Jasmine's new look

[LongLiveTheKing]

Some footage of the new outfit. It's only like ten seconds of footage for Jasmine... but... Um...



Can we talk about just out of the bar at closing Abu for a bit?

 

[SorcererMC]

While this is true for parents, for girls growing up, the belly dancer attire Jasmine wears in the movie is ironically a lot more similar to the absolute huge number of short short and midriff exposing American (actually is this common in western Europe or first world Asian countries at all?) teenagers present today than in the 90's

If I understand this correctly - right....it's not that young girls won't see other people wearing clothes like this (because they certainly will), but that they'll see a Disney princess wearing it, and does that attire represent the brand or not. The 'Disney Princess' franchise was est. ~2000, and is worth $5 Bln according to a 2015 Bloomberg article (http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2015-disney-princess-hasbro/). Disney started re-imagining the princesses in early 2014 - more heroine, less damsel in distress.

“The Princess franchise has to evolve,” says Josh Silverman, executive vice president for global licensing at Disney Consumer Products, the division that handles all the brand licenses. “The focus will be on empowered heroines.”​

 

[EvilQueen-T]

I don't like it at all. I agree with a previous poster who said it looks like a knock off costume like the one's where they can't call it by it's disney name but will say things like "Arabian princess" or "fairy tale princess". Looks cheap and not enough like what she wore in the movie. If the original outfit was good enough for everyone to fall in love with her in the movie it's good enough to wear in the parks. If you don't want your child wearing it or seeing it be the adult and say no and move on. If we're going to go all extreme and pull things from the parks for being offensive in their movies then do we need to tear down the dumbo ride since they got a baby elephant drunk, smoking a cigar, and talking to crows in black face. Oh and I guess they'd need to shut down her part of philharmagic too before someone freaks out over seeing her belly button...and if we can't see those time to close the two water parks and all the pools...the idiocy can go on forever.

 

[SorcererMC]

So I just said that the Disney Princess brand was re-imagined in 2014. Also in 2014 - Aladdin came to Broadway, and not without controversy re: Arab-American representation....the same issue that plagues the film - the Disney adaptation is not based on any actual historical Arabian culture, it's based on the folk tale One Thousand and One Nights or Arabian Nights, which was written by a French scholar Antoine Gallande in the 17th C. The source material is problematic in that it lacks authenticity....but the film, theatre adaptation, the characters, Jasmine as a 'Disney Princess' - all valuable to Disney now so they had to make a choice on how to respond to those criticisms as well.

 

[SorcererMC]

Interesting find. I'm watching 'Disneyland Around the Seasons' this morning....here are the 'harem-dancing girls' (as the narrator calls them) from Arabian Nights featured in the parade, must be ~1964-65 b/c it's the opening of It's a Small World.

 

[Matt_Black]

Interesting find. I'm watching 'Disneyland Around the Seasons' this morning....here are the 'harem-dancing girls' (as the narrator calls them) from Arabian Nights featured in the parade, must be ~1964-65 b/c it's the opening of It's a Small World.
View attachment 160536

What's your point? I'm watching the Star Trek marathon where all the male officers wear sensible pants while the female officers wear short short skirts. I LIKE the short skirts, don't get me wrong, but it's a bit of a double standard.

 

[21stamps]

So, let's change Jasmine's clothing, because we want to teach women everywhere, young and old, that they need to be ashamed of their bodies, and that all exposed skin outside of their face only serves to whip all men into a libido-fueled rage, so it needs to be covered. Let's also make this change to point out that all men that appreciate the female form will turn into ravenous, libido-fueled monsters, and covering up 99% of a woman's skin will deny them of said appreciation and keep the monster at bay. God forbid, we teach women to be proud of their physical appearance, and give them the choice of how much of it they want to show. Also, god forbid that we teach men that the female form can be appreciated respectfully without acting like a lecherous creep. Great job, Disney. Way to send the kind of messages that drive us back to the Dark Ages.

Exactly. I'm not outraged at the attractiveness of a costume. I'm outraged at the meaning behind it. It's 2016. Women have come way too far for this kind of bs!

 

[21stamps]

If I understand this correctly - right....it's not that young girls won't see other people wearing clothes like this (because they certainly will), but that they'll see a Disney princess wearing it, and does that attire represent the brand or not. The 'Disney Princess' franchise was est. ~2000, and is worth $5 Bln according to a 2015 Bloomberg article (http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2015-disney-princess-hasbro/). Disney started re-imagining the princesses in early 2014 - more heroine, less damsel in distress.

“The Princess franchise has to evolve,” says Josh Silverman, executive vice president for global licensing at Disney Consumer Products, the division that handles all the brand licenses. “The focus will be on empowered heroines.”​

I am happy that Disney has evolved in their princess and other female characters.

This is exactly why I don't understand this move. It's going backwards. Shame on them.

 

[SorcererMC]

What's your point? I'm watching the Star Trek marathon where all the male officers wear sensible pants while the female officers wear short short skirts. I LIKE the short skirts, don't get me wrong, but it's a bit of a double standard.

It's apropos to this subject, is it not? It's an earlier example of how Disney has approached Arabian Nights, long before Aladdin. People posting in this thread don't seem to understand why Jasmine in her belly-dancing attire is not appropriate for 2016 - it is b/c of where the image comes from and what it suggests. Now, I am going to make a distinction between that photo and modern belly-dancing, which is more about women accepting and celebrating their bodies, and I think both men and women can equally appreciate that. Had Disney gone in the direction of a modern belly-dancer I would have no problem with it, and would have preferred it. But that's not what they did - and this photo is an example of why. Disney as a company must be culturally intelligent and not alienate their consumers (which they have a habit of doing in many other ways but there are other threads for that).

