Brianna Butler
Disney Channel Original Movies You've Probably Forgotten About and How They Hold Up (Or Don't)
While being stuck in my house, I have had too much time to relive my childhood through the streaming platform Disney+. While Staying up hours on end watching old tv shows and movies, I've come across some films that I completely forgot existed. Here are five 2000s Disney Channel movies that you've probably forgotten about:
Cadet Kelly ★★★☆☆
Starting with a movie released the year I was born (2002), Cadet Kelly was my favorite movie to watch when I was young and woke up at three in the morning to Disney Channel still playing on my tv. Cadet Kelly stars Hillary Duff as Kelly Collins who is forced to enroll in a military school run by her step-father. Kelly is a carefree girl who just wants to hang out with her friends and struggles to follow orders. After getting in trouble, she is punished to clean and shine uniforms for the school's drill team. She realizes that she wants to "spruce up" the team and make them less like robots. Kelly decides to join the team and leads them to a regional performance where she gets to express herself through the drill performance she helped make.
Cadet Kelly gets ⅗ stars. While the movie is fun and exciting, it has many predictable and cliche moments that anyone would be able to guess when watching. As a child, this movie was a lot more exciting to watch, but nonetheless still a good movie.
Cow Bells ★★★★☆
Released in 2006, Cow Bells was the foundation of why I love sisterly dynamic-duo movies. Aly and Aj Michalka play the roles of privileged Taylor and Courtney Callum who have never heard the word "no." They always get the best clothes, cars, and treatment from everyone because of how successful their father is. After an irresponsible innocent between both sisters, Taylor and Courtney were then sent to work at Callums Dairy, run by their father. After money starts to go missing, and people are losing their jobs in the factory, it is up to the sisters to find out who is stealing the money to save their father's business, while learning the lessons of being less greedy and appreciative of what others around them do.
Cow Bells gets ⅘ stars. Between the heart-whelming relationship between sisters and the themes they learn throughout the film, this movie still lives up to how I saw it when I was younger. I highly recommend this movie if you were a fan of Legally Blonde or Clueless.
Jump In ★★★☆☆
Jump In was released in 2007 with Izzy Daniels played by Corbin Bleu. Izzy's main focus was to follow in his father's footsteps in winning the boxing Golden Glove championship. While training to box against the only other undefeated boxer in his gym, he gets distracted after agreeing to join Mary Thomas' (played by Keke Palmer) Double Dutch team after one of her members quit. While enjoying double dutch more and more, his devotion to boxing plummets, leading to his inevitable choice between boxing and jumping rope. The movie follows him trying to make a decision but also please both parties.
Jump In gets ⅗ stars. Even though his intentions are good, Izzy does struggle when having to choose between boxing and double dutch, but at times leaves the others upset or disappointed. He also is biased towards boxing and it takes him a while into the movie to even accept the fact that he actually does enjoy double dutch. Overall a good movie, but takes a decent amount of time to move the plot along.
Princess Protection Program ★★★★★
Released in 2009, Princess Protection Program stars Demi Lovato playing Princess Rosalinda Montoya Fiore who was sent to live with Selena Gomez's Carter Mason after her kingdom was invaded. The princess was sent into the "Princess Protection Program" where her identity of a princess was completely hidden and she became disguised as a normal teen girl. Carter Mason is a small town girl who keeps to herself until her world was changed after the princess showed up at her door to be her "cousin." The movie follows the unlikely duo as both of them try to survive high school while a dictator was in search of the princess to have her return to the kingdom so he can take it over.
Princess Protection Program gets 5 stars. This movie was all I would watch when I was little. Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez together were the best friend goals I always achieved. The lessons they learned from one another during the movie were beautiful and helped shape me to who I aspire to be as a friend today.
DadNapped ★★☆☆☆
The final movie released in 2009 follows Emily Osmet's character Melissa Morris whose father, Neal Morris, gets kidnapped (hence the title: DadNapped). Melissa's father is a best selling author who spends all of his time drowning himself in his work. Melissa just wants to spend time with her father, but fans of his had the same intention. Both Melissa and her father are tricked in this movie multiple times just for one more book to be written for Neal's book series. They have to rely on fans to help save both of them.
DadNapped gets ⅖ stars. While this movie was entertaining as a child, rewatching this movie made me realize that it was made purely for preteens. The entire movie was recreating the novel Neal wrote, but probably would have been better just as the book itself.
All of these movies were a throwback for me to watch, and I wasn't as disappointed as I thought I was going to be. Even though they aren't known well as classics, I highly recommend going back and watching these movies if you enjoyed them as a child. All movies can be found on www.disneyplus.com.