Getting Hairy with Tangled

I have written about my sister a few times on this blog. One fun fact about her is that Tangled is her favorite Disney princess movie. As for me, I just don’t get it.

I found myself extraordinarily bored while watching this movie. Perhaps it is because I have seen it so many times (my mom would play it in the car so my sister could be occupied while she drove me to things). I honestly just find the plot so boring and predictable. Again, we have the princess who is isolated from the world with her evil “mother” and who later on falls in love with the first person she sees. This indicates a huge step backwards in terms of quality of Disney films. Coming after Princess and the Frog, which features an assortment of kooky, fun characters in New Orleans, Tangled is a let down in terms of entertainment.

I think one of the reasons my sister likes this film so much is because she was the target audience when it first came out. She was five years old when my mother took us to the theater to go see it. This film was an important part of her childhood in the same way that I grew up with Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid, and The Lion King (even though these movies weren’t released in my lifetime, my parents got them on VHS and I would watch them all the time).

There were many parts of Tangled that reminded me of other Disney films. For example, Mother Gothel falls to her death, just like the Evil Queen in Snow White and Gaston in Beauty and the Beast. Also, just like in Beauty and the Beast, the prince comes alive again miraculously after the princess sort of weeps over his limp body. Classic Disney.

I didn’t really understand Mother Gothel’s motivations in this movie. She used Rapunzel’s hair to keep her young for many years. Did she do anything with her youth? It sounded like she rarely left Rapunzel alone in the tower. Why did she need to be young? Did she want to meet men? Did she want to marry for money? I found Mother Gothel’s character to be very shallow. She kidnapped a girl to make her young only to stay inside all the time. She paled in comparison to second wave villains like Ursula, Gaston, and Jafar. Those villains had more depth to them.

One of the scenes I hate the most is when Rapunzel first leaves the tower and is being very wishy-washy about whether or not she should have left. Ugh! Just make a decision and be confident with it, girl! I was honestly cringing at that scene it was so unbearable. I can’t stand people who can’t make up their minds.

There were some positive aspects to Rapunzel. She is smart and resourceful with her hair and frying pan. She finds ways to keep herself busy and educated while locked away in her tower. In fact, before Flynn shows up, she never talks or sings about wanting a man to come and save her, in the way that Snow White and Cinderella do.

The film also had some good music. “I Have a Dream” has been stuck in my head all day and “I See the Light” is on my playlist for destressing. “When Will My Life Begin” is also a great tune.

Overall, I don’t think Tangled is as good as the second wave films. The second wave films have more interesting plots, more diverse characters (I don’t think I saw any people other than Caucasians in Tangled), and less predictability. Tangled is a hairy situation in the midst of some really great third wave films.

I leave you with a chart.

Little Merm Quiz

Here is a super cute quiz that tells you what Little Mermaid character you are based on your seafood preferences. I'm Sebastian :)

Imagination and A Strong, Independent Woman Nation

It’s funny how you don’t realize how much you miss a book until you pick it back up again and start reading. I forgot how much I love Orenstein. Her style and her humor really make the book a delight to read. Some of my favorite parts were when she called a random toy “tawdry and badly made- what a bargain!” and when she said that Edward falling in love with someone as plain, untalented, and helpless as Bella is the true fairy tale of the Twilight series.

Orenstein had some very serious points that made me think. In discussing violent play on pages 98 and 99, Orenstein notes that it can be useful if kids are able to use “their imaginations to create the story lines, props, outcomes.” This type of imaginative play has become rather rare now, since TV programs “essentially became vehicles to sell toys.” This causes kids to simply just copy the story lines they see on TV. Playing all over the country has become “homogenized” because there is no need to imagine what can happen anymore; everything the characters do is shown on screen.

This passage reminded me of an article we read earlier in the year, called “The $500 Million Battle Over Disney’s Princesses” by Claire Suddath. To summarize, Suddath explains that kids want toys that are connected to TV shows or movies. They like characters and stories. Instead of kids creating them themselves, big companies create and market them to kids.

This makes me so upset. Imagination is so important to development and childhood in general. Without imagination, there would be no entrepreneurship. Imagine if Steve Jobs never invented the iPhone. How much worse off would you be?

I am afraid that if kids grow up with stories and characters already shoved down their throats, innovation will cease into oblivion. How can we expect the next generation to create the products and methods that make our lives better without ever letting them explore their imaginations?

Further, Orenstein explores the original fairy tales on page 100. She cites Bruno Bettelheim, and writes, “Fairy tales demonstrate that hardship may be inevitable, but those who stand fast emerge victorious.” This was a much more positive statement than I had seen recently about fairytales, and it’s one that I agree with. Fairy tales are meant to be fictitious. Princesses are meant to undergo hardship and end up happy. In Disney versions of fairy tales, happiness equates to marrying a prince, which is problematic. However, this doesn’t have to be the case. Orenstein points to The Paper Bag Princess, in which the heroine is rejected by a prince because of her paper bag appearance, so she dumps him and goes independently on her merry way. I certainly didn’t know there were fairy tales where the princess can find happiness in being alone. While Orenstein thinks this is flawed because she wants her daughter to still find a man that makes her happy, I believe that girls will try to do that no matter what, but they should be taught that they don’t have to stick around jerks, and that it is possible to be happy and single. This is the opposite of what Twilight tells teens. Bella is always unhappy unless she is with a guy. UGH! I hate Twilight and so does Orenstein. It’s unrealistic and the characters are annoying. I’m getting heated just writing about it now.

