. . . Right. Let me just go bleach my hair so I can watch all my problems magically disappear.Lady Cluck wrote:Oh pleaseBecause blonde girls have it so hard.

. . . Right. Let me just go bleach my hair so I can watch all my problems magically disappear.Lady Cluck wrote:Oh pleaseBecause blonde girls have it so hard.
I think M&C focused on their story just fine, regardless of whether or not the movie was put into production by the Disney heads with "black princess" in mind. What the filmmakers were doing and what Disney was doing isn't the same thing. Which is why I think the PC argument over TP&TF is forced and would be better applied to Pocahontas. The fact that TP&TF is nothing like TLM/Aladdin/B&tB proves that it was not calculated to be a '90s film + black princess down to every detail the way Tangled was.An African fairy tale would be amazing for example if done right, cause Disney would focus on the story rather than worrying about having a movie starting a black princess.
No one said The Princess and the Frog is any less of a normal story than other Disney movies. It's actually pretty standard and Disney-like.Lady Cluck wrote:How the HELL is TPATF any less of a normal story than other Disney movies? People are more critical of it because it's the first black princess. That's quite clear.
First of all, stop claiming people are racist with no logical reason to back it up or I'll report you. That's very offensive especially to me since I was never raised to feel that way against any race and never have in my entire life.Lady Cluck wrote:Someone had to be the first black princess but I'm sure if you had it your way, no one ever would have beenAnd no it wasn't exclusively for tokenism and it's racist to be that dismissive of the entire story just because a black princess is attached and you roll your eyes at Disney doing that "just to have a black princess." I actually LOVE the New Orleans twist on the fairy tale, which would have been pretty boring as a straight up adaptation.
I think the movie is fine too, just that it fell short in a lot of ways which I've already explained in the thread.Disney's Divinity wrote:I think M&C focused on their story just fine, regardless of whether or not the movie was put into production by the Disney heads with "black princess" in mind. What the filmmakers were doing and what Disney was doing isn't the same thing. Which is why I think the PC argument over TP&TF is forced and would be better applied to Pocahontas. The fact that TP&TF is nothing like TLM/Aladdin/B&tB proves that it was not calculated to be a '90s film + black princess down to every detail the way Tangled was.
I feel kind of bad for Lawrence. He didn't get much closure with Naveen, he just gets jailed.Jay wrote:So yeah I like the film. The only complaints I have is they should have utilized Facilier to his full potential and cut Lawrence.
Yeah I agree the ending to his story was rushed. I think they would have been better off cutting him and maybe having Facilier disguising himself as Naveen.Warm Regards wrote:I feel kind of bad for Lawrence. He didn't get much closure with Naveen, he just gets jailed.Jay wrote:So yeah I like the film. The only complaints I have is they should have utilized Facilier to his full potential and cut Lawrence.
Ha ha. Jealous of blondes, much?Lady Cluck wrote:Oh pleaseBecause blonde girls have it so hard.
Of course he/she is. Ayrans are the MASTER RACE. SUPERIOR.GreatGreg wrote:Ha ha. Jealous of blondes, much?Lady Cluck wrote:Oh pleaseBecause blonde girls have it so hard.
Let's see:Big One wrote:I'd like to know what kind of risks Princess and the Frog actually took, and why your critique of Tangled doesn't apply to Princess and the Frog which has Tiana who was pretty much exclusively made so there could be a black princess in the toyline to appeal to that audience. That isn't saying I have a problem with that, mind you, but your context is completely grasping at straws and your criticisms apply to Princess and the Frog even more-so than Tangled.Mooky wrote:Uh, no. CGI, Alan Menken, Barbie-ready merchandise and storyline cobbled from some of their previous hits: all crowd-pleasers as calculated as they come. This thread is the very proof of that. PatF at least took risks even if they didn't work in its favor.
It worked for the supporting cast. Most of the time Rapunzel still looked like a Muppet.Big One wrote:CGI isn't a con, either. It's called a new way to animate things and Tangled revolutionized how CG animation can be.
