My first experience with Disney movies was watching The Lion King in 1994 with my brother, my dad and my dad’s best friend. I remember crying my eyes out when Mufasa died. Fast forward to 2011, and the movie was re-released in theatres with the 3D conversation. Rest assured, I spent my money at the theatre on a Friday night with a few other friends who were more hardcore Disney fans than me! To nobody’s surprise, I cried again watching Mufasa’s death. The Lion King, Aladdin, and The Fox & the Hound are my favourite Disney movies, perhaps because they tugged at my emotions in a way that some of the other films didn’t. However, reading Jason Sperb’s (2018) article on “How (Not) to Teach Disney” reminded me of the power of childhood memories, and how nostalgia affects how we view cherished movies associated with the Disney brand.
In my second year of university, I took a Children’s Literature course. During our first class, my professor, a lovely gentleman with a southern accent, said to us that our childhoods would be ruined during the discussion of fairy tales. He was right, of course. My Disney bubble was shattered as we explored the darker fairytales of Hans Christian Anderson and the Grimm Fairytales. I remember feeling shocked by the darkness of these stories and almost disappointed that the Disney versions didn’t explore the darker themes further. I don’t think “outrage” is the correct word, but I thought Disney robbed me of a more meaningful story by watering the stories down to a happy and fruitful ending. I tried to explain this discovery to a friend, who is a hardcore Disney fan, but somehow my message was getting through. After reading Sperb’s (2018) discussion about the difficulties of teaching Disney in the classroom, especially when some students may have strong attachments to specific Disney properties, I could understand why it wasn't easy to convey my new findings to my friend.
When reading Sperg (2018), the words “Pseudo-Pedagogical” stuck with me. While he used this term in the context of Disney Parks and how the company understands and creates its company story, I also thought about the “pseudo-pedagogical” geographic locations in Disney movies – specifically Aladdin. When my brother and I rewatch the movie, he always laughs about a story: our grandma used to say that the city of Agrabah was Agra (the Indian city where the Taj Mahal is located). My brother would constantly correct her, saying, “No Aththamma (grandma), that’s Agrabah, not Agra.” At the time, neither of us realized that Agra and the Taj Mahal probably inspired the creation of the fictional Agrabah. Funnily enough, during a discussion about Aladdin and the possible location of Agrabah, a friend of mine said she thought the film took place in Saudi Arabia. I thought it was interesting that we both thought of different geographical locations for the city of Agrabah. I’m curious if Disney movies purposely obscure the areas where their films take place. If this is the case, then is it to garner a more globally diverse audience?
Thinking about Disney, recent movies in the Marvel cinematic franchise, and Disney+ tv shows, I am starting to wonder if I am invested in the newer characters Disney has created. Moreover, I’ve been wondering about the depictions of life in Disney movies. While The Lion King has a happy ending, the story has stayed with me because of the trauma Simba experienced watching his father’s death and believing that he was at fault. Mufasa’s death was the catalyst for Simba’s growth, and without that, I don’t think the movie would be as impactful. While other Disney movies like Cinderella and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs both have characters who have lost their parents, Mufasa’s death is the one the audience witnesses. You can feel Simba’s fear and despair, which is different from the (Cinderella feeling) in watching Cinderella or the (Snow White feeling) of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
In a 1998 interview, the famous Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki was asked, “Many animated films must have been influenced by Disney. What influenced you?” To which he replied, “The generation ten years older than my colleagues and me was influenced by Disney. Disney films like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, and Pinocchio were all wonderful in terms of technique. But their depiction of the inner thoughts of human beings was so simplistic that I didn’t enjoy them very much” (pg. 92). Sperg’s (2018) article discusses how the remastered version of Fantasia was situated as a Masterpiece of Disney animation, despite bombing at the Box Office. Interestingly, Steve Alpert (2020), the former head of Studio Ghibli’s international division, shared how Miyazaki was invited to Disney Studios in Burbank, California, to see the production work done for “Fantasia 2000”, the sequel to Fantasia. Miyazaki was asked for his thoughts on the movie, and the animator responded, “terrible… really terrible.” Alpert was left to translate Miyazaki’s response, which he translated as “interesting … Mr. Miyazaki finds the animation very unusual and very interesting.” I have not seen Fantasia or its sequel, so I cannot comment on the movies. Still, I found Miyazaki’s response to the sequel interesting, as if Disney had not explored why the original film had been unsuccessful in the first place.
I can’t say that I’m particularly attached to any of the new Disney characters introduced in the last couple of years. I watched Raya and the Last Dragon a couple of days ago. I thought it was somewhat of a rip-off of Nickelodeon’s successful series “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” one of my favourite animated series. My lack of attachment could be attributed to several reasons: the appeal of new characters, the absence of 2D animation, the new soundtracks, etc. However, I think my relationship with Disney and its properties changes as I grow older. While I haven’t gone back and watched some of my favourite Disney movies recently, it was in my adult life that I discovered Studio Ghibli films. Therefore, my relationship with Studio Ghibli is different from that with Disney, as the themes explored within each studio are quite different. However, I still value discussing the Disney brand, especially since there is more geopolitical influence. When you consider Disney’s dependency on the Chinese box-office market, Disney’s geopolitical influence has also increased by having the distribution rights to Studio Ghibli films.
Reading Sperg’s (2018) article, I can appreciate the difficulties that exist with teaching about a brand that is so near and dear to the hearts of many. However, finding ways to include students’ connection to the brand in assignments and carefully considering how to form a critical lens can be enormously challenging. It’s not an impossible task, but it requires a lot of experimentation and feedback from students, fellow educators and even our loved ones. I enjoyed reading about the assignment where students interviewed someone from a different generation to get their take on Disney. I wonder what my parents would say about Disney now, especially when they bought my brother and me many of the movies on VHS.
To end this journal on a fun note, do you have a favourite Disney movie, character or song?
References
Armknecht. O. (2017). Aladdin (1992)[ Screenshot of Agrabah Palace from Disney's Aladdin]. https://www.film-rezensionen.de/2017/04/aladdin/
Chamb, J. (2019, July 30). Taj Mahal [Photograph]. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/iWMfiInivp4
Dudok de Wit, A. (2020, May 28). Six Things We Learned From Steve Alpert’s New Tell-All Studio Ghibli Memoir. Cartoon Brew. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/books/six-things-we-learned-from-steve-alperts-new-tell-all-studio-ghibli-memoir-192587.html?fbclid=IwAR1clBAtp6kNglAS13ZVfnifyAdvSCI2lcWq2A-zvDnrlOSW1LuUAoG_zt8
Lemon Z. (2021, March 9). Raya the Last Dragon copying ATLA with PROOF of heavy similarities and of plagiarism?[Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTuHlkiPT50&t=307s
Miyazaki, H. (2008). Turning Point 1997-2008 (B.Cary & F.L. Schodt, Trans.). Viz Media.
Sperb, J. (2018). How (Not) to Teach Disney. Journal of Film and Video, 70(1), 47–60. https://doi.org/10.5406/jfilmvideo.70.1.0047
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