We’ve reached the Disney movies that came out during my lifetime. The Little Mermaid is also the first movie part of the coined “Disney Renaissance,” when Disney returned to making movie musicals. The story is based on Hans Christian Anderson’s fairytale, though we no longer have a storybook opening to introduce the tale. Instead, we’re greeted by a sailing ship, with the sailors singing Fathoms Below. One comments to Prince Eric and his advisor, Grimsby, that King Triton is to thank for the fair weather; Grimsby denounces mermaids as “nautical nonsense,” while the sailor insists. Once under water, we eventually come to the city of Atlantica, which is preparing for a concert, featuring Triton’s daughters, composed by Sebastian.
[Note: is has been suggested by pintrest that Triton’s daughters stand for the seven seas, depending on their hair and personality. As a kid, I just he just wanted all of his daughters to have names starting with “A”]
Ariel misses her debut because she is out exploring old shipwrecks with her fish friend, Flounder, searching for human artifacts. Flounder is certainly more cautious than Ariel and they manage to run into a shark. They take their findings to the surface to ask a sea gull, Scuttle, what they are for. According to the idiotic bird, a fork is a “dinglehopper” and used to comb one’s hair, while a pipe is a “snarfblat” and is a musical instrument. That reminds Ariel she missed the concert. Triton is furious and is even more so when he finds out Ariel has been going to the surface. Such actions are forbidden; she could have been seen by a barbaric human (the prequel that came out in 2008 explains that Triton’s wife had been killed by humans). Ariel’s retort is that she is sixteen, she’s not a child (and every adult is thinking, oh yes you are). Triton fires back with the classic, “as long as you live in my ocean, you obey my rules.” (That rarely works on kids/teens.) Once the argument has ended, Triton assigns Sebastian to look after Ariel.
What Sebastian discovers is Ariel’s treasure trove. And while Ariel has numerous bits and bobs, she wants more; she yearns to be Part of Your World. As anyone who daydreams about life being different, she guesses, “betcha on land/they understand/bet they don’t reprimand daughters, bright young women.” [Yes, for a while, I thought I’d be all grown up at sixteen….nooo. I’m almost twice that and I still have no idea what I’m doing. Yes, Ariel dear, human daughters do get reprimanded when they do something stupid]. All the while, the sea witch Ursula (who apparently once ruled the ocean) has had her two eels, Flotsam and Jetsam tailing Ariel and figures that she can exact revenge on King Triton through his daughter. Ariel is intrigued by a dark shape and swims to the surface to discover Eric’s ship is throwing a celebration for the prince’s birthday (complete with huge statue, which Grimsby hoped would have been a wedding present; the whole kingdom wants to see their prince settle down with the right girl [at least they include “right”]). The party is cut short when a hurricane blows in; lightning hits the sail and starts a fire. The ship runs into a reef and the crew is thrown overboard (or manages to get into a lifeboat somehow). However, Eric’s beloved canine companion, Max, is still onboard. The prince goes back for Max, but his foot gets stuck in the crumbling deck. He throws Max overboard and we next see an explosion, caused by the fire hitting gunpowder. Ariel swims in to rescue the handsome prince. They wash ashore a beach and she reprises her song, even more desperate to be part of the human world.
Sebastian’s got everyone in on the song
Ursula is positively cackling; King Triton’s daughter has fallen in love with a human! A prince, to be precise! Sebastian attempts to talk sense into the teenager, rationalizing life is better Under the Sea (a catchy, full-ocean production that I can’t help but smile every time I hear). Ariel’s sisters, and even Triton notice her changed behavior; humming all the time, always in a happy mood. The older girls inform their father that the youngest is in love. He assumes it’s a merman (who else could it be?) and calls in Sebastian. Sebastian, despite telling himself to “remain calm,” spills the secret. Ariel is happily flirting with the statue of Eric that has landed in her trove (how serendipitous) when her father appears in the shadows. He is absolutely incensed and destroys her treasures, including the statue, as a way to get through to her. As we’ve noticed before, he regrets his actions once his temper has abated. Flotsam and Jetsam swoop in and persuade Ariel to go to Ursula to solve her problems.
Ursula welcomes Ariel into her domain and justifies that she uses her powers to help Poor Unfortunate Souls [gotta admit, I’d love to perform this song; it’s sassy and so much fun to portray a villian]. The only way for Ariel to get what she wants is to become a human. And for this, Ursula just wants Ariel’s voice. When Ariel protests on how can she convince Eric to bestow true love’s kiss by the third sunset (in order to remain a human versus turning back into a mermaid and belonging to Ursula) Ursula retorts that she’ll “have your looks, your pretty face.” After all, human males prefer ladies to not say a word [I could go into how this has happened in periods of society, but I shan’t] The teen signs the contract, Ursula casts her spell and Ariel indeed becomes a human. Sebastian and Flounder rush her to the surface.
On land, Eric hasn’t been able to get the woman who saved his life out of his head, or the tune she sang. Max leads him to Ariel (the dog recognizes her scent). She seems familiar, but without her voice, she can’t be the one. Nevertheless, Prince Eric is a gentleman and eagerly agrees to take care of the young woman (they assume she was in a traumatic shipwreck). Sebastian follows Ariel into the castle, though he has to run for his life in the kitchen from French chef Louis, who loves Les Poissons. During dinner, Eric stares at Ariel and is happy to give her a tour the next morning. Ariel demonstrates that she is certainly different from other ladies. That evening, Eric takes her out in a boat and Sebastian takes matters into his own…claws; they’re running out of time to keep Ariel out of Ursula’s grasp. The crab sets the mood and urges the prince to Kiss the Girl (and helps Eric guess her proper name). Yet, just when the couple is leaning in, the eels dump them. Things are getting too close for Ursula; she has to take matters into her own tentacles. While Eric is deciding to choose Ariel over a mysterious woman (thanks to advice from Grimsby), a mysterious woman appears on the beach! With the voice he remembers! And…Eric is hypnotized.
Scuttle wakes Ariel the next morning, congratulating her on the happy news of her impeding marriage to Eric; the whole kingdom is talking about the wedding that afternoon. But when Ariel runs down the stairs, there is a dark-haired woman simpering next to Eric, who is instructing that the wedding ship leaves at sundown. The ship sets sail at dusk, without Ariel onboard. Yet, Scuttle has more news; he’s discovered that the new woman, Vanessa, is Ursula in disguise. Sebastian has Flounder help Ariel get to the ship, he’ll fetch Triton, and Scuttle is to stall the wedding. Scuttle is aided by the nearby animals who wreak absolute havoc. Max is pleased to get back at Vanessa (who kicked him; add animal cruelty to the charges, and further proof to Eric if he wasn’t hypnotized). In the commotion, Ariel’s voice is released and returns to its proper host, breaking the spell over Eric. Unfortunately, before they can have a proper conversation and kiss, the sun sets, turning Ariel back into a mermaid. Ursula has returned to being an octopus (or squid) and takes off with Ariel.
They meet up with Triton, who attempts to break the contract with his trident. Signed, it’s binding and no magic can change it, except, an exchange; Triton for Ariel, relinquishing the crown and trident to Ursula. Reacting as a father, Triton agrees. Now the commander of the seven seas, Ursula advances on Ariel, but Eric throws a spear to distract her. He’s lost his love once, he won’t lose her again. His attack causes Flotsam and Jetsam to pull him further under water. Sebastian and Flounder team up to release him. Ursula’s shot with the trident, meant for Eric, misses (thanks to Ariel) and hits her pets, destroying them. Angry, she grows until she towers over the surface. Ariel and Eric were initially caught on her crown, but jump away, quickly separated by the waves churned by Ursula. The sea witch traps Ariel and is bent on killing her with a blast from the trident. Those same waves also brought up the shipwrecks; Eric commandeers one and aims, running Ursula through (he jumps off during her death throes). With her death and the return of the trident, her curses are reversed, reverting her garden of creepy seaweed back to merfolk, including Triton.
Ariel once again returns Eric to shore and she wistfully sits on a rock (in a mimicry of the real Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen; I thought the movie took place in France for the longest time, actually, it’s probably set in Denmark). Sebastian muses to Triton that children must be free to live their own lives. One problem – how much Triton is going to miss his daughter. He grants her legs (and a new, sparkly dress; better than that sheet from earlier). Ariel eagerly runs to Eric and they finally get their kiss. Which transforms into a wedding. Triton rises in the water for a final goodbye, Ariel whispering “I love you, Daddy,” and Eric bowing to his father-in-law. He casts a rainbow over the ship and we know “they lived happily ever after.”
Little Mermaid did have a spin-off cartoon that ran in the nineties (I watched regularly) and it has been adapted into a Broadway stage musical (I think I saw part of it while at Disney World). There was a sequel, Return to the Sea involving Ariel and Eric’s daughter, Melody; and as already stated, there was a prequel. There is another Little Mermaid movie that came out in August of 2018 that seems to have a completely different storyline from the Disney classic (I was excited, then confused). There have been rumors of a Disney live-action retelling for several years, but nothing is truly known for certain, especially a release date.
While Ariel is not my favorite princess (nevertheless, it found its way to our VCR plenty), I do appreciate that she wanted to take her fate in her own hands (to good and bad consequences. If it involves visiting an evil witch and signing over your voice or “belonging” to someone, bad. Good that she fights for what she loves). She swims after Eric’s wedding ship, even though she’s uncoordinated as a human, to save Eric. She does not ask her father for legs at the end, but he was kind enough to gift them (that whole: if you love something, let it go). Triton is a typical father (though he has to balance raising seven daughter and running a large underwater kingdom). He wonders if he did the right thing and wants to lay down rules, but not stifle his children. Eric is a good match for Ariel. He does not hesitate to rescue his beloved dog, takes care of his advisor and crew. He takes in a woman in trouble even though he had no clue who she was. While Ariel instantly fell in love with Eric and Eric had fallen in love with the woman he rescued, he also fell in love with the true Ariel. All in all, a better role model for young people.
Questions? Comments? Any other adults find it a little disconcerting that a man is being encouraged to kiss a young woman who can’t speak?
Love, love, love Winnie the Pooh! Behind How to Train Your Dragon and Lord of the Rings/Hobbit it is one of the things guaranteed to put a smile on my face. I am not aware exactly of how or when I first fell in love with Winnie the Pooh; it’s been a favorite as long as I can remember. I have a copy of A.A. Milne’s book, several Disney board books, and a more recent treasury. When my brother and sister-in-law were expecting, I knew I would be getting Pooh bear items; it’s classic and works for boys or girls. Pooh celebrated his 90th birthday in 2016 and more information about his background has been released. Like the real story of a bear named Winnie (I have that book).
The movie opens once again with a storybook in the supposed nursery of Christopher Robin. The nursery is actually very reminiscent of the one from Mary Poppins, with the same bedspread, similar blocks and furniture. Our narrator gives a little background and explains that all of Christopher Robin’s friends like in a “wonderful world of make believe,” the Hundred Acre Wood. The film is made of shorter segments, like chapters; the book even flips pages between stories, with an adorable intro tune. We’re treated to several songs throughout the movie. Pooh sings as he practices his “stoutness exercises,” perfectly content to be who he is. Sadly, he is out of honey, so Pooh must go get some more and a flittering bee gives him an idea. After falling out of the tree from his initial plan to simply climb, Pooh borrows a balloon from Christopher Robin, then rolls in the mud, becoming a Little Black Rain Cloud. He floats up to the bee hive, but the bees suspect (which Pooh spells correctly, he often has more than “very little brains”) and after flying about for a bit, Pooh lands with Christopher Robin in the mud.
