When people think about Disney movies from the ’90s, their minds tend to go to the big hits from Walt Disney Animation Studios that were part of the Renaissance Era, but it’s a film outside of the studio that remains Disney’s true hidden gem. Instead, it’s from Disney MovieToons, which isn’t as well-known.

In fact, MovieToons really only put out a few films, including DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp. Disney’s main animation studio was dominating the ’90s with Aladdin, The Lion King, Hercules, and Beauty and the Beast. While those movies were mᴀssive hits, it was a smaller scale success that is Disney’s most underrated release ever.

A Goofy Movie Is Disney At Its Best

Released in 1995, A Goofy Movie ended up showcasing the best about Disney, even if it was overlooked upon arrival. Made on a budget of $18 million, the film only grossed $37.6 million, which was extremely underwhelming. Add in the mixed reviews (it has a 64% Rotten Tomatoes rating) and the film was labeled a flop.

Nobody, including Disney, could’ve predicted what happened next. A Goofy Movie became a surprising success on home video, becoming a cult classic that has only become more loved and appreciated as time has gone on.

A Goofy Movie proved that it deserved to be a bigger hit than it initially was. It had all the hallmarks of the best Disney movies, from a heartfelt story about family to an impressive animation style to some fantastic music. These aspects were prominent in Disney’s biggest hits from the ’90s.

The one thing about A Goofy Movie that feels like it really shows off how great it is, especially compared to Disney’s best films, is its staying power. Like Disney’s classics, A Goofy Movie gets rewatched often to this day and is held in high esteem three decades later.

The Music Of A Goofy Movie Is Timeless

The plot of A Goofy Movie is strong, following up the Goof Troop TV series and centering on a story of Goofy and his son Max taking a fishing trip. However, Max tells his romantic interest that they’re heading to Los Angeles for a concert featuring their favorite musician, Powerline.

As good as that story ends up being, the most memorable part of A Goofy Movie is the inclusion of Powerline. His concert is a highlight thanks to the songs he plays. Many of them rank among the best songs in any Disney movie, which is difficult to pull off given how many great tracks are featured in those films.

Powerline’s songs were performed by the talented Tevin Campbell, who pours his heart into the tracks and makes sure they are catchy. The songs “I 2 I” and especially “Stand Out” are still tremendous and get plenty of plays today. In fact, “I 2 I” was even recently covered as a rock song for Disney’s A Whole New Sound project.

A Recent Documentary Focuses On The Impact Of A Goofy Movie

It’s hard to fully explain the impact that A Goofy Movie has had on so many people. It hit a point where Disney+ actually put out a documentary covering that very concept, called Not Just a Goof. This 2025 release looks at the cult following that A Goofy Movie garnered over the years.

The documentary was praised for being charming, enlightening, and well-made, holding a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It covers how so many people, including young actor Jacob Tremblay, consider A Goofy Movie to be one of their favorite films.

Not Just a Goof discusses the father-son relationship between Goofy and Max being at the center of the film, and how many people related it to their own relationships with their dads. It’s the kind of relatable story that helps make A Goofy Movie so timeless.

There’s also significant time given to how Black people grew up loving the movie. Black people in the documentary point out how they saw themselves in some of the characters and how the music by the likes of Tevin Campbell spoke to them. They felt seen in a way that many other Disney movies didn’t allow for.

A Goofy Movie Got A Good Sequel

If you want proof of how successful A Goofy Movie ended up being, all you have to point to is that it got a straight-to-video sequel. Released five years later, An Extremely Goofy Movie gave us more of Goofy and Max at a time when only Disney’s top releases got sequels.

An Extremely Goofy Movie was also positively received and is considered by many to be just as good as the original. This one tells another touching story as Goofy loses his job and, missing Max, joins him at college which leads to another rift between them.

Rarely do we get sequels that are on par with an iconic original, yet An Extremely Goofy Movie manages to pull that off. Between the great sequel, its cultural impact, the incredible music, and the sheer quality of the original, A Goofy Movie is indeed Disney’s most underrated movie ever.