, everyone seems to know that Ursula exists and where to find her to get spells from her as shown by all of her numerous prisoners.
9. Magically Talking Animals- No. It seems that only Ariel and the mermaids can talk to other animals as they are half-animal, I'm assuming.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- None.
11. Magical Locations- Atlantica: Yes
12. Magical Locations Awareness- 1/2 Point. The underwater community knows it's true and some sailors believe it.
2. Sleeping Beauty: 9.5/12
1. Magical Powers- Yes. While Maleficent does also use spells, she seems to have many powers without the use of spells as well such as turning into flames and orbs or transforming into a dragon.
2. Magical Power Awareness- Yes, everyone seems aware of Maleficent's powers.
3. Magical Items- Yes, each of the good fairies has a magical wand.
4. Magical Item Awareness- Yes, the fairies use their wands out in the open.
5. Magical Beings- Yes, the 3 good fairies and Maleficent.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, the 3 good fairies are even invited in front of the entire kingdom.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, the spell that puts Aurora to sleep.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Yes, as aware as everyone is of Maleficent and the fairies, they also seem well aware that they can cast spells too.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Half point. None of the animals can talk but the interactions between Aurora and Vernon, the owl, as well as the squirrel and other creatures is totally unrealistic and slightly magical. There is also a closer relationship between many characters and animals that don't talk outright but have unrealistic communication skills including Phillip and Samson as well as Maleficent and her crow/raven.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- Yes, everyone seems to be aware of the animals' capability of somewhat communicating with humans. I think one example of this could be when Hubert asks Samson, Phillip's horse, if Phillip is kidding or not and Samson shakes it's head in response.
11. Magical Locations- None
12. Magical Locations Awareness- None
1. Aladdin: 10/12
1. Magical Powers- Yes, the genie has many magical powers without the use of a wand or spell or even the lamp etc.
2. Magical Power Awareness- Yes, many people seem to be aware of the power of the genie(s).
3. Magical Items- Yes, the magic lamp as well as the magic carpet. Also, Jafar's staff seems to be magical.
4. Magical Item Awareness- Yes, people seem to be aware of the magic lamp at least (as well as the Cave of Wonders).
5. Magical Beings- Yes, the genie.
6. Magical Beings Awareness- Yes, people seem to know of the genies even if they don't believe or haven't encountered one themselves.
7. Magical Spells- Yes, Jafar performs a magic spell to find Aladdin.
8. Magical Spell Awareness- Not that I know of. People seem to know of the genie and genie powers but not of any sorcery spells etc.
9. Magically Talking Animals- Yes. Iago is a bird that talks. Although Abu is a monkey, they still overplay his intelligence beyond that of a pet monkey in my opinion.
10. Magically Talking Animals Awareness- No. Iago has to keep it a secret that he can talk and it doesn't seem like all animals can talk which would make everyone aware of such a thing.
11. Magical Locations- Agrabah & Cave of Wonders
12. Magical Locations Awareness- Yes
So there you have it. I'd love to hear your guys' thoughts on my ranking, including if you think I've made a mistake or missed something in the rating systems! :D I'd also love to hear what you guys think about the magic in the films and how much you like or don't like to see it, whether or not you think it adds to the story or if you see it as a DP film requirement etc. <3 What do you think about the change in ranking (if you saw the previous one)? Do you think this is more accurate? Would love to hear from you guys, thanks!
