Sep 7, 2006

Deliberating

So I haven't posted in nearly a month. I'm not really sure why. The last post I had was about Mel Gibson - and from the heated uproar caused by my thoughts (oh wait, no uproar, no comments).....

I guess I'm at the point where I need to decide which direction this blog needs to go. There are several directions I have identified. I could go the hyper-cynical route and point out all the problems I see around me. I could offer meaningless commentaries on things that have no long-term bearing. I could even try to toss up deep theological dissertations. There also is the commenting on every sports item on espn.com. A similar route would be doing the same thing as the sports, but with movies. I have done all of those things at some point - although I try to stay away from too much useless stuff. I have consciously tried to minimize the religious commentaries - partly because of my job, partly because I want to make sure my opinions would only point people to Jesus (and honestly, I don't know if they would). I guess I'm just a crossroads. I'll get over it soon. Until then....

I can't stand the fact that Disney continues to put out sequels to their animated films. My kids are really into the animated film genre now. And as a result, I have had the extreme misfortune of seeing such films as Cinderella II and The Little Mermaid II and Beauty and the Beast III. Here's the problem. These films capitalized on the whole "Happily Ever After" concept. Cinderella hooks up with the Prince (who she hasn't known for more than a day) and everything ends great. Ariel hooks up with Prince Eric and becomes a human. But then we come back for a sequel, and the whole possibility of everything working out great gets shattered. We had to watch Little Mermaid 2 the other day. Good night, that film is terrible. Ariel goes from being this confident girl that gets everything she wanted to being a scared lady that won't even let her daughter near the water. So, instead of Happily Ever After, we actually have severe mental issues.

I guess that is the problem with a sequel period. We love the characters and the way things work out, and then we come back and everything has changed. Instead of being happy with the person and job and setting they tried so hard to attain, they have a bunch of squat nothing. I know that is a necessity, because it would be really boring watching Cinderella II and having everyone sit around happy and satisfied. But I think this trend is more than just a marketing ploy. It is also a testimony of how cynical we have become. There is no way that Disney would have put out these sequels. It is not because he was above wanting money. It was because he protected the concept of the happy ending so much. That was what Disney was founded on. There was a film (and even a theme park or five) where this happiness was reachable. And that all gets ripped away in these meaningless sequels. The shame is that nowadays, you can't even really enjoy a film and let it go. You know that in a year or two someone is going to put out a sequel that tears down everything that first film established.

See, this is the commenting about meaningless junk option. I hope it thrilled you no end. Maybe I'll be bitter about something more important next time.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stay bitter. You write bitter well.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I agree TOTALLY! The whole reason an entire generation fell in love with Disney Films was the escape from reality they provided! I guess that is why I don't like 'Lilo and Stitch' it rings to close to home and makes the whole experience bad instead of "Good Times, Happy Ending." The line 'We are a broken family, aren't we?' that Lilo says to her older sister---crap, teared me up a little right now! Seriously though - You are so right - Disney is rolling over in his grave right now because of all the deviating from his 'Happiest Place on Earth.' Although...I still get goose bumps every time I go to Magic Kingdom...so, I am a sellout!