Disney's Live Action The Little Mermaid

[itsy bitsy spider]

The difference is these so-called “anti-woke” people seem to obsess over things they say they can’t stand…how many different ways can they say “ Rings of Power” is woke… if I don’t like something I say it is not for me and move on… I am more inclined to go on and on about something I loved.

You're just like the "anti-woke" mob, but you're on the other side. So you saying this stuff is like "The Pot calling the Kettle black."

 

[GimpYancIent]

It’s not about race at all, I just care about how she looks. And it just doesn’t matchup with the version I watched when I was 6 years old.

Every live action remake Disney production generates has one thing in common with each other. The live action remakes do not do justice to the originals. The live action remakes provide employment for some actors and film people, Disney makes some quick money because people will go see it simply because it's a Disney production, no need for creativity / new music score / original screen play and give the appearance of some kind of social consciousness. It is insulting how Disney management arrogantly looks down on the viewing public, the fans, as gullible minions to be used for quick financial gains.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Every live action remake Disney production generates has one thing in common with each other. The live action remakes do not do justice to the originals. The live action remakes provide employment for some actors and film people, Disney makes some quick money because people will go see it simply because it's a Disney production, no need for creativity / new music score / original screen play and give the appearance of some kind of social consciousness. It is insulting how Disney management arrogantly looks down on the viewing public, the fans, as gullible minions to be used for quick financial gains.

I thought Cinderella was quite good.

 

[Snow Queen 83]

Every live action remake Disney production generates has one thing in common with each other. The live action remakes do not do justice to the originals. The live action remakes provide employment for some actors and film people, Disney makes some quick money because people will go see it simply because it's a Disney production, no need for creativity / new music score / original screen play and give the appearance of some kind of social consciousness. It is insulting how Disney management arrogantly looks down on the viewing public, the fans, as gullible minions to be used for quick financial gains.

That's true, the Blue Fairy, The Coachman and Stromboli are awful in the new Pinocchio. They look nothing like the Disney animated versions.

 

[itsy bitsy spider]

That's true, the Blue Fairy, The Coachman and Stromboli are awful in the new Pinocchio. They look nothing like the Disney animated versions.

The Diehard Disney apologists will not mention when people have a problem with certain other characters (Galadriel, Maleficent, Aladdin, Lumiere). It doesn't fit with their narrative they are going with to the grave.

 

[Californian Elitist]

610,000
1.7 million

You didn’t get the joke, nor reference. But I’m not surprised lol.

 

[Californian Elitist]

That's exactly how my white daughters reacted to the trailer. Little girls love mermaids.

To reiterate, since I know not every person reads every post, I have no problem with this casting. But that doesn't mean it's "important." In fact, the argument up until this point has been the opposite, that it shouldn't matter what race or nationality she is, an argument that I agree with.

Position 1: "It's important that she's white." <--- Racist people say this.
Position 2: "It doesn't matter what race she is." <--- We were here. This is the consensus mainstream opinion.
Position 3: "It's important that she's Black." <--- But you moved the goalpasts to here. This is where you get backlash.

It’s not important for YOU. But it is important for other people.

Your white daughters don’t necessarily matter here. They’re not growing up black.

 

[Californian Elitist]

It’s not about race at all, I just care about how she looks. And it just doesn’t matchup with the version I watched when I was 6 years old.

If it’s not about race, but you care about how she looks, is it Halle Bailey’s mole on her face that’s bothering you?

 

[spacemt354]

610,000
1.7 million

You're just like the "anti-woke" mob, but you're on the other side. So you saying this stuff is like "The Pot calling the Kettle black."

That's true, the Blue Fairy, The Coachman and Stromboli are awful in the new Pinocchio. They look nothing like the Disney animated versions.

Sigh. We've had this issue before on the imagineer forum.

These accounts all seem to come from the same source.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

It’s not important for YOU. But it is important for other people.