Next, Pooh visits Rabbit for lunch and overindulges on honey. He gets stuck when he tries to leave and no tugging or pulling works to free him. So, Pooh must wait until he’s thinner to leave. Rabbit’s not pleased by his houseguest, though he attempts to decorate Pooh’s backside (it doesn’t work out). Gopher makes an appearance (he’s not in every chapter and not often part of the core group of characters). Just when Rabbit despairs ever using his other door, Pooh budges. There’s a little parade and everyone joins in to free Pooh. A little too much “oomph” and he flies into the bee tree and is finally able to enjoy honey again.
The Hundred Acre Wood has a Blustery Day next. Pooh’s diddy takes lyrics from the book as he skips along to visit his Thoughtful Spot. After some thinking (and input from Gopher) he decides to wish his “very dear friend, Piglet” a “happy Winds-Day.” Alas, the little Piglet is blown about by the wind and becomes a kite. They run into Owl, his tree and house rocking back and forth in the wind, before it’s finally blown over. The Blustery Day turns into a Blustery Night and there’s a new sound in the Wood. Pooh, being a bear of very little brain, lets the new noise in. Turns out, it’s a Tigger! I think The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers is the most famous song from Winnie the Pooh. It’s very cheerful and “bouncy.” Tigger puts the idea in Pooh’s head that there are Heffalumps and Woozles out to steal the bear’s honey (Pooh attempts to correct Tigger by saying they’re elephants and weasels. I wonder sometimes who is the one “with very little brains.”) That sequence has always been a bit weird to me, not as cute and cuddly as the rest.
After Pooh’s dream, the windy day has become a stormy night and the following morning, the Rain, Rain, Rain Came Down, Down Down. The lyrics tell the brief tale of Piglet’s home flooding and washing him out the window. Pooh falls off a tree branch and they’re both caught. Christopher Robin starts to mount a rescue, sending Owl to locate their friends. A waterfall causes Piglet and Pooh to swap places; Pooh is now on the chair and Piglet is in the honey pot. They wash up at Christopher Robin’s place and Christopher Robin declares Pooh to be a hero for rescuing Piglet. They throw a party once the water has receded. Yet, all this time, Eeyore has been searching for a new house for Owl. He takes the group to a lovely tree with the sign “Trespassers Will” in front; Piglet’s house (the tale is it’s short for “Trespassers William,” Piglet’s grandfather). [Yes, as adults, we realize that it probably is the beginning of “Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted” or something. It’s adorable as a child]. Piglet is cheered as a hero for letting Owl have his house. Pooh declares that Piglet will live with him.
The next chapter is about bouncing. Rabbit has had enough of Tigger bouncing him and ruining his garden. He gets the idea to take Tigger into the woods and lose him. When they find him again, Tigger will be sorry and never bounce them again (children, this is not a safe, or smart idea). Instead, when Piglet, Pooh, and Rabbit take Tigger out the next day, it is them who end up getting lost in the mist. Pooh eventually leads Piglet out by listening to his stomach. Wandering around the forest for hours leads Rabbit’s mind to play tricks on him, scaring him with the sound of frogs and caterpillars munching on leaves. He’s subsequently bounced by Tigger, who leads him out; Rabbit’s plan backfired.
But Tigger gets himself into trouble nevertheless. The first snow of the season, he plays with Roo and they decide to “bounce,” not climb a tall tree. Tiggers, while not good at ice skating, are apparently scared of heights. Pooh, and Piglet, who have been following [their own] tracks, come across the pair and go to get help. Roo has no problem jumping down. The narrator has to flip the book so Tigger can slide down the text. Rabbit attempts to hold Tigger to his rash promise to never bounce again. But their other friends are all sad and miss the old Tigger, so Rabbit caves. Tigger also points out that Rabbit’s feet are made for bouncing.
In general, the denizens of the Hundred Acre Wood are accepting of each other. No one pushes one another to be different. They all look up to Christopher Robin as their boy, but they also put up with Owl’s long stories (except when danger is imminent, such as the waterfall during the rainy day). They don’t tell Eeyore off for constantly losing his tail and they don’t want to hurt his feelings when he finds Piglet’s house for Owl. Kanga lets Roo play with Tigger, simply cautioning to “be careful” and bundle up, but she doesn’t criticize Tigger for bouncing to the top of a tree. Rabbit tends to be the sourpuss of the group, openly disliking Tigger’s bouncing, but they encourage him to accept Tigger. Piglet is never made to feel bad about being the smallest and he’s Pooh’s very best friend, an odd pair. And while Pooh is a “silly old bear,” they listen to his ideas. It was a very encouraging show as a child and demonstrates that you can be friends with anyone.
We come to the last chapter, where Christopher Robin has to go away to school. But he has a walk with his “silly old bear,” discussing “doing nothing,” and they’ll never forget each other. They stop at their iconic bridge and we’re left feeling warm and fuzzy inside.
When I was in Disney, I managed to capture a few pictures of Pooh throughout the park, but did not manage to meet him (if I ever go back, that is a goal). We rode his ride and visited the shrubberies in England. About the time I was born, Disney put out a cartoon series, The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, which I watched for years as a small child; it was a staple on the Disney Channel. There have been numerous other movies and shows involving Pooh Bear. I’ve seen some, like The Search for Christopher Robin. I did watch Goodbye Christopher Robin and that depressed me. I finished that movie feeling bad for ever liking Winnie the Pooh since it created bad memories for Christopher Robin. The more recent Christopher Robin movie, starring Ewan McGregor is happier. There are sad moments, as can be expected considering Christopher Robin is grown up, but the ending is happy (and in view of Mark Gatiss as Christopher’s boss, I see Mycroft from Sherlock and I want him taken down). So, Pooh and Robin Hood are certainly at the top of my list of Disney favorites; Pooh edges Robin out a little.
Questions? Comments? Who was your favorite childhood character?
This remains one of my favorite Disney movies and started my interest in British folklore. There is no historical proof of a singular “Robin Hood” existing but tales of him date to the fifteenth century. As with other films and shows about Arthurian legend, I’ll swing back around and post about other Robin Hood films.
Another storybook opening, and simplified history (taking a course in medieval history in college taught me that Richard was not the best king and the whole Plantagenet line is kind of messed up). Our narrator Alan-a-Dale, a rooster, informs us that this is the animal kingdom’s version of the tale and it is “what really happened.” Oo-de-lally is a fun diddy and introduces us to the characters. As an adult, I appreciate Little John cautioning Robin about the chances he’s taking. And as an adult, I recognize how many times Robin comes close to dying. As a child, I related more to Robin; “ha ha! They’ll never catch me!” The bit about “rob” being a naughty word is a bone tossed due to it being a children’s movie.
Little John and Robin are given the chance to further “borrow” from the rich when a royal procession passes through Sherwood Forest to collect taxes in Nottingham. To do so, they dress up as fortune-telling women. Sir Hiss is actually a typical royal advisor; attempting to be blunt, but also kissing up. Prince John is a whiny brat with an enlarged younger-sibling complex. It’s funny as a child when he sucks his thumb and throws a tantrum. And I laughed when Little John and Robin ran away with all that gold and Prince John’s robe.
While Prince John overshadows the Sherriff of Nottingham as the primary villain, the Sherriff is no picnic either. He blatantly steals from the injured and from a child on his birthday. Robin stops by, coming in as a blind beggar, to cheer the boy up. The kids lead us to the castle, where they and we in turn meet Maid Marian, and her lady-in-waiting, Lady Kluck. This is when we discover that Marian and Robin were sweethearts years ago, before Marian went to London (we’re never told why she went to London or what brought her back). It is also revealed that she is the niece of King Richard (which would technically make her Prince John’s niece as well). A phrase that adults catch that goes over children’s head is when Skippy shouts “death to tyrants!” We learn later, in school, that this is what John Wilkes Booth shouts after he’s shot President Lincoln. Make of that what you will. Remember: this is from the kid that thinks kisses are “sissy stuff.”
Once the children have left, Marian tells Kluck that she is still in love with Robin, but worries he’s forgotten her in the time she’s been gone. Then we see Robin humming, paying no attention to the dinner he is burning, because he’s thinking about Marian. And he still loves her, but feels he can’t marry her since he is an outlaw and that is not the life that she deserves. Little John and Friar Tuck both try to cheer him up, Tuck declaring that Richard will pardon Robin when he returns from the Crusades and the king will end up with “an outlaw for an in-law.” Oh, and to really cheer Robin up, there is an archery tournament the next day where Maid Marian will kiss the winner.
The tournament, as the merry band guesses, is Prince John’s plan to capture Robin. Robin has disguised himself as a stork (though Marian recognizes his eyes). But his skill raises suspicion and Hiss realizes who he is (there is a whole funny bit with him flying about in a balloon after being kicked out by Prince John and disguised Little John, then sealed in a barrel of ale by Alan and Tuck). When Robin wins the tournament, John cuts away his disguise and orders his immediate death (okay, a little dark for a kid). Marian pleads for Robin’s life to be spared, because she loves him. Robin returns her love, but Prince John won’t be swayed, shouting “off with his head!” when Robin loudly declares “long live King Richard!” Little John to the rescue! He threatens Prince John to let Robin go, but when the Sherriff discovers the subterfuge, a battle breaks out. Which was honestly my favorite part of the movie as a kid…and still is. Marian at first seems like a typical damsel in distress, calling for Robin to help her. But she does throw a pie to distract a vulture. She eagerly accepts Robin’s marriage proposal and agrees to a honeymoon in “London, Normandy, and sunny Spain.” (The movie does get some historical notes correct: mentioning the Normans and Normandy, Marian’s costume. However, Little John’s purple ruff is inaccurate; that fashion piece wouldn’t show up until Elizabeth I). The little football gag is hilarious, including the snippets of college fight songs.
Love is not my favorite Disney love song. Part of it stems from the scene being really boring as a kid, after the high energy of the battle. Phony King of England, on the other hand, is hilarious. And includes further nuggets of history. No, history books do not call him the “phony King of England.” The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Royal Britain put out by Charles Phillip describes John as “an unprincipled opportunist…[who] made a series of bad decisions in pursuit of short-term advantage (46).” He was known as Lackland due to being the younger son, and losing territory in France that had been gained by his father, Henry II. His taxation policies when he fought to reclaim that land led to the barons’ revolt which brought about the Magna Carta, which “guaranteed the reform of royal abuses of power and turned out to be the first step in establishing constitutional government in England (47).” It was true that Eleanor of Aquitaine (a truly awesome queen) favored elder brother Richard over John, but their father favored him (not that it helped when both sons revolted). “Too late to be known as John the First, he’s sure to be known as John the Worst,” is rather true. There have been no other “Johns” in the royal family. [Further historical note: John at least had children to succeed him; Richard did not. Richard also was rarely in England due to either being on Crusade, captured, or simply preferring France. Can you tell where my interests lay in college? lol]
Disney note: it has been pointed out and I can verify after watching Disney movies for the past month or so, that the dance scene in Robin Hood borrows from Jungle Book and Aristocats. I see nothing wrong with the fact and just find it a bit of a “fun fact.”
