The Princess and the Frog

[meganbmoore]

Ok, O Mighty F-List Who Knows All, the following is what I know about this upcoming Disney movie

Comments

[ladysaotome]

Christmas, supposedly?

Here's an interesting article:
http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/news/the-princess-and-the-frog-controversy-or-innocence.php

[meganbmoore]

It's interesting that it being set in New Orleans is one of the complaints, as it was a big factor in my interest.

[smillaraaq]

The complaints I've seen are less that New Orleans is an intrinsically bad setting, it's more that the whole mix of Nola *and* jazz *and* voodoo *and* slavery/servitude, etc., has this cumulative stereotypes-on-a-plate effect that's greater than the sum of its parts. The complaints about the character's original name, for instance, weren't that Maddy wasn't ethnic enough, but rather that it was a very stereotypical lower-class or slave name, and that name in conjunction with her being a chambermaid to a white family raised a lot of uncomfortable associations.

[meganbmoore]

*nods*

And I hadn't really bothered to follow it after learning the very basics until tonight, too.

[woodburner]

I only read the wikipedia article, but it explains a little.

[meganbmoore]

The kiss doesn't break the curse, but turns her into a frog as well? That...is the kind of twist I like in fairy tale retellings?

[mistaria]

Shrek did it.

[meganbmoore]

Very true. I admit, the Disney bashing makes it a bit difficult for me to like that movie as much as i want to. (The curse also didn't work for e the way I suspect it does for others because I'm not alwas big on "You should be true to and find your true self! Which is the exact opposite of what you want!")

[legit]

I think it's rather odd that no one was offended by the multitude of other ethnic princess, but because of where this princess is from people are getting up in arms--which is sad because a lot of my friends who are African American are happy with this movie, they're happy to finally have someone whom their little sisters can idealize now...

People just need to stop trying to find excuses to sue Disney--if they're so desperate for that, they should start with the lobotomy feeling I get from watching Hannah Montana...

[ostia]

Seconding this.

Plus it's fun to see Disney doing 2-d animation again. And those stills linked above look like it's going to be a very pretty movie.

[meganbmoore]

Yeah, the few images I've seen are amazing and atmospheric, and Disney 2D animation fairy tales are something I hugely imprinted on when younger.

[legit]

Yeah, when my friend first linked it I was really surprised at the quality of it all, I'm just excited in general they're going to do 2D again, here's to hoping it doesn't...well, blow up more in their face...

[melonfusion]

The issue I've heard the most about is that originally she wasn't even going to be a princess, but a maid. Along with the voodoo practicing villain.

Disney has yet to do a cartoon centered around a character of color that wasn't pretty sketchy in its racial implications.

[meganbmoore]

I think the maid thing is sliding by me because, it being a Disney fairy tale, I'm automatically assuming it'll be set in the past. (And it may also be significant that my two favorite Disney heroines-Mulan and Meg-weren't princesses.)

[melonfusion]

I misspoke about her being a princess (or a daughter in a wealthy family, like I'd thought), according to the wikipedia article, she isn't. Regardless, I think it would have been problematic for Disney's first and only black heroine to be a maid whether it was set in the past or not.

[meganbmoore]

Very true, and I suspect there's some subconscious waving around of white privilege going on here on my part.

[pseudo_tsuga]

I heard some complaints over her hair being in line with European beauty standards though I couldn't find a link to such right now.

[meganbmoore]

I did notice that she seems to be in the typical European Disney Princess getup in the pictures I've seen. (Specifically, it reminds me of Conderella.)

[meganbmoore]

Now you have me imagining both! Curse you!