Loveday Writing

Now that I’ve finished reviewing and analysing Disney’s Silver Age, the next era I will be exploring is the Bronze Age.

The Bronze Age consisted of eight animated feature films, and lasted for eighteen years from 1970 to 1988:

• The Aristocats
• Robin Hood
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
• The Rescuers
• The Fox and the Hound
• The Black Cauldron
• The Great Mouse Detective
• Oliver & Company

The Bronze Age is also known the “Dark Age”, as the films during this era were the first ones made after Walt Disney’s death. Without Walt Disney’s creative direction, the animators tried new things with the animation style during this era, which ended up being criticised as cheap and lazy, due to their use of xerography and recycling animation. As well as the heavy use of xerography and recycling animation, this era is also known for its darker and edgier films, which were the brainchild of the then-new generation of animators from Cal Arts.

The Bronze Age ended with Oliver & Company in 1988, with the Renaissance Era kicking off the following year with The Little Mermaid.