LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
I’m on the side of “I’ll watch it first before judging it”, so I definitely fall outside whatever framework you’re referring to.
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Live-Action ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’
- Thread starter NateD1226
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LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
Why do you say that? The reaction within this site has been pretty extreme as it is.
Chi84
Premium Member
What a unique stance!
LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
Yes, I’m a pretty rare bird in these parts!
Tha Realest
Well-Known Member
I just went and looked. It’s not just the usual right wing echo chamber type sites. Mainstream publications have picked up on it too. And, not in just a “conservatives pounce” way - many of them have been pretty measured to show how seemingly apolitical “Disney” fans (not just the guys-wearing-wraparound-shades-in-their-cars bridgade) have reacted poorly to her comments.
One quirk of the SAG strike is I believe the actors are prohibited from coordinating in any way with their actors as it relates to promotion for films. So, a sorely needed coordinated PR effort between Disney and Zegler can’t really happen right now.
Willmark
Well-Known Member
Indeed it is not. This is all over media, not just Twitter.
Disney is going to have a tough row to hoe on this one.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
I’m having a hard time believing most folks even know, let alone care, that Rachel Zegler called Prince Charming a “stalker” and talked about making a movie different from an animated film from 1937.
Chi84
Premium Member
People will reach for any validation of their beliefs. I’ve been following these movie threads for some time now. With the exception of maybe one poster, they want Disney to fail (or they glory in its underperformance) because they don’t like its progressive policies and want to show that everyone else thinks like them.
It’s fine. I’m not really invested in Disney’s financial success but I sort of admire its willingness to take on social ills (although it does far less than people represent).
Just as in its lawsuits against Florida, Disney is playing the long game. The pendulum swings too far to one side, corrections are made, and all is well in the end. Or maybe not. Time only moves in one direction - except perhaps in the movies.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
It’s all petty and childish. And you’re right, it seems that some people believe that certain things somehow prove that most people not only share the same beliefs, but also care as much as they do, which likely couldn’t be further from the truth. It feels like that because we post on a message board where everyone has the same interests in the same topic. However, this is a bubble…a very small bubble, at that. It’s not like we’re discussing topics that generally a good amount of people are concerned about, like affordable groceries and being able to pay rent. We’re going back and forth about comments made about Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, a nearly 90-year-old movie, that people got mad about and offended by. LOL. It’s actually funny when you write it out.
The majority of folks couldn’t give a rat’s behind about this.
erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
I think that's a tad unfair. A bunch of us are hard on Disney not because we want to see it burn. We're critical because we want them to do better. I personally would much rather be talking about the next big ride, or expansion. Or how great or well their films are doing. I personally can't make excuses for them and their treatment of the parks and the quality of a lot of the films over the last few years. But just because of that, it doesn't mean I am wanting them to fail. Well maybe the live action remakes anyway
. I want them to be great, that's what brought me to places like these forums in the first place.
Chi84
Premium Member
It’s hard for me to take the criticism of Disney’s films seriously when so many who criticize them simply refuse to see them because Disney is trying to make them more current.I think that's a tad unfair. A bunch of us are hard on Disney not because we want to see it burn. We're critical because we want them to do better. I personally would much rather be talking about the next big ride, or expansion. Or how great or well their films are doing. I personally can't make excuses for them and their treatment of the parks and the quality of a lot of the films over the last few years. But just because of that, it doesn't mean I am wanting them to fail. Well maybe the live action remakes anyway
Maybe people actually do want Disney to tailor its films to China’s sensibilities so they can make more money which will ultimately be funneled into the parks.
Maybe I’m just not as much of a Disney fan as some others here. And I say that as someone who has made well over 50 visits to WDW since 1984. Disney is going to make the films it wants to make and I can like them or not. So far I like them just fine.
AdventureHasAName
Well-Known Member
You don't have to take the criticism seriously ... just don't be surprised when the company gets sold and that criticism is a large part of the reason.
Chi84
Premium Member
If the company gets sold it will likely be because of deterioration brought about by the abject greed and mismanagement of its current leaders, not because of its principles.
CJR
Well-Known Member
I mean, given the box office numbers, I'd say that's what most people are doing.