Continuing on! Prince John is furious now, between Robin’s escape and the peasants’ irreverence. He’s tripled taxes and thus, most everyone is in jail due to their inability to pay. When the Sherriff pays a visit to Friar Tuck and takes the lone coin from the poor box, Tuck kicks the lackey out and they fight in the churchyard. Tuck is arrested for treason. Prince John sentences him to be hung in the morning in an effort to draw out Robin and thus make it a double hanging (again, a bit dark for a kids’ film). Robin re-uses his blind beggar disguise to gain information from the Sherriff (Trigger is a bit paranoid, but Nutsy and the Sherriff are both idiots). Robin and Little John plan a jailbreak (Marian and Kluck must have stayed back in Sherwood Forest). Little John will take care of the jail and Robin will go after Prince John’s gold.
And they’re almost successful. Hiss wakes up as Robin grabs the last bag of gold, but Robin escapes on his zip line and Little John has the rest of the prisoners loaded on a cart. But one of the baby bunnies has been left behind. Robin sends the rest on and he goes back. The guards manage to close the gate, but the bunny fits through; Robin climbs. The Sherriff chases him into the tower and his torch lights the room on fire. Robin escapes to the roof, but the flames still lick at him. This remains a bit of a nail-biter and I can remember being worried during this scene as a child and almost in tears when Robin jumps and the arrows seem to have possibly killed him, one sticking through his hat. It doesn’t help that Little John and Skippy are worried and almost in tears themselves. Happily, Robin is alive and shouts “a pox on the phony king of England!” Prince John is incensed again and pushed over the edge when Hiss points out his flaws and mentions that his mother’s castle is now on fire. The Prince chases Hiss with a stick, thumb in his mouth again, Hiss crying for help because “he’s gone stark-raving mad!”
The final scenes show that Robin Hood has been pardoned and there’s a wedding; his and Marian’s. King Richard has returned and “straightened everything out.” The monarch chuckles to Tuck that he now has “an outlaw for an in-law,” quoting the friar’s prediction. Prince John and his cronies have been arrested and are shown to be toiling in the rock field. The carriage is reminiscent of Cinderella’s (and Marian’s dress and the bouquet are not historically accurate, but it’s a children’s movie and that is what we are familiar with in regards to a wedding). And they live happily ever after!
As I stated in the beginning, Robin Hood remains one of my favorite Disney movies. It’s got lots of action, a little bit of a love story; though I’ve always enjoyed it for the tale solely about Robin. To me, the music isn’t quite as good as the soundtracks from the eighties and nineties (I’ve got nothing against the Sherman Brothers; I love Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Mary Poppins [those will be mentioned in a future musical section]). But I’d love to hear what you guys think. Do you have a favorite folk hero? Favorite period in history?
A play on the word “aristocrats,” ’tis a tale of a family of aristocratic cats in early twentieth-century Paris. Their owner, typically referred to as Madame, though occasionally referred to as “Adelaide” by the elderly lawyer, is a former opera singer (her favorite role was Carmen, from Bizet’s opera of the same name [the song playing on the record player is Habarnera]). Her dearest companions are her four cats; Duchess and her kittens Toulouse (a nod toFrench artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec), Berlioz (a reference to French composer Hector Berlioz) and Marie (an homage to Marie Antoinette, most likely). They are cared for by indulgent butler, Edgar. Except when Edgar eavesdrops on Madame’s conversation with her lawyer, he discovers that he will inherit her vast fortune after the cats.
One could call Madame a crazy cat lady; leaving a family of cats a fortune seems…ridiculous on a level. They’re cats; what are they going to do with it? But I view her sympathetically with Duchess. She’s an old woman who has admitted she has no living relatives (we don’t know if she was ever married, ever had any children) and her closest companions have been this family of cats. So, if she wants to, why not leave the money to the cats?
Duchess carries on her day, heedless of Edgar’s plotting and scheming, educating her offspring to be proper aristocrats. Toulouse practices his painting while Berlioz accompanies Marie practicing her Scales and Arpeggios. Toulouse and Berlioz are typical brothers, who like to roughhouse a bit (the piano gets some paint on it at one point and they practice fighting alley cats) while Marie is a little diva, swooning at romantic phrases and insisting she’s a lady. “Ladies don’t start fights, but they can finish them.” Her brothers’ response to her insisting “ladies first,” is that she is “not a lady, you’re nothing but a sister!” Duchess keeps patient control of them. Their lunch, served by Edgar, includes sleeping pills so he can remove them from the house that evening quietly.
He drives his motorbike out into the country and runs into two hounds, Napoleon and Lafayette (yes, the movies does indeed take place in Paris. If Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower aren’t enough proof). A wild and slightly improbable chase later, the basket with Duchess and her kittens is left under a bridge. A storm wakes them up and they realize what has happened. They take shelter in their basket and wait for morning.
Morning brings Thomas O’Malley Cat singing an introduction (with words that I am not sure of to this day). Duchess is the only cat visible during his exposition, so he flirts. He’s flustered by the appearance of her kittens and almost rescinds his offer of help. Duchess, while very ladylike, does not hesitate to set off with her children. O’Malley comes to his senses and scares up a ride for them (Marie spends a portion of the movie as the damsel in distress). When they’re kicked off the truck by a “horrible human,” the group attempts to take the train tracks. An actual train chases them off and Marie is in distress again. That escapade introduces them to Abigail and Amelia Gabble, very silly English geese. (Their giggling is incessant). With them they do manage to return to Paris and meet up with “Uncle Waldo,” who is “marinated.” He seems a harmless enough drunk, but as an adult, I take it with a grain of salt. (Abigail and Amelia giggle throughout)
Back at Madame’s mansion, she has discovered her beloved cats missing. Edgar brags to the horse, Frou Frou, and mouse, Roquefort (a French cheese) that he is the now famous catnapper from the paper, though he realizes he lost some items when he abandoned the cats. He must retrieve them before they’re found by the police. This leads to another run in with Lafayette and Napoleon (who still asserts he is the leader and he’ll decide).
It is too late in the evening for Duchess and her kittens to return to Madame, so they crash at O’Malley’s pad where Scat Cat and the gang are swinging. (I used to like Everybody Wants to Be a Cat more before it was part of a medley for a synchronized swimming routine. It took several years before I could listen to it again.) I think I even cringed as a child at some of the stereotypical racial characterizations; I knew that was not how Asians should be portrayed, it was demeaning. The song is still “bouncy,” as Berlioz states. There’s a harp interlude that I always forget is part of the song. It’s a nice demonstration that both sides can appreciate each style. Once the kittens are asleep, Thomas and Duchess have a conversation. Duchess wants to stay with Thomas, but she won’t leave Madame. Madame loves them very much and would miss them terribly. Berlioz sadly sums up the children’s feelings: “Well, we almost had a father.”
O’Malley is still a gentle-cat and sees Duchess and the kittens home. To be grabbed by Edgar again and locked in a trunk to be sent to Timbuktu. Roquefort is sent to fetch O’Malley, who sends him to Scat Cat (real smart, Tom, sending a mouse to a gang of cats). They attack Edgar, with some help from Frou Frou, and he switches places with Duchess et al and he’s carted off to Timbuktu instead. Madame is happily reunited with her companions, and gladly adds another man to the house. She comments to her lawyer that the new will should include any offspring Thomas and Duchess have, both of whom seem open to the idea. Madame blithely mentions that if Edgar knew about the will, he would not have left. I guess she thought that Edgar had just run off. In addition, Madame has started a new foundation, giving a home to all the alley cats of Paris (so she can enjoy the swing music).
I tend to associate this movie with my mother, since she loves cats. The kittens are adorable and act like human siblings; Duchess is a remarkable female feline, with all of the poise and manners of breeding, but she’s also able to accept and befriend those of a lower class, without being condescending. Overall, it would rank under Jungle Book, but certainly higher than some other Disney movies (Lady and the Tramp, for instance. I didn’t mind puppies and dogs in 101 Dalmatians, but I’m not fond of Lady and the Tramp).
Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
A quick note first: this may seem to be posted early, but I’m attempting to increase the number of posts per week. I cannot guarantee strict consistency of two posts per week; I work in retail and we are coming upon a busy time of year. But I have so many more movies and some TV shows I’d like to get to!
Jungle Book
Based on the “Mowgli” stories of Rudyard Kipling (I think I tried to read Rikki-Tikki-Tavi when I was young; if I finished it, I didn’t like it). Based in India, it tells the story of a young “man cub” Mowgli who was lost as an infant in the jungle. He’s found by a panther, Bagheera, but taken to a family of wolves. Ten years later, a threat returns to the jungle; the tiger, Shere Kahn. The “man cub” must return to the “man village;” Shere Kahn fears and hates men and the tiger will not rest until Mowgli is dead and will kill any who protect the boy. Bagheera volunteers to lead Mowgli back to the village.
The cover I remember from video tapes
Mowgli does not understand why he has to leave the only home he’s ever known. Along the way, Bagheera and Mowgli run into Kaa, the snake, who attempts to hypnotize Mowgli in order to eat him. Then they meet a herd of elephants, under the leadership of Colonel Hathi (with a catchy marching cadence). Mowgli seems to enjoy copying other animals’ mannerisms and continues to put up a fuss about leaving. At the end of his patience, Bagheera first growls at the child, “you’re going if I have to drag you every step of the way” (I’m sure this is what every parent tells a wayward child at some point) and finally exclaims that Mowgli is on his own!
Well, Mowgli next meets Baloo, a sloth bear (I didn’t realize what sort of bear he was until recently; as a child, he was always a bear. Not the same as Winnie the Pooh, but a bear nevertheless; possibly classified as a “grey bear” compared to a “black bear” or “grizzly bear.”) And Baloo is the opposite of Bagheera, who seems practical, while Baloo sings about the Bare Necessities and a carefree lifestyle. I’m still not sure what a “paw paw” or “prickly pear” are, but they were fun as a kid. [Upon re-watching, he’s almost a prequel to Timon and Pumba: carefree life, no worries, eat bugs.] Baloo takes an instant liking to “little britches” and quickly adopts the boy as his own cub. He promises Mowgli that he can stay in the jungle with “good ol’ Papa Bear.”
“I Wanna Be Like You”
Until the monkeys nab him and take him to the ancient ruins to meet King Louie. The orangutan wants to Be Like You and makes a deal with the man cub; he’ll help Mowgli stay in the jungle in exchange for knowledge on how to make “man’s red flower” aka, fire. But Mowgli doesn’t know how to make fire, which we find out is one of Shere Kahn’s greatest fears (this may be why Louie wants to know how to create it). Mowgli is in fact rescued by Bagheera and Baloo and while he sleeps that evening, the two adults have a discussion; Mowgli must go back to the man village; he will be safer there, Baloo alone cannot protect him. When the bear tells the boy the news come morning, Mowgli runs…into Kaa again.
