I have to say, I'm not overly fond of the whole "Disney Magic" sacred cow. For every classic (Snow White, Pinnochio) there are three or four Disney features that range from mediocre (Fox and the Hound, Lion King) to godawful (the horribly annoying Winnie the Pooh, Mu Lan). But this one is completely enjoyable for me, and is one of the few movies that my daughter and I anjoy equally (one of the others, by the way, is the Marx bros. Duck Soup.)
The songs are catchy, bouncy, and clever. The story is warm without any of the treacly sentimentality that so often colors these movies. If you don't bob your head whenever you hear "I Wanna Be Like You", then there is no hope for you.
By the way, in answer to a review below dealing with racial stereotypes in this movie: I understand your point, but you should note that King Louie is played by Louis Prima, a white man. And he wasn't aping (rimshot) an African American accent. That was really the way he talked.
The songs are catchy, bouncy, and clever. The story is warm without any of the treacly sentimentality that so often colors these movies. If you don't bob your head whenever you hear "I Wanna Be Like You", then there is no hope for you.
By the way, in answer to a review below dealing with racial stereotypes in this movie: I understand your point, but you should note that King Louie is played by Louis Prima, a white man. And he wasn't aping (rimshot) an African American accent. That was really the way he talked.