Splash Mountain re-theme announced

[disneygeek90]

Genuinely curious how those here felt about the Red Head change in POTC. IMO Disney is handling it the same way. The difference is instead of one scene needing adjustment it's the entire ride. This echos what Magic Feather said earlier. Even a re-write won't change the subtext and connotations of the source.

 

[BigDlover]

I’ve been in that queue for hours, if not days of my life, and not once have I heard anyone whispering about Song of the South.

To be fair, I have. And I've had conversations about it outside of Disney World way before the social movements of the last few months.

 

[davis_unoxx]

I know there are plenty of other purists, but everywhere I look I’m seeing praise for this and I’m feeling so alone.

You’re not!

 

[Has Been Disney Fan]

Let me get this straight. Splash Mountain is racist and must go because it is based on a movie with the main character and hero of the story being black. The most famous song from the movie by this talented black actor won an academy award. The story of Brairfox and Brairbear are famous characters straight out of black folklore. But still the ride must go because it is racist. What about It’s A Small World? It profits from little people of all skin colors including blacks. How about the Hall of Presidents it features several Presidents who were racist slave owners? Then of course there is Mickey Mouse a black mouse and how do we think the dwarfs feel. What do all these examples have in common plus many more examples I can come up with? Walt Disney! He must have been a racist too. So I say shut all the parks down and shut them down now! Plus all other Disney properties. It’s only the right thing to do. Sorry all you career African American employees, until recently you didn’t realize you are working for a racist corporation. I hate that you have to give up a good paying career but sacrifices must be made. Oh yea by the way, I have canceled my yearly trips.

 

[Kate F]

I hate people

 

[RCID]

oh well, rant over cest la vie Disney.

 

[Kate F]

Naughty TinkerBelle..8878.., you haven't read the thread. This has been brought up several times:

• Song of the South doesn't fit in Frontierland, either. MK's FL is a mash up of "Frontier" and "The South." Big Thunder Mountain in Arizona is next to the Mississippi and Georgia as it is. PatF would fit perfectly with the paddle boat on the Mississippi right next to it, no?

• It's not about adding a new ride or finding a ride for PatF. It's all about getting rid of the attraction associated with the racist movie, Song of the South (even if the animals from the animated segments aren't racist in and of themselves). Disney knew the movie would be problematic, but they made it anyway. Then they had to hide it, and then they stupidly created a ride based on a problematic source. This is about Disney fully disavowing SotS. It's gravy that PatF gets an attraction.

I can understand why, doesn’t mean I have to like or agree with it.

 

[RCID]

I can understand why, doesn’t mean I have to like or agree with it.

I have woken up to the fact that is no longer allowed....

 

[tirian]

I personally believe the ride is not problematic but the origins of the ride has always been a dark could hanging over the parks. It’s always whispered about in the queues. And unless they remade a briar rabbit movie, that would never change. So it’s time. I will miss the HELL out of it but it is what it is.

But again, if they would stop treating the movie as taboo and just license it to Criterion, its aura would quickly fade as people realized the live action is truly, horrifically melodramatic. Kids would be bored stiff. Angry Twitterverse would realize the drama is far less problematic than Gone with the Wind, which is straight-up racist. It would become another look at the past like many other films on Criterion, and nobody would care anymore.

Disney created this tempest in a teapot by burying the movie instead of redirecting it to film buffs, and Disney allowed an even worse mythology to build around the movie. It’s the company’s own fault.

Song of the South’s storyline had already been scrubbed from the attraction. The plot was based completely on Brer Rabbit and could have existed even if the movie had never been made.

And now the only attraction specifically based on African folklore has been buried under people’s opinions about the UNSEEN live-action sequences of a largely boring movie, and self-imagined activists can have their Americanized European fairy tale. If Tiana’s skin color were different, it would not affect the movie’s storyline AT ALL. A bit of throwaway dialogue here and there would have to change. That’s it. At least Brer Rabbit was an authentic part of folklore.

I wish Disney had installed a plaque to explain the history of Wakaima and how he became Brer Rabbit.

 

[DarkMetroid567]

wE WoN’T bE ReNeWiNg ouR pASsEs

 

[Brer Oswald]

I know there are plenty of other purists, but everywhere I look I’m seeing praise for this and I’m feeling so alone.

A lot of people are praising it for fear of being labeled racist. People saying it was a bad idea two weeks ago are now psyched.
This really is the climate we live in. I’m not afraid to speak my mind because I know I’m not racist. The mistreatment of black people by judicial systems infuriates me more than this retheme. Lives are more important. Which is why I’m also angry that people made a cartoon animal ride a priority on the chopping block. But whatever.

