In some vague order:
Tangled
Watching the movie, you'd have no idea that it was mired in development hell for years and was scrapped and rebooted twice. It's so tightly written, so beautifully animated, that it seems hard to believe that there was turmoil behind the scenes. The Kingdom Dance/I See The Light sequence is one of the best Disney has ever done.
The Little Mermaid
This was the first movie I ever saw in theaters. I was 3 and I barely remember anything from that screening aside from being terrified of the soulless worms Ursula turns people into. I didn't see the movie again until the Blu-ray release. My expectations were high from the "kickstarted the Disney Renaissance" reputation and years of singing along with the songs. And it still easily exceeded them.
Aladdin
It's incredibly funny, wonderfully charming, funny, with an amazing soundtrack, and did I mention funny? Robin Williams is incredible in maybe the most iconic performance of his career. I watched this constantly as a kid. Our VHS copy is still trying to catch it's breath.
Wreck-It Ralph
I'm here on GAF, so naturally I'm a huge video game geek. I'm also a big Disney geek. So of course I think this film is nearly perfect. Its packed with winks and nods to video games, but never lets them overwhelm the story. Ralph reciting the bad guy affirmation at the end is heartbreaking.
Mulan
"What if we made a Disney princess movie where the main narrative isn't a love story? Oh, and the princess is a warrior?" "I'll Make A Man Out Of You" is possibly the awesomest Disney song (Donny Osmond singing about training men to kill the Huns. What's not to like?) and the great "A Girl Worth Fighting For" abruptly ending in the ravaged village is brilliant. I have to choke back tears every time at the end when Mulan talks to her father.
I can't pick a favorite from the early years. Snow White and Pinocchio are both great and Sleeping Beauty is mindbogglingly gorgeous.