Longer term, I think it'll be even more weighted. In the year 2050, I think more people will watch the 1955 Lady and the Tramp than the 2019 Lady and the Tramp. I'll place that bet. I'd even bet that almost no one will watch the 2019 version. We'll see, I hope to still be alive in 2050. Same for Pinocchio.
Even in China, are people reacting well to the remakes? It didn't do well financially with The Little Mermaid, which I enjoyed btw. So, I'm not seeing any sign of a short term loss for a long term gain. I think most of the content will just get forgotten about, because it's been lackluster at best, and cost the company billions of dollars when it's all said and done.
As a shareholder, I'd rather them stop taking losses. I don't see any evidence that their PC goal is working on a financial level, and it's a publicly traded company, so they need to deliver a return at some point.
CJR
Well-Known Member
That's what you got out of all that I said? Yes I do, but I'm not going to go any further into that. It's not appropriate for this forum, so I won't.
The overall point is that their film business is losing money, especially when you remove Marvel from the equation. People aren't watching the remakes, not enough of them, and it's a business. A publicly owned business.
Chi84
Premium Member
Well yes, because generally one’s goal drives everything. All that is done is in furtherance of a goal. Do you think Disney is doing remakes because they are not happy with the originals? I happen to like the live-action versions but I’m sure they’ll stop if Disney no longer finds them worthwhile.
So if you’re suggesting that their goal is to be PC instead of to make money, I’d like to know why.
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doctornick
Well-Known Member
Can't speak for anyone else, but my main concern is basically this: I like Disney. I generally enjoy Disney movies. I enjoy going to Disney parks. I like Disney+. So my concern is that I want them to do well at the box office so they can continue to produce things I enjoy. When they have tons of losses at the box office, it it will impact things I like and that is not ideal.
Mostly I'm not too personally bothered by Disney's current direction although there are a few things they have made that I have disliked. There's some stuff I think is too heavy handed but it is more of an eye roll in the middle of a show or film where it's clear the DEI folks got to make their mark than my thinking a production is overall bad. But that's a whatever, not a big deal.
My main real concern is that Disney's positioning within the ongoing culture war is going to continue to turn off significant chunks of their potential customers. And doing so means less money for the company and fewer things that I can watch, more cuts at the parks, shows taken off on D+, etc. So I do care about what they do not on some principle or being offended but because I want to see the company be on financially stable ground for my purposes to be met.
Chi84
Premium Member
But when you talk about positioning - how does not taking a position differ from taking a position in favor of the keeping the status quo? Would not taking a position still allow Disney to cast Halle Bailey as Ariel?
CJR
Well-Known Member
Sorry for the long post, wrote in between tasks.
Their goal was and is to make money, they just haven't since 2019. Over time, especially since 2020, I think they have shifted towards an "image correction" that led to more focus on their older IP. I personally find this path unnecessary, but that's just my opinion.
The real problem is not being PC, but the shallow (watered down) stories themselves as a result of corporate interference. The stories are inoffensive, but pointless and arguably boring. Rather consistently too, IMO.
I don’t think anyone should have had high expectations for the films released directly to Disney+, but as a business leader, you have to think how that impact brand image and how people will associate that remake with your next theatrical release. The Little Mermaid suffered because of these movies, IMHO. Maybe there's a bit of remake fatigue too, but Pinocchio didn't help.
It's similar to how the old terrible direct to video sequels did damage to Disney's brand perception, leading to low box office grosses for films in the 2000's. I mean, the DTV movies weren't the only reason, but I believe that they played a role.
So while their goal is to make money, I'm saying that they are not making money, and not just the remakes. The Haunted Mansion just bombed. They're pumping out films that people haven't asked for and are doing them with mega budgets. Even the Disney+ stuff was too expensive.
The starting point in writing a script shouldn't be trying to exclude certain portions of the original story and I feel like that's where we are. There needs to be more reason to tell a story than to simply retell it without the arguably offensive parts. It also helps when the people making the movie are passionate about the source material and I'm not seeing that either.
Completely agree.
Like I said, I enjoyed TLM and other projects, personally. However, I am just one fan. Also, I am a shareholder. I too want the company to succeed.
The problem for me is that it's not, and I am not feeling assured that it will, not under its current leadership. They need a change (and not just a CEO change). It seems obvious to me.
This strategy is just not working and I don't believe it will. The mass remake craze died in 2019 and they need to roll up their sleeves and do a bit of creative work.