So what's our goal here, societally? Do we want little black girls and little white girls to play with each other, love the same movies, sing the same songs, and not even notice that their skin is different from each other? Because that's what I thought our goal was, and that's what I teach my kids. It doesn't matter what you look like, or what your friends look like, or what your friends' parents look like, because God made all of us special and what matters is who we are as individuals, not what group we belong to. Don't we want our children to be thinking about what dress is the most sparkly, which songs they like to sing in the bathtub, and which animal sidekick is the cutest, rather than the race of the actress playing the fictional mermaid? It's such an awful burden to impose on kids to make them worry about the legacy of slavery or Jim Crow or colonialism, just let them be freaking kids.

You seem to be preaching this kind of neo-segregationism where black girls can only have black role models and black heroes, and it's such a poisonous mindset. "You white girls go over here, this isn't for you." "You black girls go over there, this isn't for you."

Your white daughters don’t necessarily matter here.

Read this back to yourself. You're proud of having written this sentence?

 

[Snow Queen 83]

If it’s not about race, but you care about how she looks, is it Halle Bailey’s mole on her face that’s bothering you?

Maybe you should reread my posts. I said she doesn't look like Ariel, which is a fact.

 

[Brer Panther]

What is even going on in this thread?

 

[Snow Queen 83]

I think it’s unfair to put any actress in a role she shouldn’t be in. Disney knows the flack she was going to get for not looking like Ariel. But they did it anyways, because they wanted to check off boxes.

 

[Andrew C]

I thought Cinderella was quite good.

My girls like the version with Brandy and Whitney Houston....and Jason Alexander

 

[Br0ckford]

What is even going on in this thread?

Lol. I was thinking the same thing.

 

[MisterPenguin]

What is even going on in this thread?

People are angry that the Blue Power Ranger did not have, in fact, blue skin.

 

[Californian Elitist]

So what's our goal here, societally? Do we want little black girls and little white girls to play with each other, love the same movies, sing the same songs, and not even notice that their skin is different from each other? Because that's what I thought our goal was, and that's what I teach my kids. It doesn't matter what you look like, or what your friends look like, or what your friends' parents look like, because God made all of us special and what matters is who we are as individuals, not what group we belong to. Don't we want our children to be thinking about what dress is the most sparkly, which songs they like to sing in the bathtub, and which animal sidekick is the cutest, rather than the race of the actress playing the fictional mermaid? It's such an awful burden to impose on kids to make them worry about the legacy of slavery or Jim Crow or colonialism, just let them be freaking kids.

You seem to be preaching this kind of neo-segregationism where black girls can only have black role models and black heroes, and it's such a poisonous mindset. "You white girls go over here, this isn't for you." "You black girls go over there, this isn't for you."


Read this back to yourself. You're proud of having written this sentence?

I did read it back to myself for a grammar/spelling check before having posted it. I’m very proud of having written this sentence, given the context. If you’re taking this as me saying your daughters don’t matter in general, then I can see why you asked me this question. I’m not saying that at all, nowhere near it. I’m saying if we’re talking about representation of people of color in film and television, in this case, black representation, then no, white children don’t need to be inserted into the equation because they’re not affected in the same way that black children are. There’s plenty of white representation, and not just in media and entertainment. They’re not going to potentially grow up hating their brown skin and kinky hair (this happens a lot more than you may or may not think). Your white daughters loving that this Ariel is black is great, but it’s not the same as black children being able to see themselves on screen and thinking it’s great. It just isn’t, and this is getting into politics, which I tried to avoid doing yesterday, but I felt I needed to respond to this because you keep inserting your white children into this conversation when it doesn’t concern them.

My societal goal doesn’t include white people at all in this context, unless simply trying to get white people to understand the severity of this issue and just how important it is counts. What I want is for more accurate, positive, and generally more representation of people of color in film and television, including more diverse storylines, not only for the purposes of entertainment, but for the purposes of stopping the development of any potential self-hatred amongst children of color. This is an actual problem faced by actual people, and I know this because I’ve experienced it myself and I’ve spoken to many other people of color, more black people than anything, who’ve also experienced it. I’ve given presentations on the importance of representation in media and my own personal struggles to love myself while growing up black, struggling to love my brown skin, to not want to replace my kinky hair with permanently straightened hair, to not think of myself and other black people as ugly, and to stop the thoughts and desires of wanting to be white instead. Again, I have spoken to MANY other people who experienced the exact same thing, women and men, and the roots of the issue are always the same: lack of representation in media, particularly film and television, being one of a few tokens in a majority white environment, usually school, and lack of parental guidance and assurance regarding loving and appreciating one’s respective race at home. I grew up in the 90s, when these conversations weren’t being had at the level in which they are now, and when representation was sorely lacking. I’m so happy that things have greatly improved and continue to improve. There’s a children’s show called Rise Up Sing Out, and one of the episodes is centered around bonnets, what their purpose is for black hair, and why little black girls wear them. I wish I had something like that to watch as a kid, but I’m happy this generation of black children have it and I hope we see more of it by the time I potentially have children.