 

[SorcererMC]

I am happy that Disney has evolved in their princess and other female characters.

This is exactly why I don't understand this move. It's going backwards. Shame on them.

I thought it was going backwards at first, too. But after doing a little digging and thinking about it way too much, I think I understand the rationale behind it. It's about cultural intelligence - being skilled, knowledgeable, and flexible in understanding another culture, and being aware of cross-cultural interactions and behaviors. Cultural values, attitudes, and behaviors are learned, and Disney has influence here in terms of the princesses (consider gender stereotypes) and how they choose to represent their 'ethnic' princesses like Jasmine. And if they can pull it off successfully, it will translate into better merch sales.

ETA: There is no way that Disney can ignore these issues in today's cultural ethos. They get plenty of flak for the gender and racial stereotypes that have been portrayed in their films, because they are still classics despite those flaws. There are articles (both news and academic) about it on a semi-regular basis (b/c Disney is a pop culture powerhouse).

 

[21stamps]

I thought it was going backwards at first, too. But after doing a little digging and thinking about it way too much, I think I understand the rationale behind it. It's about cultural intelligence - being skilled, knowledgeable, and flexible in understanding another culture, and being aware of cross-cultural interactions and behaviors. Cultural values, attitudes, and behaviors are learned, and Disney has influence here in terms of the princesses (consider gender stereotypes) and how they choose to represent their 'ethnic' princesses like Jasmine. And if they can pull it off successfully, it will translate into better merch sales.

ETA: There is no way that Disney can ignore these issues in today's cultural ethos. They get plenty of flak for the gender and racial stereotypes that have been portrayed in their films, because they are still classics despite those flaws. There are articles (both news and academic) about it on a semi-regular basis (b/c Disney is a pop culture powerhouse).

Not all middle eastern women are covered though! Especially in curent times.

It's an insulting to women-trying to be PC move. And it's gross. It's just disappointing on a much deeper level than bad bangs or ugly costume.

I'll stop my Woman Roaring now.

 

[21stamps]

I think they're being sarcastic. You know how many people will blame the victim in cases of assault instead of the person actually doing the assaulting? "Well, why were they dressed so provocatively?!?" I believe the poster is lampooning the mindset rather than condoning it.

It is sad that this convo is even happening.

 

[Matt_Black]

It's apropos to this subject, is it not? It's an earlier example of how Disney has approached Arabian Nights, long before Aladdin. People posting in this thread don't seem to understand why Jasmine in her belly-dancing attire is not appropriate for 2016 - it is b/c of where the image comes from and what it suggests. Now, I am going to make a distinction between that photo and modern belly-dancing, which is more about women accepting and celebrating their bodies, and I think both men and women can equally appreciate that. Had Disney gone in the direction of a modern belly-dancer I would have no problem with it, and would have preferred it. But that's not what they did - and this photo is an example of why. Disney as a company must be culturally intelligent and not alienate their consumers (which they have a habit of doing in many other ways but there are other threads for that).

Ah, I see. I thought you were making the argument of "Well that's how they always did it". My apologies.

 

[pumpkin7]

I'm late to the party and haven't read the whole thread so I'm sorry if this has been said before, but could they have just not put her in her purple dress from the movie? It shows no midriff and covers her up a lot more than her usual green outfit. This new one is just yucky. And why does she have a pathetic little fringe? She doesn't have a fringe! Rubbish.
Go home, Disney costume designers. You're drunk.

 

[SorcererMC]

Not all middle eastern women are covered though! Especially in curent times.

It's an insulting to women-trying to be PC move. And it's gross. It's just disappointing on a much deeper level than bad bangs or ugly costume.

I'll stop my Woman Roaring now.

Agreed re: Middle Eastern women and their dress (obviously a hot topic).

Basically, Disney is almost always risking offending someone, so they have to choose wisely (I'm not convinced that this dress fits the bill, but it is what they chose, likely b/c of it's similarity to the kids' costume so it could be a win-win scenario for them).

 

[SorcererMC]

Ah, I see. I thought you were making the argument of "Well that's how they always did it". My apologies.

Understood. When I posted that photo I wasn't sure I wanted to add my own commentary, so much as show that Disney has tangled with Arabian Nights before, and that it's not the 1960s anymore.

 

[lazyboy97o]

No amount of cultural awareness and sensitivity excuse poor fit, proportions and material choices.

 

[Pleakley]

It's my theory is that the big part of the reason this costume change was done to advertise the kid costume. They just get to toute themselves being culturally sensitive and protecting the actors as an excuse.

I wouldn't be surprised and what a shame that would be. Jasmine's outfit should be aspirational. If any 5yo can wear the same exact thing, what's the point?

Plus, if it's too cheap to begin with, how do you create costume tiers and charge $200+ for the premium one?

 

[Bocabear]

The Updated Little Mermaid will be meeting guests in her new costume starting in December...

 

[SorcererMC]

No amount of cultural awareness and sensitivity excuse poor fit, proportions and material choices.

The new look is not nearly as bad as some are making it out to be, and it's consistent now with the other Disney Princess looks. It could have been worse.
Here's the sketchbook ornament