To those mislabeling others as racists, COPE . To those upset about the retheme, I’m sorry, but you have to just cope and move on. It’s out of our control. Sometimes, people just make the incorrect decision, and it has a big impact on you. But you gotta roll with the punches.

 

[orlandogal22]

Who here has never seen Song of the South (or don’t remember much if you have), but grew up with the song being played on The Disney Channel and records (yep, I’m that old), and riding Splash Mountain as a kid, really only connecting the ride and the song in that way. Not thinking about the movie at all?

I was born in the mid 70s. I saw parts of the movie. We never had cable in my house growing up so I didn't see the Disney Channel until I was a older, but I got my music from the Disco Mickey Mouse record I had. I first rode Splash Mountain in 1992.

Never thought of the movie. Only thought of Br'er Rabbit, the antics of all involved, the music, the water sloshing around (big fan of log flume rides), the big "finale" of the ending. No one in my family, friends, anyone I was around talked about the movie.

Ultimately though, it was all about the drop at the end of the day and how wet we were going to get. That's it.

 

[JustInTime]

But again, if they would stop treating the movie as taboo and just license it to Criterion, its aura would quickly fade as people realized the live action is truly, horrifically melodramatic. Kids would be bored stiff. Angry Twitterverse would realize the drama is far less problematic than Gone with the Wind, which is straight-up racist. It would become another look at the past like many other films on Criterion, and nobody would care anymore.

Disney created this tempest in a teapot by burying the movie instead of redirecting it to film buffs, and Disney allowed an even worse mythology to build around the movie. It’s the company’s own fault.

And now the only attraction specifically based on African folklore has been buried under people’s opinions about the UNSEEN live-action sequences of a largely boring movie, and self-imagined activists can have their Americanized European fairy tale. If Tiana’s skin color were different, it would not affect the movie’s storyline AT ALL. A bit of throwaway dialogue here and there would have to change. That’s it. At least Brer Rabbit was an authentic part of folklore.

I can’t say I blame for Disney for not wanting to step into this arena, honestly. I can promise you, folks would still be offended. Would be a PR nightmare and they don’t want any part of it.

 

[rk03221]

Walt Disney himself said “Disneyland is not a museum”. He wanted it to change over the years

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

Let me get this straight. Splash Mountain is racist and must go because it is based on a movie with the main character and hero of the story being black. The most famous song from the movie by this talented black actor won an academy award. The story of Brairfox and Brairbear are famous characters straight out of black folklore. But still the ride must go because it is racist. What about It’s A Small World? It profits from little people of all skin colors including blacks. How about the Hall of Presidents it features several Presidents who were racist slave owners? Then of course there is Mickey Mouse a black mouse and how do we think the dwarfs feel. What do all these examples have in common plus many more examples I can come up with? Walt Disney! He must have been a racist too. So I say shut all the parks down and shut them down now! Plus all other Disney properties. It’s only the right thing to do. Sorry all you career African American employees, until recently you didn’t realize you are working for a racist corporation. I hate that you have to give up a good paying career but sacrifices must be made. Oh yea by the way, I have canceled my yearly trips.

Posts like this (from new members who signed up 30 minutes ago) really help the “cause” being “fought” by so many on this thread

 

[Magenta Panther]

You realize sharecroppers were still essentially slaves... right? They were not free.

You realize that there were white sharecroppers too?

 

[MisterPenguin]

Let me get this straight. Splash Mountain is racist and must go because it is based on a movie with the main character and hero of the story being black. The most famous song from the movie by this talented black actor won an academy award.

Yeah, that's not the full situation.

Read the thread.

 

[RCID]

A lot of people are praising it for fear of being labeled racist. People saying it was a bad idea two weeks ago are now psyched.
This really is the climate we live in. I’m not afraid to speak my mind because I know I’m not racist. The mistreatment of black people by judicial systems infuriates me more than this retheme. Lives are more important. Which is why I’m also angry that people made a cartoon animal ride a priority on the chopping block. But whatever.

To those mislabeling others as racists, COPE and F off. To those upset about the retheme, I’m sorry, but you have to just cope and move on. It’s out of our control. Sometimes, people just make the incorrect decision, and it has a big impact on you. But you gotta roll with the punches.

Great attitude! I Need to take it to heart

 

[Brer Oswald]

wE WoN’T bE ReNeWiNg ouR pASsEs

 

[JustInTime]

Genuinely curious how those here felt about the Red Head change in POTC. IMO Disney is handling it the same way. The difference is instead of one scene needing adjustment it's the entire ride. This echos what Magic Feather said earlier. Even a re-write won't change the subtext and connotations of the source.

I always thought a splash mountain movie/remake/reboot would be a great way to correct the situation.