Song of the South?

[wiigirl]

Maybe the real reason is that there are no princesses or fairies?? (Sneezy runs and hides)

Definetly it.

 

[Avenger117]

I think they haven't re-released it because its not a good movie, they are probably just embarassed to have their name on it.

 

[psukardi]

100% agree...

We're sensitive about a group of people who brought from one land to another and forced to work under a horrible system...

the other group was driven from their homes, killed, mamed with disease etc etc etc

but, agh... just give em' casinos and society will be happy

I'm for equality, but for ALL people

Preach brother. I long for the day that the Cleveland Indians get rid of their mascot (Chief Wahoo)

 

[ddbowdoin]

Preach brother. I long for the day that the Cleveland Indians get rid of their mascot (Chief Wahoo)

This is ok...

BUT...

"whoa, easy with the racism! I voted for Obama..."

 

[FettFan]

You kid, but you may have a point. I sometimes wonder if the real reason Disney is so timid about SotS, when films like "Gone With The Wind" are so much worse in the way they depict African-Americans (there are actual black SLAVES in GWTW), is because SotS has limited merchandising potential. Today's Disney Company never passes up a chance to make a buck; if it could market Brer Rabbit the way it markets the Princesses, I bet it'd find a way to release SotS in a fashion that would offend only the most uber-sensitive, complete with disclaimers and attempts to put the characterizations in the movie in context with its historical setting and with the time the film was released.

The sad thing is that if done right, a DVD/Blu Ray release would be an instant cash cow for Disney.
- SotS digtally enhanced
- Behind the scenes documentary on SotS
- Historical documentary on the Uncle Remus tales
- Behind the scenes documentary on Splash Mountain, hosted by Tony Baxter and Marty Sklar
- 1989's "Ernest Rides Splash Mountain"

 

[bluefaery]

I have Song of the South on VHS due to my family living overseas when it came out.

 

[FettFan]

Of course, now we live in a world that is.... more vigilant about historical accuracy,

As a historian-in-training I can honestly say that, aside from people like me in the historical profession (at least most of us...there have been some historians revealed as frauds, like Michael A. Bellesiles who didn't just fudge facts...he made up his own damn data), no the world is NOT more vigilant about historical accuracy. The world simply wants the answer that best strives to their own worldview.

Take for instance the movie Gladiator. There were at least two historians of ancient Rome involved with the production....however historical fact did not jive with what the audiences would be expecting. As a result one historian walked off completely while the other one asked not to be named in the credits.

 

[Fantasmic]

http://www.youtube.com/embed/aHKIMOgoJoU

 

[Skippy's Pal]

I think it's less about "racism" than about it's being Politically Incorrect. A flew days ago there was a news story about a school official somewhere in the Western US that stated peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were potentially racist. In a society like this, no sane arguments seem to be possible.

 

[minniemickeyfan]

Interesting note-Disney used to sell the books of Brer Rabbit just a few short years ago in the shop by SM, but those have been removed since.

 

[psukardi]

The tomahawk chop is OK. Portraying the native Americans as "savages" is OK. But heaven forbid we talk about slavery....

 

[Todd H]

I'm half Cherokee and it bothers me how Native Americans are still portrayed in this country.

 

[ladydi]

I have seen a bootlegged copy. I think the real issue is as Raven stated. The slaves are depicted as happy, well fed, well treated family units who love their lot in life and sing and dance all day long. Pretty inaccurate and not the way I want to teach my kids about America's past. Disney would be hauled over the coals if they tried to release it.

 

[WDWmazprty]

Why would you use the movie to teach anyway? Its a movie, meant for entertainment purposes. Its about the lessons one can learn from Brer Rabbit not about slavery and how it was depicted, etc. Its our job as parents to tell our kids whats right and wrong, correct and incorrect, etc.
Its a movie, when I saw it as a kid I never thought about the slavery part of the movie, I thought about the great songs and characters that were in it. People need to stop over analyzing everything so much. Enjoy the movie for what it is.

 

[FettFan]

I have seen a bootlegged copy. I think the real issue is as Raven stated. The slaves are depicted as happy, well fed, well treated family units who love their lot in life and sing and dance all day long. Pretty inaccurate and not the way I want to teach my kids about America's past. Disney would be hauled over the coals if they tried to release it.

That was actually the historical view of slaves until the G.I. Bill. If you read U.B. Phillips' American Negro Slavery (published in 1918) you will be a bit flabbergasted. It wasn't until Kenneth M. Stampp released The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the Antebellum South in 1956, did a deeper look go into the slave system.

Phillips wrote about what slavery did for the slaves.
Stampp wrote about what slavery did to the slaves.

Then there is a third school....those who write about what the slaves did for themselves. (Charles Joyner's Down by the Riverside: The South Carolina Slave Community is exceptionally good, and I highly recommend it it you ever have the free time)


As for the slaves singing and dancing....that's actually pretty truthful. But not for how you (or those who follow Phillips' argument) might think.
Sunday nights were dancing nights....worship nights.

 

[FettFan]

Why would you use the movie to teach anyway? Its a movie, meant for entertainment purposes. Its about the lessons one can learn from Brer Rabbit not about slavery and how it was depicted, etc. Its our job as parents to tell our kids whats right and wrong, correct and incorrect, etc.
Its a movie, when I saw it as a kid I never thought about the slavery part of the movie, I thought about the great songs and characters that were in it. People need to stop over analyzing everything so much. Enjoy the movie for what it is.

Bingo. Trying to get the truth about slavery from SotS is like trying to get the truth about Saint Nicholas from Norman Rockwell.

 

[Disnee4Me]

Try Ebay ... you might be able to get a bootleg copy from Canada, but of course you have to make sure the format works for an American DVD player.

 

[Mad Stitch]

Preach brother. I long for the day that the Cleveland Indians get rid of their mascot (Chief Wahoo)

Chief Wahoo really isn’t seen around the ballpark much these days. The team has been slowly replacing him with the script I and block C over the past few years. One day he will just be gone for good and nobody will even notice. They avoid the controversy this way.

Edit: Oh by the way, Chief Wahoo is a logo, Slider is the mascot.

 

[ratherbeinwdw]

Enjoy!



EDIT -- It is NOT racist! It's a movie for KIDS. They can learn all about how it was a false representation of Reconstruction Georgia when they are older.
Might as well tell them that Santa Claus is a lie too.

Thank you so much for posting this. I always believe people should see what they are talking about before they give opinions on it, one way or the other.

 

[wm49rs]

The tomahawk chop is OK. Portraying the native Americans as "savages" is OK.

I'm sure it is. To you....