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newmoonstarBeen having a surprisingly amazing journey revisiting Disney animation lately. I heard about a documentary called Waking Sleeping Beauty about the Disney animation renaissance of the early 90's, which, having been basically the center of my life as a small child, I was pretty interested to hear about. Even after I got 'too old' for those movies and stopped being obsessed with them, I still watched them whenever they were on TV, because I loved the animation as art, and really missed having new ones to see. But watching this documentary really re-awakened my love of these movies. I was totally unprepared for the well of the emotion it provoked in me either. Learning about the people who created the movies I'd loved so deeply and seeing how they took shape was spellbinding. Seeing the footage of Howard Ashman giving Jodi Benson direction during the recording of "Part of Your World" gave me chills, because that's where it all started for me. These movies were the first exposure I had to musical theater songs and performers, the first spark that ignited my interest in folklore and fairy tales. I think my love of European art history came from watching Beauty & the Beast.
And now, diving into the 2-disc special edition DVDs of these movies, I realize not only how much they imprinted on me, but how good they are. People in academia may bemoan the influence Disney movies have had on the the popular perception of the fairy tales they've dramatized, but when you really get down to it, they've done infinitely more to champion the continuing relevance and awareness of folklore in our society than probably anything else. Would I really be happily delving into annotated volumes of Perrault or Grimm today if I hadn't loved Disney movies as a child? Probably not. And looking at the three films that were the 'holy trinity' of my childhood, The Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, Aladdin, today, as an adult, both as an ordinary viewer out for entertainment and in critique mode with a more academic perspective on folklore, I think I love them even more. Even with singing crabs and dancing candlesticks, these are honestly the best versions of these stories I've ever seen, and by golly have I gone through a LOT of fairy tale books and movies! In my teens and even up till now, I used to be kind of embarrassed that I loved Disney animated fairy tales, as if they were somehow less valid or sophisticated than other forms because they were commercially successful or because they were 'for children', or didn't stick scrupulously to every last word and plot point in Anderson or Grimm or something. But they are, after all, adaptations, and sticking exactly to the book doesn't always make the best movie. If they had done that they wouldn't have captured my imagination, or any other child's either. I think the key thing that most people tend to forget is that folktales aren't set in stone, and each society and each generation, and every individual teller, emphasizes different aspects in these tales that are relevant to them. So I'm actually proud now to be able to say that MY version of The Little Mermaid is Disney's version, and that it's just as valid as Anderson's, because it's the version that I cared about, and there's nothing wrong with that. Going back to my roots has actually helped me clarify in my mind a lot of what I want to do myself as a storyteller. I'm sure someday I'll write a memoir about 'Reclaiming My Little Mermaid' or something! But only after I've written a lot of fun and magical fiction. Who knows, maybe someday the world will rediscover hand-drawn animation and all it's beauties and possibilities, and I could be the the one writing the stories to capture a new generation's imagination. That would be pretty damn cool. (Cue 'Part of Your World' here please! "Watch and you'll see, someday I'll be...")
And now, diving into the 2-disc special edition DVDs of these movies, I realize not only how much they imprinted on me, but how good they are. People in academia may bemoan the influence Disney movies have had on the the popular perception of the fairy tales they've dramatized, but when you really get down to it, they've done infinitely more to champion the continuing relevance and awareness of folklore in our society than probably anything else. Would I really be happily delving into annotated volumes of Perrault or Grimm today if I hadn't loved Disney movies as a child? Probably not. And looking at the three films that were the 'holy trinity' of my childhood, The Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, Aladdin, today, as an adult, both as an ordinary viewer out for entertainment and in critique mode with a more academic perspective on folklore, I think I love them even more. Even with singing crabs and dancing candlesticks, these are honestly the best versions of these stories I've ever seen, and by golly have I gone through a LOT of fairy tale books and movies! In my teens and even up till now, I used to be kind of embarrassed that I loved Disney animated fairy tales, as if they were somehow less valid or sophisticated than other forms because they were commercially successful or because they were 'for children', or didn't stick scrupulously to every last word and plot point in Anderson or Grimm or something. But they are, after all, adaptations, and sticking exactly to the book doesn't always make the best movie. If they had done that they wouldn't have captured my imagination, or any other child's either. I think the key thing that most people tend to forget is that folktales aren't set in stone, and each society and each generation, and every individual teller, emphasizes different aspects in these tales that are relevant to them. So I'm actually proud now to be able to say that MY version of The Little Mermaid is Disney's version, and that it's just as valid as Anderson's, because it's the version that I cared about, and there's nothing wrong with that. Going back to my roots has actually helped me clarify in my mind a lot of what I want to do myself as a storyteller. I'm sure someday I'll write a memoir about 'Reclaiming My Little Mermaid' or something! But only after I've written a lot of fun and magical fiction. Who knows, maybe someday the world will rediscover hand-drawn animation and all it's beauties and possibilities, and I could be the the one writing the stories to capture a new generation's imagination. That would be pretty damn cool. (Cue 'Part of Your World' here please! "Watch and you'll see, someday I'll be...")