He's only imitating DisneyJedi, which is a little cruel, imo.DancingCrab wrote:You can roll your eyes to your hearts content, Cluck, but your recent tirade of nasty and senseless posts on this board are not doing you any favors.
Did you really mean that?thedisneyspirit wrote:I guess the lack of blackness works for Duster's favor?
Responses in bold.Mooky wrote:Let's see:
- It was a hand-drawn film in an era when most studios (and audiences) wouldn't touch one with a ten-foot pole. We could fool ourselves but CG is quite obviously the GA's preferred medium. It also didn't have a luxury of 3D gimmick. Okay, sure, I'll agree with this one. But at the same time, Princess and the Frog didn't do anything new with 2D animation ala the Paperman short. There was nothing new with how Princess and the Frog was animated which makes the entire endevour to bring back 2D animation as a viable and popular medium a failed experiment. And keep in mind 2D animation is still the most popular medium, because that's most of the animation that is featured on TV nowadays so it's still doing fairly well for itself, just not to a movie going audience.
- It was a princess/fairytale film, fully advertised as such. "Girly" films don’t make box-office money. That explains the multitude of box office successes Disney had in the past.
- It had black leads and predominantly black supporting cast. Again, films with black cast don't make box-office money, unless they're headlined by a star named Denzel, Will, or Halle, and feature white supporting cast. I agree with this, but I don't think the target audience Disney has going for it really cares about race which is kids. Kids opinions on race is primarily supported by their parents which in terms of actual racism is a very minor audience right there. Movies starring those actors appeal to a different audience, as do other films like the more gritty films with a majorly black cast. I do agree that the black lead factor has a part in it's box office letdown, but there's more to it than that and most of what I'm even talking about is critique with the film itself.
- It featured music by Randy Newman, who even by that point was pretty much detested by every Disney fan. It didn't help that his friendship with John Lasseter was supposedly the reason Alan Menken was booted off the project. This is just dumb. Only the hardcore fans even know who Alan Menken is. The majority of fans don't know who composes these films whatsoever and it'd be stupid to suggest otherwise. Also, Randy Newman is a much larger box office name than Alan Menken (though not as critically acclaimed, obviously) due to his success outside of movies. I will say that Randy Newman is a piece of shit in my opinion and I've never been a fan of his work, but that's for another topic.
- From the very moment it was announced, the film was plagued by controversies: Maddy/Mammy/Tiana, New Orleans/hurricane Katrina, racial slurs, voodoo/witchcraft, and as you put it, people complained the film was "pretty much exclusively made so there could be a black princess in the toyline to appeal to that audience". Filmmakers had to be extra apprehensive about it to make sure not to offend anyone as they had a bad prior experience with Song of the South. They could have easily scrapped it then and there, but they continued with the production. Source for any of this? The only thing I recall about Princess and the Frog is websites talking about their being a black princess for the first time ever and how much of a great thing it is. I also remember that websites critiqued how Tiana's design was changed to look less (or more?) black, but that's about it.
- Tales of transformation can be really hard for audiences to relate. Beauty and the Beast did it because it focused on the personal tragedy of the Beast and Belle was still pretty much the main lead. Brother Bear didn't, even with some personal drama involved. PatF was doomed from the start as the film was mostly a(n animal) comedy-drama for 3/4ths of its length. This isn't a risk, it's bad writing. No one, including myself, came to see Princess and the Frog in theaters for there to be an animal comedy on the screen.