In the meantime, we are introduced to Shere Kahn. His deer hunt (yes, there are apparently deer in the jungle in India) is interrupted by the elephant brigade and he hears the news about a lost man cub. He was not aware that there was a man cub in the jungle. (Good going, heroes) So the tiger has joined the hunt for the man cub. Kaa has managed to hypnotize Mowgli again and prevent Shere Kahn from finding the boy, but Mowgli wakes and pushes the python out of the tree, again. Mowgli next comes across a group of vultures (nice ones, based off of the Beatles), but by this point, he’s depressed that none of his “friends” want to keep him around. All he wants to do is stay in the jungle and they keep making him leave. The vulture quartet explain What Friends Are For (they’ve never met an animal they didn’t like…adults get the double meaning), though they’re interrupted at the end with Shere Kahn’s appearance. Mowgli, being young and stupid, isn’t afraid of Shere Kahn and refuses to run, even when the tiger gives him a “sporting” head start. Luckily, Baloo arrives to grab the tiger’s tail and a rain storm picks up. Lightning strikes a tree, creating fire and the vultures urge Mowgli to act. The boy grabs a lit branch and ties it to Shere Kahn’s tail. The tiger runs off in fear; except he’s already struck down Baloo. Bagheera gives a touching eulogy…but Baloo’s not really dead.
Baloo declares “nothin or nobody gonna come between” him and his cub. Until they hear odd singing; a young girl is fetching water from the river. Mowgli wants a better look and (falls in love, I guess). Baloo urges him to come back to the jungle; Bagheera urges that he goes on to his own kind. Mowgli follows the girl into the village. The End.
In 2016, Disney re-made the animated tale into live action. I have seen it; though I haven’t been able to get my hands on it again. I do remember it being a more mature tale; Shere Kahn kills Mowgli’s wolf father. The film shows Mowgli as more human; using “tricks” to accomplish tasks rather than imitating other animals. I enjoy the jazzy soundtrack from the animated movie; they tried with Bare Necessities, but some of the charm was lost. The newer rendition of I Wanna Be Like You is dark and foreboding and Louie was large and definitely not Mowgli’s friend. The end is opposite from the animated; Mowgli does use fire to defeat Shere Kahn, but he stays in the jungle, rather than return to the man village.
Cover of the 2016 live-action version
There is sequel planned for the live-action movie, and a movie titled Mowgli due out in 2019 (directed by Andy Serkis [Gollum/Smegol] and starring Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, and Benedict Cumberbatch), though I’m not sure how closely it will resemble the Disney story. There was a direct sequel to the animated film – I saw it once and all I can remember is that Mowgli ended up in the jungle again, somehow, and there have been numerous other iterations of the Jungle Book story. I, however, remember the characters in the cartoon TaleSpin (I still have some of the episodes released on tapes), where Baloo is a pilot, Shere Kahn is a villainous business-tiger, and Louie runs a club. (I think some of my fondness stems from the fact that Baloo had a plane and my father loves flying and planes). [Fun note: the air pirates from TaleSpin show up in the rebooted DuckTales cartoon, with added singing. Further proof that I have not outgrown Disney]
TaleSpin logo
Oh, and if any of the voices from the animated film sound familiar; they are. Phil Harris was Baloo (Bill Murray in the live-action) and he went on to voice O’Malley in Aristocats and Little John in Robin Hood (the animation style of the bears are very similar as well). Sebastian Cabot was Bagheera (Ben Kinsgley’s role in the live-action) and we’ve previously heard him as Sir Ector in Sword in the Stone and the always trusty Narrator in several movies. Sterling Holloway was Kaa (Scarlett Johanson in the live-action) and he’s the ever lovable Winnie the Pooh [I try to ignore that fact because that just makes things a little creepy]. Colonel Hathi was voiced J. Pat O’Malley, who seems to have a long run with Disney. Mowgli and Christopher Robin share Bruce Reitherman as a voice. Idris Elba as Shere Kahn and Christopher Walken as King Louie are other big name stars in the live-action adaptation.
In the spectrum of “Disney movies I like,” Jungle Book falls in the middle. I’d probably watch it if it was on television and didn’t have other plans. As a child, I thought it was fun for another child to live with animals; we like imitating them anyway. And Mowgli at least tries to make friends with other animals. I sided with Baloo and wanted Mowgli to stay with his jungle buddies. And the girl’s actions, even to me as a child, were obvious that she was trying to get Mowgli to go with her.
As always, let me know if you have any comments, or questions. What was your favorite Disney cartoon?
This was the first iteration of the Arthurian legend I was exposed to; luckily it was not the version that got me interested in the legend. Overall, it has a good message for kids about education and that the best way to move up in the world and to be someone of importance is to have a solid foundation. Brains over brawn, and all that. But just like the source material, T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, I contest it’s characterization. (A tiny bit of background on me as I avoid delving into a rant…I have done some reading on Arthurian legend and my capstone project from college was on Morgan le Fae, where I read The Once and Future King, Le Morte d’Arthur, Mary Stewart’s Crystal Cave sequence, and The Mists of Avalon among other interpretations and I am aware there are several ways of looking at the legend.)
Carrying on…Disney’s movie opens on a storybook, though added this time, singing! And glosses over a decent chunk of the legend…like Uther. Arthur’s father. Though, considering he committed adultery in order to beget Arthur…not the most child-friendly backstory. Disney sums it up as “the good king died.” The country descended into chaos, but lo, magically, a sword appeared in a stone in London town (historical note: not called London at that time). Inscribed upon the sword in gold letters: “Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil is rightwise king born of England.” Many tried and failed. The sword is eventually forgotten and England falls into the Dark Ages. (Further historical note: that is not how the Dark Ages happened).
Forgot that I had done this…there is an “attraction” at Disney where you can attempt to pull the sword from the stone. “King” has been changed to “Ruler” in the inscription.
We first meet an old man with a long white beard, blue robe and hat, complaining about the lack of electricity and plumbing; our first hint that he is not all he seems since even as kids we have figured out those didn’t exist in the Middle Ages. He’s preparing for “someone important” to drop by, as he tells his talking owl, Archimedes. Fate has willed that he will guide a young boy to his place in the world. We next meet said young, scrawny boy – Arthur, called Wart, and muscular Kay. Wart messes up Kay’s shot and rushes into the woods to retrieve the arrow. Demonstrating his lack of grace again, he falls into the old man’s home (landing on the carefully placed chair). The old man introduces himself as Merlin, a wizard who can see centuries into the future (and possibly time travel; in The Once and Future King, White writes that Merlin lives backwards in time). He has futuristic plans and models laying about his home, such as a locomotive and starts expounding that children need a good education. He agrees to accompany Wart back to the castle to begin. A memorable scene of nonsense words packs up his belongings, though Merlin cautions young Wart that magic won’t answer all problems.
Wart’s foster father, Sir Ector is against Merlin’s insistence on an education for Wart at first. His method for raising the klutz is a demerit system and assigning chores (not wholly a bad notion, it does teach responsibility, the excess is the problem). Pellinore brings word of a [jousting] tournament in London that will decide who will be King of England (question: was this not tried before?) Wart correctly explains that only men of proper birth can become knights (and thus, compete in the tournament); Wart being an orphan can only hope to train as a squire, an assistant to a knight. Merlin is tricky and wrangles an agreement for education from Ector. Merlin’s method of teaching involves transforming himself and Wart into different animals. Their first go-about is as fish where we are treated to a diddy teaching us about “for every to there is a fro, for every up there is a down,” and ultimately, brains beat brawn.
Merlin’s next lesson, after magically setting the dishes to wash themselves (not quite as disastrous as Mickey’s stunt with the mops) is to turn him and the boy into squirrels, whose lives are full of trouble. We learn alongside Wart about love (and how persistent female squirrels are about pursuing a mate). I felt a little bad with Wart at how broken-hearted the young girl squirrel was when she found out Wart was human. Next, Wart is turned into a bird and is briefly tutored by Archimedes. Unfortunately, they come across another house in the woods; this time, belonging to Mad Madam Mim. (Note: Mim does not appear in other versions of the Arthurian legend, though there are several other witches, including the Lady of the Lake, Morgan le Fae, and Queen Mab). She takes delight in gruesome and grim games and wishes to destroy Wart since he is friends with Merlin. Merlin shows up to save Wart and is challenged to a wizard’s duel (different from Harry Potter), where the opponents transform themselves into different animals to order to kill each other. Merlin wins in the end by becoming a germ (to her purple dragon; the music at that point reminded me of the music from Sleeping Beauty when Maleficent was a dragon).
Wart is given the news at the castle that he will accompany Ector and newly knighted Sir Kay to London for the tournament. Merlin is disappointed and a bit outraged that Wart still prefers to be a squire rather than continuing his education. He blows himself to Bermuda and the tournament arrives. Unfortunately, Wart has forgotten Kay’s sword back at the inn, which is now locked. He spies a sword in a churchyard, stuck in an anvil and pulls it out. Pellinore realizes that the sword young Wart handed Kay is the legendary Sword in the Stone. He and other knights urge Arthur to show them where he retrieved it and pull it out again. He does so and is crowned King of England. Merlin comes back when Arthur wishes for help ruling the country. The wizard’s parting words are about Arthur’s tale living on for centuries, even being made into “motion pictures.”
I’ll finish the Disney movies and circle back to other interpretations of Arthur (I loved BBC’s Merlin, despite its deviation from traditional legend). It’s a subject I’d love to do more research on; I’ve got some books, but a very long reading list. Until then, any questions? Comments? What’s your favorite legend or myth?
The movie is based on a book, which I had forgotten, but that’s on par for most of Disney’s first movies. I am not a pet person in general and not a dog fan (I like the bunnies that visit my backyard; they’re cute, but I don’t have to take care of them), yet I like this movie. The dogs act so much like humans and are far kinder than half of the humans. As a child, I found it particularly amusing that the dogs often resembled their owners. It’s adorable that they refer to their human owners as “pets” and Pongo is incredibly self-aware to realize that the bachelor life is not all it’s cracked up to be. He’s smarter than most humans and manages to successfully pair his pet Roger up with Anita, and gaining her Dalmatian Perdita as his mate.
The cover I remember as a child
As dogs are prone to, Pongo and Perdita are due to have a litter of puppies an indeterminable amount of time later. Anita’s “devoted schoolmate” Cruella de Vil stops by demanding to see the puppies, for some reason. Once again proving that animals are smarter than humans (hmm, sounds like Snow White), Perdita is far more fearful of Cruella than her owners. Cruella stops by again once the puppies are born and offers to pay for them, but Roger smartly refuses, causing Cruella to vow to get even. (Again, not entirely sure why; obviously once one is familiar with the story, we understand, but it’s not explained within the timeline. Her true desire is hinted with her comment that she “lives for furs,” but that tends to go over children’s heads).