It was great to explore the problems with princess culture with Orenstein again. I look forward to reading what else she has to say soon!

Disney Stock- Is the cost to society worth it?

One of my assignments for my Political Economy class is to participate in a virtual stock exchange simulation. We each were given $100,000, and the goal is to beat the teacher's randomly selected stock (RSP) portfolio. This counts for 10% of our grade.

My stock has not been doing too well. The RSP is up 6% and I've made $37. This is one of the reasons I was drawn to this article, "10 Reasons to Buy Disney Stock and Never Sell."

However, that got me thinking. This is what gets Orenstein mad. Disney is a great investment because all they want to do is make money. Inspiring and empowering young girls (through their #DreamBigPrincess campaign, for example) will always come second to releasing a successful film that will create a franchise. What does this tell us about the products it is putting into our lives?

Is this materialistic society that Disney is cultivating worth it? At this point, is there anything we can do to stop it? It will be interesting to see how huge franchises like Frozen affect our lives.

The Pseudo-Feminist and the Beast

One of the many highlights of my fall break was watching Beauty and the Beast. It was great to reconnect with a classic childhood film; there's truly nothing better than listening to "Tale as Old as Time" in your own bed with some hot chocolate. Shameless plug: Angela Lansbury (Mrs. Potts) was in the original Broadway cast of "Sweeney Todd," and you should come see Hoof 'n' Horn's production of "Sweeney Todd" (I'm in it!).

Now that the promotion is out of the way, its time to delve into things between Belle and the Beast. There are a few specific things that struck me after watching the film.

1. The Relationship Between Belle and the Beast
There are many things that are different in this relationship than in first wave relationships. First, Belle and the Beast actually spend time together before falling in love. Granted, it was because he takes her as a prisoner, but they spend some quality time reading, playing in the snow, eating, and dancing before they say they love each other. First wave princess Snow White meets her prince one time (and runs away from him) and then doesn't see him again until he kisses her and wakes her up from a spell. Over time, Disney seems to let its princesses spend more time with the princes before they live happily ever after. Also, the phrase "I love you" is spoken in these film, whereas in the older films it is just suggested that the two people love each other as they ride off into the sunset together.

Something that hit me harder as an adult than as a child is that the Beast is an actual Beast. His paws dwarf Belle's dainty hands, and his chest is broader than even Gaston's. Some argue that Belle experiences Stockholm syndrome, while others deny it.  A story that was supposed to be about loving people for who they are on the inside falls flat because of the unnatural love between an animal and a girl. It is a shame that memes like this exist since the authors had good intentions, but it really is quite an odd story when you think about it.
 


2. Plot Holes
There are many, many, many articles that detail the numerous plot holes in the story. How does Chip exist? How does the portrait of Adam as an adult travel through time? Whose clothes is Belle wearing? These questions and more have haunted me since I rewatched the movie, and they are quite interesting to read. Perhaps some of them will be answered in the live action film in 2017! The trailer already features a more realistic, younger looking portrait of Adam.
 (2017)  (1991)

3. Belle as a Pseudo-Feminist
The second wave of princesses are generally known as the pseudo-feminists. There are a few things that are considerably better about Belle than her predecessors. She loves to read although many of her fellow villagers call her odd for being a woman who reads. She doesn't cook or clean like Cinderella and Snow White, and she spends some time with her man before she lets him put a ring on it. She also doesn't just go for the first guy she meets, even though Gaston is admired by the villagers for being handsome and strong. She doesn't just sing about a prince like Snow White and Cinderella. Rather, Belle sings about "adventure in the great wide somewhere" and wanting more than "this provincial life." 

Yet Belle choses to abandon these dreams to marry a prince and live in a giant castle, so the story doesn't end much differently than the first wave films. At least we know Belle gets a library.


Hopefully by casting the incredibly talented and dedicated feminist Emma Watson as Belle in the live action film, audiences will get to see more qualities of the princess that make her suitable as a role model for young kids other than the fact that she likes books.

Overall, this film was significantly better than anything in the first wave, though not flawless. A few questions remain in my mind, though. Why does Disney always give the princesses non-human pals (animals or inanimate objects)? Why have all the mothers we've seen either been evil step-mothers (first wave) or simply absent (second wave)? And lastly, what effect do these choices have on young children who watch these movies? Hopefully in class we can discuss and find out. 

I leave you with one last meme.

In Disney Years, I'm 30.

This quiz will attempt to tell you how old you are based on your Disney movie preferences. I guess 30 is the new 18 :( I'm fine with it I guess (not really).

Favorite Seasons and Disney Princesses

Here is a link to a Buzzfeed quiz that will tell you your favorite season based on your favorite Disney Princess. Mine is Ariel and summer. This is true because my birthday is *technically* in the summer. What's yours?