I experience cognitive dissonance over the fact that Disney movies have some of the most traumatic moments on film. When Bambi’s mother dies? When Mufasa is betrayed and murdered by his own brother? When Cinderella’s ball gown is torn to shreds by the horrible stepsisters? These are moments that stay with you forever. Not that things-Disney are not magical, they are and my husband says I have an unnatural attachment to them, just that there is bitter thrown in with the sweet. We like to think that Disney movies have always cradled us in a warm blanket of fairy tales and happy endings, but we tend to overlook the other lessons we take away from the house the mouse built. I had a lot of time to contemplate those messages when watching Disney movies frame-by-frame for my Master’s thesis. That was back in the pre-Pocahontas days, so Disney gals were still pretty much just marriage-fodder, and I worried about what ideas m
y daughters would carry away from their repeat viewings. They both turned out pretty self-assured, so I guess it went fine. Now, my Scarlett has taken a shine to Mulan, and we read the storybook adaptation by Lisa Ann Marsoli. I like what the girl from Chinese folklore has to offer--brains, creativity, courage--and I like that she got to choose something in the end besides riding off to some castle, but there is a lot of stuff to overcome before she gets there. Isn’t that the way it goes?http://www.amazon.com/Disneys-Classic-Storybook-Classics-Collection/dp/1570828644
http://www.jacketflap.com/persondetail.asp?person=95666
No comments:
Post a Comment