The next scene is a parent’s nightmare; men break into the house, distract Nanny, and kidnap all the puppies while the two couples are out for a walk. Pongo and Perdy take matters into their own…paws when the human avenues are getting nowhere. They send a message out through the dog chain in London, finally reaching a farm in the country where Captain (a horse), Sergeant Tibbs (a cat), and Colonel (a dog) reside. The trio had noticed activity at Hell Hall, the old De Vil place and decide to investigate. Sergeant infiltrates and discovers not only the fifteen missing London puppies, but an additional 84 Dalmatian puppies. They send word back to Pongo and Perdy who immediately head off to rescue their offspring.
Again, as a child, I didn’t fully grasp what skinning puppies meant, aside from bad. Most of the time, Cruella simply refers to it as “the job.” Sergeant Tibbs knows he must get the puppies out, the sooner, the better. Pongo and Perdy arrive just in time to turn the tide and they begin their trek back to London. (There’s a memorable scene where Captain kicks Horace and Jasper into the hay – I cheer). At one point, they take shelter in an old dairy barn where the maternal cows coo over the puppies. Their next stop the following day is a village where they hope to hop a ride back on a truck, but Cruella, Horace, and Jasper are hot on their trail. The puppies give them the idea to disguise themselves as black labs by rolling in the soot. It works, until melting snow reveals their true coloring. Cruella drives like a maniac, attempting to knock an innocent man off the road (I will agree in this case with the truck driver’s derision of female drivers); all for a fur coat. She eventually collides with Horace and Jasper and the Dalmatians safely return home. Roger’s big hit; the only song of the movie really, “Cruella de Vil” will allow them to move to a “Dalmatian plantation” so they can take care of all 101 Dalmatians.
The late nineties had a brief animated series based on the movie, that I don’t think I ever watched, and an animated sequel in 2003 (I will save my rant on Disney sequels for later; my bare memory of the movie is that it did not live up to the original). There was a live-action remake of the movie in 1996 with Glenn Close as Cruella de Vil. That version explained that Anita worked for Cruella as a fashion designer, clearing up Cruella’s interest early on in the puppies. Roger was a video game designer instead of a musician and I clearly recall Cruella caught by the police, covered in molasses. There was a follow-up to that movie, 102 Dalmatians, that included Ioan Gruffud (Mr. Fantasic, or Horatio Hornblower, depending on your taste) and her final result was being baked into a cake.
Overall, an enjoyable film; I’d watch it if it was on television and it’s a welcome break from fairy tales and princesses. It’s a good mix of action and adventure and family for kids. My heart races a little when Cruella is searching for the puppies and they’re loading onto the truck. This movie and Mary Poppins gave me my first taste of London (though I haven’t been yet). The remakes are…alright; I enjoy the hijinks.
Questions? Comments? Are you a dog person? Cat person? Bird person?
Another classic fairytale, complete with a princess, a prince, fairies, magic, and a dragon. Disney’s animated film score is heavily based on Tchaikovsky’s ballet suite (I want to see the ballet), which is credited at the beginning of the film. Beyond that, is opens with a storybook and narration quickly filling us in on the backstory of King Stefan and his unnamed queen desperately hoping for a child, then – a princess is joyfully born! “Hail to the Princess” comes straight from the opening march of the ballet, and we’re introduced to neighboring King Hubert and his son, Prince Phillip, who is betrothed to infant Princess Aurora (this was a common occurrence during real life medieval royalty). And this prince actually shows some personality! His little nose wrinkle is adorable, because what boy is going to be pleased to be told, “this little baby is going to be your future wife”?
From left to right: my friend Dawn Winkler, Prince Phillip, my friend Krista Ivan, Princess Aurora, and myself. Same band trip 🙂 Apparently, Phillip and Aurora are hard to find; we stumbled upon them by accident, just wandering around the one morning.
The king and queen invited three “good” fairies, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather to their pseudo-christening and they bestow (almost) three gifts. Flora gives the gift of “beauty” (because all fairytale princesses are beautiful). Fauna gives the gift of “song” (and the young woman does have a more mature singing tone, compared to previous princesses Snow White and Cinderella). Merryweather is about to give her gift when the “evil” fairy Maleficent appears. Oh dear, she’s not wanted. And the only line the queen has: “and, you’re not offended, your Excellency?” Oh no, and to show she bears no ill will, Maleficent too has a gift for the young princess. Aurora will indeed, grow in grace and beauty, beloved by all who know her, but on the evening of her sixteenth birthday, she will prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel…and die! With a cackle, she fades away. Merryweather is able to soften the blow of the curse, instead of death, Aurora will merely sleep until she is waken by true love’s kiss (it’s always true love’s kiss…that plays a huge role in Once Upon a Time), for “true love conquers all”.
King Stefan and his queen reluctantly agree to Flora’s plan for the fairies to raise the princess until her sixteenth birthday in an attempt to protect her from the curse. Stefan also burns all of the spinning wheels in the kingdom (the historian in me wants to know how they make clothes after that). Time lapse: sixteen years have passed and the fairies are preparing for “Briar Rose’s” celebration. They send the young woman out, with the warning to not speak to strangers. Aurora tells her animal friends (I guess a requirement for Disney princesses is the ability to speak to animals) that she’s dreaming of a prince and the animals proceed to steal clothing from a strange man in order to create Aurora’s prince. “Once Upon a Dream” is the ballet’s waltz and the man appears and steps in to dance with the young woman. At first, Aurora tries to follow directions and leaves, but he’s dashing and charming and they stroll through the woods romantically.
Meanwhile, Maleficent is furious that her creepy demons haven’t located the princess in sixteen years. They truly are imbeciles and have been looking for a baby the entire time. Alas, I must agree with Maleficent that they are a “disgrace to the forces of evil.” Instead, she charges her trusty crow to find her prize and he discovers a cottage…pink and blue sparks shooting out of the chimney do not aid in secrecy. Inside, the fairies are continuing with their preparation and we must wonder how they survived for sixteen years; Flora is terrible at sewing and Fauna cannot bake. In a last-ditch effort, Merryweather retrieves their wands to help, sadly resulting in a fight primarily between her and Flora, thus generating the sparks. (To give them some credit, they had shut the doors and windows to prevent being discovered; they just forgot the chimney) Briar Rose arrives home to tell her guardians that she met a wonderful man and intends for him to visit that evening. They have to tell her the heartbreaking news that she’s actually a princess and already betrothed; everything she knows is changing.
At the castle, Stefan and Hubert drink “Scumps,” toasting to the future of their children. Which Phillip interrupts when he tells his father that he has found and fallen in love with a woman in the woods. When he arrives at the cabin that evening, Maleficent is waiting for him, not “Briar Rose.” She captures the prince, informing him that the peasant woman he met, by whim of fate, is the princess to whom he is betrothed, and sets about to see her curse through. The fairies have taken the princess back to the castle and leave her alone for a moment to gather herself. An eerie wail hypnotizes Aurora and lures her through a secret passage to an ominous spinning wheel, where she in fact pricks her finger and falls into a sleep. The three fairies put the rest of the castle to sleep until they can get the handsome man Aurora met and fell in love with to kiss her awake. To do so, they must venture to Maleficent’s castle, where the demons are dancing around the fire in a mimicry of Night on Bald Mountain (that little animation has in fact given me nightmares).
Maleficent’s plan is hold Phillip at her castle until he is too old to be a threat, then she’ll release him to kiss his princess awake (and promptly die, I’m sure). The three fairies sneak in afterwards and gift him the “enchanted shield of virtue” and “mighty sword of truth” (always important in a fairy tale). Phillip set about hacking his way through a forest of thorns, but soon he must “deal with [Maleficent]…and all the powers of Hell!” She transforms into a dragon (in a battle that is shorter than I remember) and is slain by Phillip’s sword (again, typical Disney death, she falls off the cliff). The fairies lead Phillip up to the tower where Aurora is sleeping. He kisses her awake and the kingdom wakes up. They appear before Hubert and Stefan (to one of my favorite Tchaikovsky pieces) and a reprise of the waltz.
[Fun note: if some of the voices sound familiar: the woman who voiced Lady Tremaine in Cinderella is Maleficent, and the woman who voiced the Fairy Godmother is Flora]
Maleficent is the live-action 2014 adaptation of Sleeping Beauty, except told from the point-of-view and including the backstory of the villainess. Angelina Jolie stars as Maleficent, Imelda Staunton (aka, Dolores Umbridge) is one of the pixies, among other stars (one of the other fairies was the Queen in an updated Musketeer movie, the king was Murdoch from the updated A-Team movie) and there is a sequel due out in 2020. The narrator announces “let us tell an old story anew and we will see how well you know it.” There were bordering kingdoms; one of humans, greedy, ruled by a terrible king, and the other; a magical realm of fairies and creatures, called the Moors. The human king envied the Moors wealth and wanted to conquer the land. But it has a protector, in a young girl with horns and wings: Maleficent.
One day, a human boy is caught stealing a crystal and Maleficent must pass judgment on him. The boy’s name is Stefan. They bond, as orphaned children, and become “unlikely” friends, and for a time, the old hatred was forgotten. On Maleficent’s sixteenth birthday, Stefan gives her [a supposed] “true love’s kiss.” But Stefan was like the king, jealous and conniving. He has managed to become a servant to the king and when the king is on his deathbed following an encounter with Maleficent and the Moors, he takes the chance at the king’s word, whoever can kill the “winged elf” will become the next king. Stefan sneaks into the Moors to “warn” Maleficent. She forgives him for his absence and for a night, all is as it was. However, Stefan sneaked a potion into her drink, putting her to sleep; yet, he cannot bring himself to kill her. Instead, he cuts off her wings. These are his proof to the king that he “killed” Maleficent. He is crowned and gains a queen, Leila [who resembles Keira Knightley, but is not] (I also wonder if this is the daughter that the previous king, Henry, mentioned and Stefan married her to aid his control of the throne).
Maleficent mourns the loss of her wings and that is how she gains her iconic staff. The next day, she saves a crow from being beaten to death, turning him into a man. In return for her rescue, Diaval will be Maleficent’s wings. The real turn in Maleficent’s character comes when she finds out that Stefan had done all that to her, just to become king (I have to admit, I understand her rage at this point). So, she becomes queen of the Moors (they never officially had a monarch previously) and her former friends now cower before her. We next witness the birth of Stefan and Leila’s daughter and once again, Maleficent attends the christening. Her speech to the assemblage is identical to that from the animated film, though her curse changes a little; the “true love’s kiss” is a dig at Stefan, and the “sleeplike death” will last for all time, “no power on Earth can change it.” Once again, Stefan orders all of the spinning wheels burned [and again, how do they make fabric after that? And what possesses one to leave the burned remains in the castle?]
The pixies, Flittle, Knotgrass, and Thistlewit, are charged to care for baby Aurora for sixteen years and a day. They prove to be truly incompetent and it is lucky for Aurora that Diaval and Maleficent found her, or she would have died; either from starvation or falling off a cliff. One day, toddler Aurora comes across Maleficent healing a tree in the forest and hugs the woman [she was played at this point by Angelina’s own daughter, because she was the only child not scared]. Throughout the years, she plays with the crow. At the same time, Stefan darkens with paranoia and vengeance and plots Maleficent’s demise (ignoring the fact that he wife dies). He sends soldiers to the wall of thorns that Maleficent has erected. They fail, and he remembers what he learned as a boy; iron burns fairies. He has a new idea.
