PS...
"Sleeping Beauty: not sure about parents, saved by male dwarves who she moves in with to cook and clean for... evil queen"

There are no dwarves in Sleeping Beauty. There's an evil witch and two parents and a prince that comes and saves her from an evil spell with a kiss (which is much tamer than the original story). I think you're thinking of Snow White.

They tamed a lot of their adaptions. In the original Cinderella, the sisters cut off their toes to fit into slippers, crows peck their eyes out. In the original Little Mermaid, she has to carve out the heart of the woman her prince fell in love with (which is not the witch) and when she doesn't, she turns to sea foam. Don't even get me started on Pocahontas (gets an STD), or Hunchback of ND. :)

Whoops....
 

Yup, I was thinking of Snow White not Sleeping Beauty (I'll fix it). Anyway, its not so much that the family has to be the traditional nuclear family, but it would be nice to show some sort of positive family relationships. There can still be tension and tribulation without the mom and dad missing, dead, or mean... I think Toy Story, Bug's Life, Ants, did a good job (off the top of my head). But you cannot deny that Disney usually portrays women in a negative way... they need saving, they must be beautiful to be happy, powerful women are evil, etc. Of course there are some exceptions. What's the latest Disney movie coming out.... Sinbad or something? The mighty pirate and thief is upset that there is a woman on board ("a ship is no place for a woman") and then of course she will prove him wrong. But why can't the woman just be strong and courageous and be accepted as such? Same with Mulan... she could only be powerful when she disguised herself as a male.

Exactly! :yes:
Also, Disney is a great representative of the typical North-American blood-sucking corporation.

It isn't Disney as much as the original stories. The original Grimms' tales are pretty graphic, and not PC.

I do happen to like Disney. Toy Story is my favorite. No strong females in that one either, but it is a cute buddy movie. But Andy (the kid) only has a mom. They never mention his dad.
As for evil and ugly, the evil men aren't that good looking either.

They are fun movies, and not even remotely like real life. There are no talking animals/plants/toys in real life. It is just pretend.

There are a lot of movies with out parents. Look at the Star Wars movies. Mother is dead (I think) and father is evil. Indiana Jones has a dad in one movie, but they don't get along, no mom. Harry Potter too.

Yes there are some movies that have a message, or at least a foot in reality, but most movies are intended for escapism.


Anyway, that is just my random thoughts...

I just like songs and the thought I could be a beautiful princess. I think Disney has a bit of the "rescue" syndrome, and if you suffer from it you'll be greatly disappointed, because the only person that can save you is yourself. But there is something that appeals to my romantic side in, "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream. I know you, the look in your eyes is such a familiar thing......"(Sleeping beauty is my favoite, if I had a daughter I was going to name her Aurora Rose, instead my husband got a boy so its Sebastian after Never Ending Story).

Watched 25th Hour. Spike Lee. I have to watch it again. I have alot to think about. I like movies that make me think.

First season of Xena is pretty cute too and recently out on DVD.

Miss Chris

Woo hoo! I had no idea Xena was out of DVD!!

I saw Down With Love. It was silly, over the top, and has every 60s cliche imaginable, which is exactly why I loved it! It is suppose to be very silly, and fun. It is definately worth checking out.