It has been an obscenely long time since I’ve written anything on this blog, so I thought I’d share something more personal in nature in the hopes that it’ll spark my writing fever again. My vacation and slight changes in routine have made it hard to get a rhythm going, but I assure you – movies of all kinds have been crossing my path and toying with my brain. Most importantly right now, I’m wrestling with what to do about 2 particular “family” movies and how I might go about adding them to my collection.
What am I to do about Toy Story 3? Any other Pixar movie I would not hesitate to snatch up at the earliest convenience – but Toy Story 3 is a different animal entirely. Here was a movie that I attended with my daughter that had her clinging to my arm in fear during certain scenes (I’m sure you know the ones I’m talking about), but also a film that so perfectly wrapped up the Toy Story… er, story. If I were to grab it up, I’d be doing it for myself and not for my kids – but then isn’t that being a little selfish? If she were to find it on my shelf and ask if she could watch it, wouldn’t it be cruel to have to refuse?
Even the most visceral scenes in HTTYD pale in comparison to the darker elements present in TS3.
And then there’s the matter of the other animated fmaily film I wasn’t so sure I wanted to get my hands on: How To Train Your Dragon. I remember when I first saw it I thought that it might be a little too intense for my young kids to see – but that was before we went and saw Toy Story 3. Even the most visceral scenes in HTTYD pale in comparison to the darker elements present in TS3. And, it might be possible that I actually enjoyed parts of HTTYD more than TS3 – maybe not altogether as an entire film, but still.
But then I remember a little exercise my daughter and I carried out a few months after seeing TS3 – we watched Sleeping Beauty for the first time. Man, things went down in Sleeping Beauty that would have both TS3 and HTTYD cowering under the bedsheets. Maleficent is totally a creature of evil – strictly for the sake of being evil. And if that was what family movies are striving to emulate in this modern age – what the heck am I so worried about?
Besides, who the heck do I think I’m fooling. I’ll wind up concocting some kind of excuse to pick both of them up one way or another. The odds are in fact pretty good that before the day is out, they’ll be in my Amazon shopping cart, awaiting TS3′s November release date.
Ahhhhh, just wanted to get that off my chest. What about you? Are you conflicted by any of the intense imagery in some of the so-called family films today?
I’d be concerned with bringing them to see such things in a theatre. Where home entertainment is concenred though, I must ask – how well can your little one work the “skip” button?
If she’s a crack shot – problem solved.
If not, I’d say perhaps keep ‘em on a higher shelf until your little ones are older and/or braver.
Funny thing, in doing my five questions that start every podcast, I have discovered that (unsurprisingly) many people’s first foray to a cinema was for a Disney film, but likewise many of them found themselves scared by something within those Disney films!
The skip button technique would make sense, but my daughter hasn’t reached that level yet. Her observational technique is a little more passive – soaking in whatever’s going on around her, which I suppose is a little more problematic.
Disney is perhaps offered a little too much trust with our children for reasons that have not been entirely thought out. Bambi is perhaps the most notorious offender – and that might be what parents like. Bambi explains the concept of death in a guilt-free way parents can feel is safe and even-handed, even if it might not really be.
Man, the evil witch with the poison apple in ‘Snow White’ was absolutely terrifying. I saw the movie again this year, and her character was very scary. How could someone stoop to such a low level, and want to harm such a lovely person as Snow White?
Overall, I’m not too bothered by this imagery. But then again, I don’t have kids. I just know that it’s good to keep your innocence for as long as possible.
Do you remember the second ‘Planet of the Apes’ film? It was rated PG and it’s incredibly graphic and scary, both physically and psychologically. Off topic, but I just had to get that off my chest!
Yeah, I think if we took a real inventory of classic Disney films, we might find a lot of disturbing imagery. It’s important to note that these films predate a lot of the rampant political correctness that seems to choke the art out of these stories nowadays. I’m not too concerned about the message that’s being sent in the films, as I think it’s a parent’s responsibility to put things in context for their kids and not watch movies and TV in a vacuum. Innocence is important to protect, but I think media awareness is just as important going forward.