Maleficent shows Aurora the Moors and the young woman is fascinated. The creatures like her and she eventually lightens Maleficent’s heart. Aurora refers to Maleficent (not knowing her true identity at first) as her fairy godmother (a cute play on traditional fairy tale roles); she remembers the silhouette of Maleficent’s shadow from her childhood. Maleficent even attempts to remove the curse, but she recalls that she had included the clause that “no power on Earth can change it.” Not even Maleficent’s own magic can lift the curse. She continues to protect Aurora and tries to warn her about the evil in the world and Aurora expresses her wish to come live in the Moors. Maleficent agrees. Aurora encounters Prince Phillip on her way home to tell the three pixies her decision (witnessed by Maleficent and Diaval; Maleficent feels that Phillip could be the answer to “true love’s kiss,” even though she believes it does not exist).
At the cottage, the three pixies are forced to reveal that Aurora is the princess of the kingdom and she must go back to her father. (They get confused on the timeline and take her back on the day of her birthday, not the day after) Aurora confronts Maleficent about the curse and declares that she is the evil in the world. The young princess rides back to the castle alone. Stefan shows no emotion at seeing his daughter for the first time in sixteen years. He remarks she looks like her mother, but neglects to inform the lass that the woman is dead, and he stands still as Aurora hugs him. He locks her in her room so he can focus on a battle plan. None of it prevents Aurora from being hypnotized and led to the dungeon full of spinning wheels. She pricks her finger and falls asleep.
Maleficent knows the curse will come to fruition; she finds Prince Phillip and carts him off to the castle. Iron spikes impede her, but she manages to get Phillip to the hallway outside Aurora’s room. The pixies let him in and convince him to kiss the sleeping princess (and thank you, young prince, for resisting at least a little, calling to attention the fact that you’ve only met the one time). But the kiss fails. The pixies kick him out and leave to find someone else. Maleficent emerges from the shadows and apologizes to the young woman, but knows she cannot ask for forgiveness; what she did was unforgiveable. She places a gentle kiss on Aurora’s brow. That does the trick. Now they must escape the castle together and retreat to the Moors. Alas, Stefan and his soldiers are waiting for them. Maleficent turns Diaval into a dragon, setting the hall alight. An iron net deters Maleficent, but she eventually faces off against Stefan. Aurora discovers and frees Maleficent’s wings and that’s the real turning point. Stefan suffers a Disney death and falls off a tower during his duel.
Maleficent removes her crown and takes down the wall of thorns. The kingdoms are united under Aurora, who is crowned in the Moors (Phillip is in attendance) and they were brought together by one who was both hero and villain: Maleficent. The closing narration sums up that “the story is not quite as you were told. And I should know, for I am the one that they called Sleeping Beauty.” Our parting shots are of Diaval, as a crow, flying with Maleficent.
My mind-set on the animated Sleeping Beauty has been that it’s a typical fairy tale. There are a hundred ways to tell it and the characters are interchangeable. Princess Aurora doesn’t strike me as a “fight for yourself” princess. It has been noted that she doesn’t speak the entire second half of the film, even after she is woken by “true love’s kiss,” or when she meets her parents. Prince Phillip is admirable as a typical prince and this time, he actually does something. He fights the dragon; he rescues his damsel in distress; he speaks his mind to his father. Pity he’s not more remembered for that. Maleficent is intimidating visually. We are left to wonder why she suddenly appears at a celebration and randomly curses an innocent baby. I guess it’s hand waved as “she’s evil” and apparently the queen of all darkness.
Which is why when Maleficent was first announced, I didn’t plan on seeing it. But after watching the live action Cinderella, I decided to give it a chance. And I was pleasantly surprised. As a scholar with an interest in faerie lore and mythology, I was excited to see the added element of iron burning the Fae. Overall, I enjoyed how Maleficent was portrayed as a Fae, that not all fairies are tiny little creatures with wings. They have immense power and a tie to nature.
I enjoyed how Maleficent’s character was fleshed out and well rounded. Most of the characters were given greater detail (Phillip suffered, unfortunately). We now have a believable reason for Maleficent cursing Stefan’s child. I thought it was interesting that they expanded the crow character and he was a fun addition. I wonder if there’s a romantic inclination towards Maleficent or Aurora. He’s reasonably loyal to Maleficent and he seems attached to Aurora. For a moment, while re-watching, I thought it would be him that broke the curse by kissing the sleeping princess; but I content with the mother/daughter relationship emphasis instead. Phillip’s presence at the Moors at the end has me wondering if they’ll expand that tale in the sequel.
Again, there is a typical warning as in most fairy tales: “don’t talk to strangers.” There’s never really a bad consequence to those who do: in the animated, Briar Rose meets the man who will rescue her. In the live action, Aurora speaks to the woman she coins as her fairy godmother. In both cases, it ultimately turns out well for her. I appreciate in the live action that dragons are not painted as completely bad (considering my favorite movie is How to Train Your Dragon). In the animated, of course the powers of Hell will transform into a dragon. An element of dragon mythology is that dragons kidnap princesses and lock them away. Diaval as a dragon doesn’t get much action in the newer movie, but it’s understandable since the action should be focused on Maleficent’s struggle.
So…? Any questions? Comments? What’s your position on dragons?
Based on J.M. Barrie’s play, it does have a sequel: Return to Never Land and Tinker Bell has a whole slew of movies. And today’s little ones can meet some of the characters in Jake and the Never Land Pirates. The writing of the play is the basis of the Johnny Depp film Finding Neverland, and Steven Spielberg directed Robin Williams, Julie Andrews, Maggie Smith, and Dustin Hoffman in Hook, which takes place decades after the original tale (and fun fact: Dante Basco, who voiced Zuko in Avatar: the Last Airbender, was Rufio, a peer of Peter Pan). As a child, I liked the animated movie for the adventure and variety of characters. Re-watching it as an adult, I get a different view.
The movie opens on a night in London and introduces us to the Darling family; Mrs. Darling who believes that Peter Pan is the spirit of youth, sons John and Michael who act out stories starring their hero, eldest daughter Wendy who is the “supreme authority” on stories of Peter Pan, and their father, Mr. Darling, who prefers to be practical and believes that stories of Peter Pan are poppycock. Because he’s tired of the nonsense, he informs Wendy that it is high time she grows up and it will be her last night in the nursery. When the parents leave for their function, Peter sneaks into the house to retrieve his shadow (which is apparently its own free entity and somehow became separated from Peter). He makes a racket, waking Wendy who starts babbling. Peter reveals that he enjoys visiting the Darling house because he likes to hear the stories about himself that Wendy tells the boys. And making perfect sense to a child, Peter decides that Wendy should come back to Never Land with him so she can share her stories with the Lost Boys, which also prevents her from growing up and ending the stories. Michael and John wake up and want to join in; then they’re off, exclaiming “We Can Fly!” with the help of “faith, trust, and a little pixie dust” to “the second star to the right and straight on till morning” (because that’s an accurate way to travel).
The first denizens of Never Land we are introduced to are the pirates, under the command of Captain Hook. Except they’re disgruntled by the lack of traditional pirating, instead stuck in Never Land pursuing Peter. The boy that thought it was a fun prank to cut off Hook’s hand and feed it to a crocodile. Their fearless leader isn’t so fearless; he becomes a quivering mess when he hears the tick-tock from the crocodile. Yet he also shoots one of his crew and fires a cannon at Peter and the Darling children. Tink, jealous of the attention Peter is giving Wendy, flies ahead to his hide-out to warn the Lost Boys of an approaching enemy, a giant “Wendy bird.” They attempt to shoot her down, but Peter manages to rescue her at the last minute and banishes Tink for a week for “high treason.”
Peter takes Wendy to visit the mermaids and the boys “Follow the Leader” to fight “Injuns” (this movie is also filled with horrible racial stereotypes). It’s usually a game of the Injuns and Lost Boys capturing and letting the other group go, however, the chief’s daughter, Tiger Lily is missing. Captain Hook and Smee have Tiger Lily and are willing to drown her in an attempt to get the location of Peter’s hideout. Peter does rescue the maid, after he’s reminded; he’s too busy having fun and showing off. Yet he’s honored by the chief and we sit through the degrading “What Makes the Redman Red” song.
Captain Hook has a new plan; use Tink’s jealousy of Wendy and persuade her that he is leaving the island and will take Wendy with him to “save the lad from himself.” He’s of course, lying, and gets around his promise to not “lay a finger, or hook,” on Peter, by lowering a bomb wrapped as a present into the hideout. Wendy has figured out what sort of boy her idol is and wants to return home. She reminds her brothers of their mother and the sentimental song causes the other Lost Boys to want to return with her, so they too can have a mother. Peter refuses to grow up and lets them leave. They’re captured by the pirate crew and offered the chance to join, or else walk the plank. Wendy still believes that Peter will save them, even after the Captain reveals his actions. (Tink saved Peter, racing back to knock the bomb away. Peter’s forced to face the fact that he had ignored her and declares “you mean more to me than anything in the whole world”) He does fly to the rescue and duels Captain Hook, even promising to not fly away. He manages to outsmart and trap the Captain, forcing him to mock himself as a codfish. The crew escaped, but now have to out row the crocodile who once again is chasing Captain Hook. The Lost Boys take over the ship and with a lot of pixie dust, they take off for London.
The Darling parents return home to find that Wendy has agreed to grow up, while her father has changed his mind to let her stay in the nursery. She begins to tell them about her newest adventure and they catch sight of a cloud, shaped as a pirate ship. It’s familiar to Mr. Darling; something he saw when he was very young.
As an adult, I have to realize that this movie is a representation on how children think (well, I had a little help; a friend pointed out the idea to me, but watching the film now, it makes sense). They are playing; in play, pirates are fun. Danger is not real; those who die can simply come back to life the next time they start up. Hands aren’t really cut off, but if it was, wouldn’t it be funny to feed it to a crocodile? Peter is the essence of a young boy; girls are silly and his interests flits between whoever can stroke his ego and gain his attention. He leaves Wendy alone more than once (and she is a typical girl with a crush, simpering for his attention) and seemingly tosses aside his oldest companion, Tinker Bell aside because someone new and shiny has come into the picture. Funny, as a child, I thought she was mean, but as an adult, totally get it!
I realized that this was the first time I have watched the original animated film since I’ve watched Once Upon a Time. Vastly different characterization [Warning: Spoilers Ahead!] Pan is an evil…I don’t know what to call him, but I want to wipe that smirk off his face; Tiger Lily was once a fairy as well, Tink retains her spunk, and Captain Hook is devilishly handsome. Totally prefer Colin O’Donoghue as Hook dressed in black leather to crying codfish Captain Hook.
As always, questions? Comments? Do you view Peter as a hero? What’s your view of Captain Hook; diabolical villain, or a codfish?