- Take a look at who are the most popular Disney princesses: Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, and Rapunzel. What do they have in common: they're nerdy/goofy pure-hearted social outcasts who don’t fit in, but they never stop believing in/dreaming of better future/true love, which are pretty abstract ideals making them easily to relate to for a large number of fans ("She's an intellectual in a society full of philistines. That is totally like me."). Tiana as a character is very demure (see also Mulan and Pocahontas), with a fairly distinct goal, and loses some of the empathy points because of that (how many people dream of opening a restaurant?). This I also feel is pretty stupid. If anything the audience likes Tiana, they just don't wan to see her transformed into a frog for the entire movie. Imagine watching Beauty and the Beast, and Belle transforms into a Rabbit for 80% of the film and all the potential character development between her and Beast just goes down the drain. That's what happened to Princess and the Frog which in premise didn't even need to be a frog prince type story. It should of been called New Orleans or something along those lines and feature Tiana and Naveen meeting and creating a restaurant together. But instead, Disney had to shill it out for a Princess line to appeal to black audiences which isn't a bad thing by any means, but makes the movie itself less organic than it needs to be.
I don't disagree that Tangled played it very safe. and doing so, it was made in mind of being a good movie. The character arc of Rapunzel and Flynn was one of the best in Disney history in my opinion due to how organic and natural is was throughout the movie. The humor was also top notch and felt organic in the movie too. The soundtrack was pretty standard though, but aside from that it just hits all the right points being a cliche princess film. Playing it safe or not doesn't matter when the quality of the film is in mind here.Mooky wrote:Tangled played it safe to the extreme and didn't face any of these issues. The only issue largely debated was hand-drawn vs. CGI but most people got over it quickly.
...except she learns to embrace having fun while also pursuing her dream. Naveen watching her let loose and dance is one of the most touching moments. And Naveen learns to take life a little more seriously while still maintaining his carefree spirit. They complement each other...that's kind of the point.I am not racist. I liked The Princess and the Frog when I saw it, I own The Princess and the Frog, I really like Naveen, and I don't like Tiana based on her character alone. I hate how she works too much to have fun and her attitude. Anyway I just think Tangled is better and was addressing someone who compared the two in here.
Okay...Disney Duster wrote:Tangled went in new directions with the leads.
Disney Duster wrote:Rapunzel was trapped in a tower for all of her life and just wanted to get out. That's not very relatable to anyone!
Disney Duster wrote:And instead of having the usual prince they had a thieving, smug, debonair, orphaned man who grew to be a better person with Rapunzel.
Disney Duster wrote:And Mother Gothel was a complex villain who took care of Rapunzel and we couldn't tell if she loved Rapunzel or not (it is heavily debated).
Why did it have to do anything new with hand-drawn animation to be considered a good film (and for the record, it did do something new -- it was animated on tablets, not on paper)? I'm baffled by the idea that technical advances in film-making should somehow make or break a film ("effects-driven cinema"), when there are much more important factors at play. It just says that audiences will eat up anything as long as it's "pretty".Big One wrote:Okay, sure, I'll agree with this one. But at the same time, Princess and the Frog didn't do anything new with 2D animation ala the Paperman short. There was nothing new with how Princess and the Frog was animated which makes the entire endevour to bring back 2D animation as a viable and popular medium a failed experiment. And keep in mind 2D animation is still the most popular medium, because that's most of the animation that is featured on TV nowadays so it's still doing fairly well for itself, just not to a movie going audience.
When was the last time Disney had a success with a romance story prior to PatF? 1995? Movie-going audiences in 2009 were VERY much different from those in the 1990s. In general, box-office is dominated by 'male' films. Films with women featuring any topic perceived as exclusively female (romance, pregnancy, etc.) usually flop, unless the cast featured defies gender norms and starts behaving like stereotypical men (Bridesmaids comes to mind).Big One wrote:That explains the multitude of box office successes Disney had in the past.
Disney fans are very well-aware of who both of these people are and it's -- as you said -- stupid to suggest or downright insist otherwise. It may not have played a large factor in the film's success but it sure did make a dent.Big One wrote:This is just dumb. Only the hardcore fans even know who Alan Menken is. The majority of fans don't know who composes these films whatsoever and it'd be stupid to suggest otherwise. Also, Randy Newman is a much larger box office name than Alan Menken (though not as critically acclaimed, obviously) due to his success outside of movies. I will say that Randy Newman is a piece of shit in my opinion and I've never been a fan of his work, but that's for another topic.