So, again, this may not matter to you because you don’t have to experience it, but it does matter. I invite you to educate yourself on the matter more, if you’re interested. I’ve said mostly what I wanted to say, and because I want to be respectful of the rules, I will stop here. I sincerely hope that your daughters enjoy the movie when it releases.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Maybe you should reread my posts. I said she doesn't look like Ariel, which is a fact.

Right, but you also said it’s not about race, which is directly related to her physical appearance, no? So if it’s not about race, if it’s not about Halle’s peanut butter skin and kinky red locs, what is it? The shape of her eyes? The mole? Is it that fact that her eyes aren’t blue?

 

[1420Elexismc]

That's exactly how my white daughters reacted to the trailer. Little girls love mermaids.

To reiterate, since I know not every person reads every post, I have no problem with this casting. But that doesn't mean it's "important." In fact, the argument up until this point has been the opposite, that it shouldn't matter what race or nationality she is, an argument that I agree with.

Position 1: "It's important that she's white." <--- Racist people say this.
Position 2: "It doesn't matter what race she is." <--- We were here. This is the consensus mainstream opinion.
Position 3: "It's important that she's Black." <--- But you moved the goalpasts to here. This is where you get backlash.

My point was more that clearly this is causing such a fantastic reaction for these kids seeing this trailer. Does it warm my hear a bit more that this clip shows little girls reacting to the trailer AND they happen to be black? Sure-I didn't have that when I was younger-and it's wonderful to see it. That being said, any clip of kids reacting so emotionally to this warms my heart 100% because at the end of the day, to me-that's what it is about more than anything. That's where my "important" comment came from more than anything. There is enough going wrong in this world not to see how lovely it is to see how excited they are. I'm ecstatic your daughters had the reaction they did and would hope than most would be if it's a movie they would be into in general.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

So what's our goal here, societally? Do we want little black girls and little white girls to play with each other, love the same movies, sing the same songs, and not even notice that their skin is different from each other? Because that's what I thought our goal was, and that's what I teach my kids. It doesn't matter what you look like, or what your friends look like, or what your friends' parents look like, because God made all of us special and what matters is who we are as individuals, not what group we belong to. Don't we want our children to be thinking about what dress is the most sparkly, which songs they like to sing in the bathtub, and which animal sidekick is the cutest, rather than the race of the actress playing the fictional mermaid? It's such an awful burden to impose on kids to make them worry about the legacy of slavery or Jim Crow or colonialism, just let them be freaking kids.

You seem to be preaching this kind of neo-segregationism where black girls can only have black role models and black heroes, and it's such a poisonous mindset. "You white girls go over here, this isn't for you." "You black girls go over there, this isn't for you."


Read this back to yourself. You're proud of having written this sentence?

This spinning of a historical lack of representation for people of colour or other minorities as being okay, by saying we're all part of the same, larger human community, misses the point completely.

Casting a black actress as Ariel doesn't mean the movie is only for black girls or that they can't have heroes who are white. It's about making sure that the diversity of our culture is represented on screen and black girls get to have a black hero sometimes, instead of almost never having that opportunity.

How many fairy tales has Disney produced? How many featured a white protagonist? Until fairly recently, I want to say all of them. People gloss over this point when they argue the Ariel character was white before and should be white now. People arguing this are essentially saying that they have claimed every princess as being white, and how dare anyone take steps to correct the imbalance and make things just a bit more equitable.