Just about the most popular and well-known fairy tale. Lately, there has been an explosion, led by Disney, of modernizing the tale (often involving music) of an oppressed young woman becoming the star despite “step-sisters” getting in the way. There’s A Cinderella Story starring Hillary Duff, and Another Cinderella Story with Selena Gomez. Going back, there’s a twist to the tale, first as a book, then adapted to film starring Anne Hatahaway, Ella Enchanted (I enjoy the last song to the movie most since it’s Elton John). Rodgers and Hammerstein created a musical, entitled Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella and that has been performed countless times (recently revived on Broadway) and there are a couple movie versions; one starring Julie Andrews and another from the 90s starring Brandy. Cinderella even appears in Into The Woods.
I do not have a strong enough desire to delve that deeply into the tale and so I’ll focus on Disney’s 1950 animated classic and their 2015 live-action remake. And because I absolutely love Ever After, it will go with its sisters.
Disney’s version is a form of the traditional tale. After a completely forgettable opening song that I never remember, the story book opens and the narrator begins “Once Upon a Time.” The titular character gains a cruel stepmother who was jealous of her kind nature and forces Cinderella to become a servant upon her father’s death. Yet Cinderella has remained optimistic and dreams of a happier future, prompting “A Dream is a Wish.” She has friends in the birds and mice of the home and they help with her chores (keeping with the theme of helpful animals from Snow White).
The castle is visible from Cinderella’s room, where the king tells his Grand Duke that the prince has avoided his responsibilities long enough and it’s time for him to marry and settle down; he wants grandchildren. Since the prince is returning home (we never find out from where or why he was away or how long) it’s the prime opportunity to throw a ball, where a boy and girl can meet in the right conditions, prompting a proposal out of the son. Asserting that it “can’t possibly fail” the king orders all eligible maids invited.
Same Disney trip
Cinderella delivers the invitation to her stepmother and stepsisters (in this version, they are Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, and Drizella). She expresses a desire to attend the ball and Lady Tremaine agrees if she finishes all her chores. Of course, they give her so much to do, she does not have time to alter her mother’s old dress. Instead, during “Cindrelly” the mice and birds complete the alterations, making use of old articles from Anastasia and Drizella. Her stepfamily take their frustration out on the dress the night of the ball and Cinderella cries in the garden. Her fairy godmother appears and “Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo” she turns a pumpkin into a carriage, four white mice into horses, and transforms Cinderella’s tattered dress into a sparkling ball gown, complete with glass slippers with the warning that the magic will wear off at midnight. Cinderella entrances all at the ball, most keenly the prince; they share the only dance, then stroll about the castle pondering “So This is Love.” Just as they’re about the kiss, the clock chimes twelve and Cinderella rushes away, leaving a glass slipper in the stairs. The Grand Duke sends guards after her, but she evades them.
The news comes the next morning that the prince will marry whomever the glass slipper fits (the king does use this to his advantage, pointing out that it could fit any number of girls) and Lady Tremaine notices the daze that Cinderella is in and rationalizes that she was the mystery maiden. With glowing eyes (creepy), she locks Cinderella in the attic. When the Grand Duke is at the home with the slipper, Cinderella’s animal friends free her. Tremaine causes the slipper to be smashed, but Cinderella has the other slipper. There’s a wedding “and they lived happily ever after.”
In 2015, Disney re-made their tale with an all-star live action cast, featuring Lily James (Lady Rose from Downton Abbey) as Cinderella; Cate Blanchett as the Stepmother; Richard Madden (apparently a main character from Game of Thrones, I think. Still need to watch that!) as Prince Kit; Stellan Skarsgard (Bootstrap Bill Turner from Pirates of the Caribbean) as the Grand Duke; Sophie McShera (Daisy, also from Downton Abbey) as stepsister Drisella; Holliday Grainger was Anastasia; Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter) briefly appeared as Cinderella’s mother, and the narration was provided by Helena Bonham Carter, who was also the Fairy Godmother. Kenneth Branagh directed (he directed the first Thor movie, but he’ll still always be Gilderoy Lockhart).
Lily James as Cinderella and Cate Blanchett as Lady Tremaine
Holliday Grainger as Anastasia and Sophie McShera as Drisella
The opening provides further backstory; we actually see Ella’s mother. It’s from her that Ella learned to “have courage and be kind” and to see the world as it could be, with magic, including believing in fairy godmothers. As “the most happiest of families” tragedy was bound to strike. Ella’s mother sickens and dies. Years later, her father remarries the widowed wife of a friend, Lady Tremaine. Anastasia and Drisella are horrible from the start, but Tremaine seems to attempt to be pleasant, supposedly desiring to restore life and laughter to the house by throwing parties. Yet she “temporarily” moves (read: banishes) Ella to the attic when the young woman is kind enough to offer her larger room to her bickering stepsisters. When Ella’s father dies unexpectedly on a trip, Tremaine dismisses the rest of the household and gives Ella more chores to “distract from her grief.” She is the one to coin “Cinderella” and has Ella remove her place setting at the table.
This prompts a distraught Ella to ride into the woods where she meets Kit, a kind “apprentice” at the palace. Kit is in fact the prince, hunting a stag. They circle their horses and actually have a conversation with each other. When Ella remarks that her family treats her “as well as they are able,” Kit replies with sympathy. Ella, ever sweet, tells him that others have it worse; Kit insists that her treatment is still not her doing. They both express an interest in seeing each other again. (Wow, he has blue eyes)
Richard Madden as Prince Kit
It is obvious Kit is taken with Ella (or a mysterious girl, as she never tells him her name). She gets him thinking on topics. The servant girl from the forest echoes his private sentiment that we must all simply “have courage and be kind,” and that “just because it’s what’s done, doesn’t mean it’s what should be done.” The Grand Duke I’m sure would consider it dangerous thinking. The King is ill and dying, putting the kingdom in peril and they are both encouraging Kit to marry, in tandem as tradition and to strengthen the kingdom. They will hold a ball, but Kit requests that invitations go to all maidens, noble and common. His captain points out that it’s Kit’s way of seeing his “good, honest country girl”.
Of course, Ella’s stepfamily still refuses to include her in their preparations. She still refurbishes her mother’s dress. Tremaine starts the tearing and spits that she “will not have her daughters associated with you.” Ella is a ragged servant girl and that is what she will remain. Ella’s once again in tears and this time, she has lost her belief. She apologizes to her mother that she doesn’t have courage any more. Yet, she’s still kind to the old beggar woman who requests some milk. The beggar woman transforms into a fairy godmother (in a very poofy white gown). A pumpkin is still transformed into a carriage and this incarnation has kept Cinderella’s animal friends (not my favorite animatronic animals) so four mice become four white horses, a goose becomes the driver, and two lizards become footmen (I kept expecting to hear “Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo”). A touch of magic conceals her identity from her stepmother.
Dancing at the ball
Another grand entrance and Ella realizes that Kit is indeed the prince (he makes the argument that a prince is an “apprentice” monarch); they share a beautiful waltz. Afterwards, the couple sneaks off for a private conversation. Tremaine overhears the Grand Duke telling the captain that he has already promised the prince to Princess Shaleena. When midnight does strike, Ella must leave and the stairs claim another glass slipper, and she still manages to evade the Grand Duke.
The king sadly dies shortly after the ball. But he encourages his son on his death bed to find the mystery princess; he is to marry for love, not advantage, and to become his own man. Kit curls up against his father one last time, prompting tears on my part. After an appropriate mourning period (per the narration) the announcement is made that the new king will search for the woman who fits the glass slipper. He bargains with the Grand Duke that if she is not found, he will marry Princess Shaleena, but no effort will be spared in searching.
In the meantime, Lady Tremaine finds Ella’s matching glass slipper and confronts her. She proposes that she will support Ella’s claim to the prince, in exchange for marrying Anastasia and Drisella off to wealthy lords, and Tremaine will “manage that boy,” thus ruling the kingdom. Ella refuses; she couldn’t save her father from Tremaine, but she will protect the kingdom and the prince from her. Tremaine smashes the slipper and locks Ella in the attic. She then goes to the Grand Duke and reveals the identity of the mystery princess. In exchange for keeping the secret, she will be made countess, once again making advantageous marriages for her daughters, and as for the servant girl; the Grand Duke can do what he likes with her, she’s nothing to Tremaine.
So the Grand Duke purposefully makes Tremaine house last in the search and once the slipper refuses to fit either Anastasia or Drisella, he wants to make a quick getaway. But Ella’s animal friends manage to open her tower window so her singing (Lavender Blue – I have no idea why this song features so heavily in the movie; though it is a pretty rendition) reaches the soldiers. Kit is disguised amongst their ranks and demands to see the last girl. HIs trusted captain brings Ella before him where she finally admits that her name is Cinderella; she is not a princess, she does not have a dowry, or even knows if the shoe will fit. But if it does, will the king take her as she is, “an honest country girl who loves you?” Kit replies of course, but only if she will take him as he is, “an apprentice still learning his trade.” When the movie closes on their wedding, narration tells us that Kit and Ella were the fairest and kindest rulers of the kingdom, remembering to see the world as it could be, believing in courage, and kindness, and occasionally, magic.
Ever After is a 1998 historical dramatic retelling of the Cinderella tale, starring Drew Barrymore as Danielle and Anjelica Houston as her stepmother. The story is set in 16th century France and includes special historical guest Leonardo da Vinci. The film opens with the Brothers Grimm invited to see “Your Majesty,” (the old woman is never named) who finds their collection of folk tales charming, but she would like to set the record straight on the “Little Cinders Girl,” who was in fact her great-great-grandmother, Danielle de Barbarac.
Her tale begins with eight-year-old Danielle happily gaining a new mother and two new sisters; the Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent,Marguerite, and Jacqueline. Her own mother has been dead for some time, the servants commenting that Auguste de Barbarac raised the girl on his own However, he must travel shortly after his marriage and tragically suffers a heart attack and dies in the drive.
Ten years pass, according to our narrator, before another man enters Danielle’s life. The King and Queen of France are discussing the arranged marriage of their son, Henry to the princess of Spain. But when they go to wake their son to join their discussion, they find he has run away, again. To continue with his flight, he must appropriate Danielle’s father’s horse, startling her during her chores. He’s cloaked, so she does not see until he dismounts that the thief she’s pelting with apples in her monarch. For her silence, a bag of gold coins. Danielle uses these to buy back an old servant, Maurice, the husband of one of the two women left. To do so, she must dress as a noblewoman (I assume she borrows gowns from her stepsisters), a great risk at this time period as such an act is punishable by death.
Henry runs into Leonardo da Vinci during his flight and is honor-bound to retrieve a painting a band of gypsies have stolen. Of course, it’s the Mona Lisa. This delay allows the royal guards to catch up with Henry, though they must stop at Danielle’s home first, to return the horse. The Baroness, while unaware of the earlier episode between Henry and Danielle (the apple throwing), wastes no time pushing Marguerite in front of the prince. After being pleasant to the self-serving woman, Henry arrives back at the palace in time to catch Danielle (dressed as a courtier and thus unrecognizable) arguing over freeing her servant. She is well spoken, impassioned, and obviously educated, prompting him to ask for her name. She gives him “Comtess Nicole de Lancret” (borrowing from her mother, whom she apparently resembles). They have quite a conversation and Danielle unknowingly echoes his parents’ words, that as a prince, he has been born to privilege and with that comes certain obligations. In her case, he has a duty to his country and the people in it, including the hard-working peasants.