Then you shouldn't assume so much about the film. Try these:Big One wrote:Source for any of this? The only thing I recall about Princess and the Frog is websites talking about their being a black princess for the first time ever and how much of a great thing it is. I also remember that websites critiqued how Tiana's design was changed to look less (or more?) black, but that's about it.
You may not have liked it, but please stop talking for others. I mean, seriously, "no one came to see came to see Princess and the Frog in theaters for there to be an animal comedy on the screen"? Talking frogs, alligator and firefly in the trailers weren't signs enough? And it wasn't exclusively comedy, it had powerful dramatic moments as well, like most Disney films.Big One wrote:This isn't a risk, it's bad writing. No one, including myself, came to see Princess and the Frog in theaters for there to be an animal comedy on the screen.
It's not stupid, Duster's comment above proves exactly what I wrote:Big One wrote:This I also feel is pretty stupid. If anything the audience likes Tiana, they just don't wan to see her transformed into a frog for the entire movie. Imagine watching Beauty and the Beast, and Belle transforms into a Rabbit for 80% of the film and all the potential character development between her and Beast just goes down the drain. That's what happened to Princess and the Frog which in premise didn't even need to be a frog prince type story. It should of been called New Orleans or something along those lines and feature Tiana and Naveen meeting and creating a restaurant together. But instead, Disney had to shill it out for a Princess line to appeal to black audiences which isn't a bad thing by any means, but makes the movie itself less organic than it needs to be.
Disney Duster wrote:I don't like Tiana based on her character alone. I hate how she works too much to have fun and her attitude.
Playing it safe does matter and is inherently weaved into the very fabric of any film. We wouldn't be having this discussion if circumstances surrounding the making of Tangled and PatF were the same or at least similar. There are genuine story and characterization problems in PatF, true, but didn't it occur to you they might have had something to do with all the obstacles the film faced going from its planning stage to the big screen? And at each of those issues, the film wasn't suddenly shelved only to never return from the Disney Archives' vault, or re-imagined as something different (like how the hand-drawn Snow Queen was scrapped due to "story problems" only to re-emerge mere months later as the CG Frozen), but it was released to a near-universal acclaim. It's a true underdog story and even if it's for that reason only, PatF will always triumph over Tangled for me.Big One wrote:I don't disagree that Tangled played it very safe. and doing so, it was made in mind of being a good movie. The character arc of Rapunzel and Flynn was one of the best in Disney history in my opinion due to how organic and natural is was throughout the movie. The humor was also top notch and felt organic in the movie too. The soundtrack was pretty standard though, but aside from that it just hits all the right points being a cliche princess film. Playing it safe or not doesn't matter when the quality of the film is in mind here.
Patrick you sure hit the nail on the head on why some of the songs (after FOTOS) failed to advance the story further and the problems in it's pacing, story and characters are way to open for me (or others) to ignore. But with that said, I still think that TPATF and Tanged were atleast the movies that Disney needed to make to get back on track with their fairytale genre and I have said countless times that I really like both films, flaws and all even if I prefer one film over another. If others want to agrue for one film over another I won't agrue their points because atleast they are well thought out.PatrickvD wrote:The Princess and the Frog has HUGE pacing issues, plotholes, inconsistent writing and other issues on a story telling level.
The jarring transition from Almost There to Friends on the Other Side just makes my brain hurt and let alone the fact that the other songs did nothing to further the plot with maybe the exception of Dig a little Deeper (and even that's stretching it). It has nothing in comparison to Disney's best fairytales when you look at the pacing of the film. It's off.
The thing is, when Disney's inevitable happy ending comes, we want to care about the characters. When Flynn saves and Rapunzel and vice versa, I cared. When Tiana and Naveen turned back into humans, half of their journey had been so contrived that I barely cared.
TPatF is not a bad film, but Tangled to me just works SO much better. And I am NOT talking about black vs blonde, hand drawn vs CGI or how Tangled rehashes elements from classic Disney films. Just the simple storytelling that's in place.