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On the opening day (Dec. 11, as I'm not in L.A. or N.Y.C.) I went to go see Disney's new movie 'The Princess and the Frog'. I took my younger cousins (17 and 5) with me because they wanted to see the movie, too. Though, I had been excited to see this movie for two YEARS. I was THRILLED that I could FINALLY, after so long, be excited about another animated Disney movie. I was excited for many reasons, some of which were:
- It was the first fully hand-drawn 2D animated feature movie/film from Disney in YEARS that didn't seem to be made half-heartedly (those directly to DVD movies and such don't count, this one was for THEATERS with MAJOR promotion and distribution)
- The animation, from what I had seen, looked just stunning/beautiful. The clips of the characters' voices, I liked
- The lead/main female, basically the star of the film, is Black/African American, which meant I could FINALLY have my own princess to fully identify with after all this time (oh sure, I might identify with a female lead because of similar interests or characteristics, such as reading or exploring, but never one I could truly imagine for myself)
Oh sure, I had reservations about the movie as I learned more details. I worried about them making Tiana a stereotypical caricature of a black female, as somehow 'less than' the other princesses and females (for the record, I HATED her original name of 'Maddy' - just not in line with names like 'Jasmine' or 'Aurora'). I worried that they'd have her wear mainly blue for most or at least half of the film (take a good look, ever notice how so many Disney females have blue on them? If they're not wearing blue, their eyes are blue, or they're constantly in blue backgrounds). I even wondered how they could possibly have an African American female in the deep South in 1920s 'America', given the history of this country (for a comparison, think about the story of Hansel & Gretel taking place in 1930s/1940s Germany, with Hansel & Gretel being Jewish). But even with my concerns, I decided not to pass judgment until I saw the movie.
Well, I saw the movie, and I LOVED it! I felt the storyline was well done and well executed (not TOO cliche, but not too 'out there', either). I enjoyed the animation and the design/look of the characters (I'm especially pleased about the design of Tiana and Naveen). The special-effects in the film are subtle, but not miss-able, and add a nice spark and 'pop' to every scene. While I enjoy some songs more than others, I liked all the music as a whole. I found myself laughing and being amused quite a bit, and even the sadder scenes/moments in the movie were just right (not overdone where a person would be crying buckets, but not 'corny' either). There's a sense, at least to me, that the viewer can watch and 'feel' the movie. I enjoyed the experiences of the characters as frogs, and liked the interactions between the characters.
Something else that pleased me about the movie was the way it ended. Of course, the way the villain met his end was not too surprising, but the movie ended with a twist. I won't go into details, as I don't want to spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it, but I will say that I LOVE that Tiana doesn't give up her life and her dreams for her man, like so many other Disney females do. She and Naveen actually work TOGETHER and are EQUAL, the way relationships SHOULD be. They give each other needed balance. It's no surprise she and Prince Naveen marry at the end of the movie, but she doesn't go running off to live in his palace and live 'Happily Ever After'. Heck, Tiana isn't even THINKING about giving up her life, and even tells Naveen, "My dream would not be complete without you in it". See that right there?! That's awesome. None of that 'I'll abandon everything I know for you because love you so much!' that many of the other females have done. She instead is of the opinion, "I love you, but my goals and dreams are equally important to me and I'm not giving them up". It's all about balance. More people should take a lesson.
I've got to say, Tiana is my all-time favorite Disney female. Ignoring that she's beautiful, I love that she has an actual real paying JOB (actually, two) in the movie. Seriously, think back to all the other Disney females. How many have real jobs like that? Not a one that I can think of, except Tiana (being a princess doesn't count, to me); Mulan is close though, being a hero of China, and a practicing, training fighter. Tiana makes her own money and isn't dependent on others. She's driven and determined and focused and isn't going to let much of anything stop her from getting what she wants. Plus, and this one is really great to me, she's not sitting around like some doe-eyed crybaby, waiting for a man to come along and make all her dreams come true. The fact that she can cook, likes and enjoys food, and is left-handed also adds to why I like her a lot. Also, she's not afraid to speak up and voice her opinion and feelings.
However, even with the awesomeness of the movie, there is SOMETHING that bothered me. The portrayal of the fat characters, mainly Naveen's manservant/chaperone, Lawrence, and the fat jokes he gets. In the beginning of the movie, when Naveen is dancing to the music, he calls to Lawrence cheerfully, "Dance with me, fat man!" which wouldn't have bothered me so much if it had not then been paired with Naveen also saying to Lawrence, "For someone who can't see his own feet, you sure are light on them" (I'm probably off by a word, but it's what was said) followed by Lawrence clumsily (and stereotypically) ending up falling and landing in a tuba (and then getting stuck). That part bothered and hurt me and even had me confused. Later in the film, they make sure to make fun of Lawrence having a big butt (because he's fat) by making sure it gets displayed up-close. It's like, the writers and animators made so sure to be racially sensitive, but they STILL chose to make fun of someone? How belittling and disappointing. If they had referred to one of the black characters as "black man" and then later had his lips shown up-close to make fun of how big they are, it would have been seen as offensive. I just thought they should have been more mindful.
But in spite of that, I really enjoyed the movie and want to see it again, and of course when it's released on DVD I'll be getting it. This is one my favorite Disney movies, right up there with 'The Little Mermaid'.