In the King’s and Queen’s case, Henry has a duty to marry for political gain, never mind love or the fact that he doesn’t want the crown. King Francis compromises with his son; they will throw a masked ball “in honor of Senior da Vinci,” at which time, Henry will announce his engagement. Henry has until then to find a love match, or King Francis will announce the engagement to the Spanish princess. Queen Marie cautions that “divorce is only something they do in England (historical note: this is a call out to Henry VIII who famously divorced two of his wives: if you have any further questions on this matter, I will happily discuss!)
News of the ball that has been opened to all eligible maids of the kingdom has reached the Baroness (through a spy in the royal guard) and she begins scheming to pair Marguerite with Prince Henry. She shows her daughters Danielle’s dowry, a gorgeous gown of her mother’s; Rodmilla intends for Marguerite to wear it instead. Jacqueline protests, arguing they should include Danielle; she is the only family member to treat her stepsister decently. The Baroness is offended by Danielle’s manner, particularly after “all she’s done for her” and Marguerite is the one to coin the name “Cinderella.” Rodmilla dismisses Jacqueline’s suggestion, but changes her tune when Danielle enters.
The Baroness
Marguerite and Jacqueline
Over the course of the film, Henry spends time publicly with Marguerite (their scheming is unfortunately working), yet he also runs into “Nicole” several times. He takes her to the Franciscan Monastery to visit their library. They are embroiled in an adventure on their return, resulting in spending the evening with a band of gypsies. The next morning Henry informs his parents that he wishes to build a university with a vast library where anyone can study; oh, and he wants to invite the gypsies to the wedding. On the other end of the spectrum, the Baroness rudely wakens Danielle. demanding breakfast. “You have two hands, make it yourself.” This spurs Rodmilla to give Danielle’s dress to Marguerite (not that she needed much urging). Danielle is furious and when Marguerite mocks the fact that Danielle’s mother is dead; she retaliates with a richly deserved punch to Marguerite’s face. In the end, Danielle has to choose between her copy of Utopia from her father, or her mother’s shoes. She hands over the shoes, but Marguerite still drops the book in the fire. Rodmilla orders Danielle whipped (occurs off-screen) and we see Jacqueline tending to her stepsister after.
Rodmilla and Marguerite meet with Queen Marie and Rodmilla figures out that Danielle has been playing the comtess and seeing Henry. She spins the queen the lie that Nicole de Lancret is engaged to a Belgian. Meanwhile, Henry and “Nicole” meet alone again. Danielle tries to tell the truth, but it’s hard when the prince is declaring his love and seems so happy to have found freedom and purpose in his life; before, he had wanted to escape his gilded cage, but “Nicole” has opened his eyes to how he can care for his people and his country. Back at the house, Rodmilla confronts Danielle about her lie and about the dress she’s hidden. Danielle refuses to tell and angrily declares “I would rather die than see my mother’s on that cow!”
She’s locked in the cellar and the servants manage to get word to de Vinci to get her out. She wears her mother’s dress to the ball and arrives just as the prince was ready to announce his engagement. Rodmilla spoils their happiness, revealing Nicole as Danielle, a servant. Henry rejects her and she flees the ball in tears (leaving behind a shoe when she falls at one point). Da Vinci talks some sense into Henry and seeing how miserable the Spanish princess is during their wedding, the prince calls it off. Unfortunately Danielle has already been sold to another master; a leering landowner, Pierre le Peu. The snake would enjoy breaking Danielle, but her father taught his daughter how to use a sword. She threatens to slit her captor from navel to nose unless he releases her. She’s met outside by Henry, begging her forgiveness and proposing.
Baroness de Ghent and her daughters are called to appear in court, where Rodmilla is confronted with the fact that she lied to the queen. The monarchs first choice of punishment is to strip her of her title and ship her and Marguerite (Jacqueline is spared), to America; unless someone will speak for them. A freshly crowned Danielle appears and will speak for them, for Rodmilla is the only mother she has ever known; it is her wish that her family be treated with the same courtesy that they have treated her. Thus, Rodmilla and Marguerite are sent to be laundresses.
Henry and Danielle’s “happily ever after” features Da Vinci’s newest painting La Scapigliata (Head of a Woman) as a portrait of Danielle, a belated wedding present. Henry remarks that it looks nothing like his wife, to which Danielle rebukes “you, sire, are supposed to be charming.” We come back to the “present” where the old woman informs the Brothers Grimm that the portrait hung in the university until the French Revolution, but the most important point is that these people lived.
Re-watching Disney’s original animated movie, I don’t have anything specific against it beyond the typical comeback that you don’t fall in love with someone in an evening. At least this time the couple spoke to each other. Being an adult compared to a child, I see the king’s actions not as innocently. As a child: aww, he wants grandkids to play with; as an adult: you really shouldn’t be forcing your son into a marriage. It’s as bad as when stories attempt to marry the princess off just so she can produce heirs. Cinderella’s stepmother and stepsisters are just plain horrible. But it does have a cute little message about dreaming and hoping; except we don’t all have fairy godmothers to grant those wishes immediately.
I love that the live action remake included more backstory, for both Ella and Tremaine. I wouldn’t say we gain much sympathy for the woman, because she’s still cruel to a young woman who had nothing to do with the events that made her bitter. It’s tragic that the light and love of her life died and tragic still that her second marriage, which she understandably made to survive in the world, ended in death. But when Ella demands an answer from Lady Tremaine on why the woman is so cruel, in light of the girl being nothing but kind to her and no one deserves to be treated the way she was, all Tremaine can respond is that Ella is “young, and innocent, and good…” essentially boiling down to the excuse that she was jealous.
Cate Blanchett plays evil beautifully; the stepmother in the animated version is older, possibly attractive at one point, but those years are past. In the live-action, she still possess poise and grace and comes across with just enough gentility in public that her motivations are not questioned. She and the Grand Duke are well-matched; claiming that their actions and words are in the best interest of their charges, but really, it’s all self-serving. They come to an arrangement about Ella easily and even mutually chuckle at the fact that Tremaine is threatening the Grand Duke.
Ever After has Rodmilla explain to Danielle that her own mother was hard on her, making her strive for excellence; that is how she became a Baroness (and the mother to potentially the future queen). Immediately followed by her telling Danielle she looks so much like her father, and that’s why she’s well suited for hard labor. She later coolly remarks (the way that Anjelica Houston is so good at) to Danielle, when she begs if her stepmother ever loved her even in the smallest amount, “how can one love a pebble in their shoe?” Here, even more so than in the 2015 Disney production, the Baroness is jealous of how close her second husband was to his own daughter. Rodmilla admits to Danielle (still flippantly), she hardly knew her new husband before he died, how could she have had time to love him?
Both movies also flesh out the prince and their families. We actually have names! Kit is a very charming prince, someone I would honestly want to meet. He never treats Ella as a damsel in distress, beyond “rescuing” her from her runaway horse. Kit genuinely cares about his kingdom, mentioning that the war was hard on everyone in the kingdom; a trait I believe he picked up from his father. He accepts his role as future monarch. He is a more vibrant counterpart compared to his animated original. In a different characterization Henry does seem spoilt in the beginning of Ever After but that makes it a more interesting arc. He is educated and asks da Vinci for advice in progressive thinking. Henry displays some of his indulged princely airs at the ball, when he dismisses Danielle and later when he informs da Vinci “I will not yield!” But he’s humble when he asks for her hand.
And our princesses are far better role models in the live action films. Danielle rescues herself from le Peu. She has the idea to buy back her servant (truly more of a friend); she speaks directly to the prince and makes him see the truth, she defies her stepmother to keep her mother’s dress safe. In the end, she could even let the king and queen send her horrid family members to America, instead, she grants them some small measure of mercy. Ella is intelligent as well, proving her knowledge of French to her stepfamily (and confusing ditzy Anastasia and Drisella). She speaks quickly to the king as she’s leaving the ball, intrepidly informing the monarch of his son’s love. Her words leaves an impression with the king, which is why he urges Kit to find her and marry her, for love. These women truly show that hard work (which is dirtier than portrayed in animation) will be rewarded.
Baroness de Ghent’s gown
The Ever After ball gown
2015 ball gown
I adore the costumes in both the live-action films. The ballgown from the 2015 Disney re-make is simply gorgeous. That skirt is enormous and I’m certain that it was not easy to walk or dance in all those layers, but it had the right amount of sparkle. Ever After had a profound impact on me, setting the romance in a historical period, which historical clothes, and showing me a “modern” heroine in those times. (On a personal note: that’s the kind of heroine I am planning for my own fantasy series), making it my favorite version if I was forced to choose.
Questions? Comments? What’s your favorite version of Cinderella? Let me know!
What Sebastian discovers is Ariel’s treasure trove. And while Ariel has numerous bits and bobs, she wants more; she yearns to be Part of Your World. As anyone who daydreams about life being different, she guesses, “betcha on land/they understand/bet they don’t reprimand daughters, bright young women.” [Yes, for a while, I thought I’d be all grown up at sixteen….nooo. I’m almost twice that and I still have no idea what I’m doing. Yes, Ariel dear, human daughters do get reprimanded when they do something stupid]. All the while, the sea witch Ursula (who apparently once ruled the ocean) has had her two eels, Flotsam and Jetsam tailing Ariel and figures that she can exact revenge on King Triton through his daughter. Ariel is intrigued by a dark shape and swims to the surface to discover Eric’s ship is throwing a celebration for the prince’s birthday (complete with huge statue, which Grimsby hoped would have been a wedding present; the whole kingdom wants to see their prince settle down with the right girl [at least they include “right”]). The party is cut short when a hurricane blows in; lightning hits the sail and starts a fire. The ship runs into a reef and the crew is thrown overboard (or manages to get into a lifeboat somehow). However, Eric’s beloved canine companion, Max, is still onboard. The prince goes back for Max, but his foot gets stuck in the crumbling deck. He throws Max overboard and we next see an explosion, caused by the fire hitting gunpowder. Ariel swims in to rescue the handsome prince. They wash ashore a beach and she reprises her song, even more desperate to be part of the human world.
tune she sang. Max leads him to Ariel (the dog recognizes her scent). She seems familiar, but without her voice, she can’t be the one. Nevertheless, Prince Eric is a gentleman and eagerly agrees to take care of the young woman (they assume she was in a traumatic shipwreck). Sebastian follows Ariel into the castle, though he has to run for his life in the kitchen from French chef Louis, who loves Les Poissons. During dinner, Eric stares at Ariel and is happy to give her a tour the next morning. Ariel demonstrates that she is certainly different from other ladies. That evening, Eric takes her out in a boat and Sebastian takes matters into his own…claws; they’re running out of time to keep Ariel out of Ursula’s grasp. The crab sets the mood and urges the prince to Kiss the Girl (and helps Eric guess her proper name). Yet, just when the couple is leaning in, the eels dump them. Things are getting too close for Ursula; she has to take matters into her own tentacles. While Eric is deciding to choose Ariel over a mysterious woman (thanks to advice from Grimsby), a mysterious woman appears on the beach! With the voice he remembers! And…Eric is hypnotized.
Dreamer in the Mirror 