An Uncle Remus face character would welcome lots of backlash and complaints.
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Tiana's Bayou Adventure: Disneyland Watch & Discussion
- Thread starter Californian Elitist
- Start date
Rich T
Well-Known Member
For anyone here who’s never seen SotS, here’s the plot:
Little white spoiled brat Johnny Rich’s cushy southern mansion life is upended by his parents’ vague-maybe-separation. Running away, he nears the sharecroppers’ village and overhears Remus telling Brer Rabbit stories to his neighbors. Remus spots Johnny, sizes up the situation and tells Johnny a Brer Rabbit story that convinces the kid to return home.
Johnny has bully trouble, gets a Brer Rabbit story from Remus, applies the moral poorly and causes enough of what passes for conflict in this film to cause the Mom to idiotically conclude that Remus is a bad influence on perfect Johnny. She forbids Remus to talk to Johnny anymore.
And then Remus, incredibly, turns his back on a lifetime of friends, neighbors and all the black kids who love his stories and—because he can’t tell stories to THE WHITE KID HE JUST MET—packs up and leaves.
Johnny sees Remus leaving and tries to catch up. Like an idiot, the boy cuts across a bull pen and—MOOO*KAPOW—the bull knocks him into a coma.
At the mansion, Johnny lies on his deathbed. Remus returns and—in the movie’s one truly great, emotional live-action scene—talks Johnny back from death’s door via one last Brer Rabbit story. Make no mistake, Baskett’s acting in this scene is phenomenal.
All ends happily, but it’s assumed Remus is still living in that cruddy liittle shack.
The End
Little white spoiled brat Johnny Rich’s cushy southern mansion life is upended by his parents’ vague-maybe-separation. Running away, he nears the sharecroppers’ village and overhears Remus telling Brer Rabbit stories to his neighbors. Remus spots Johnny, sizes up the situation and tells Johnny a Brer Rabbit story that convinces the kid to return home.
Johnny has bully trouble, gets a Brer Rabbit story from Remus, applies the moral poorly and causes enough of what passes for conflict in this film to cause the Mom to idiotically conclude that Remus is a bad influence on perfect Johnny. She forbids Remus to talk to Johnny anymore.
And then Remus, incredibly, turns his back on a lifetime of friends, neighbors and all the black kids who love his stories and—because he can’t tell stories to THE WHITE KID HE JUST MET—packs up and leaves.
Johnny sees Remus leaving and tries to catch up. Like an idiot, the boy cuts across a bull pen and—MOOO*KAPOW—the bull knocks him into a coma.
At the mansion, Johnny lies on his deathbed. Remus returns and—in the movie’s one truly great, emotional live-action scene—talks Johnny back from death’s door via one last Brer Rabbit story. Make no mistake, Baskett’s acting in this scene is phenomenal.
All ends happily, but it’s assumed Remus is still living in that cruddy liittle shack.
The End
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PiratesMansion
Well-Known Member
the_rich
Well-Known Member
Yea the tar baby stuff is truly disgusting.
Remus deciding to leave because he can't see a white child and tell him stories anymore is probably the worst and cringiest part of the film for me. Forget your kin nearby, just up and leave because you're now forbidden from seeing a white child. In 19th century America. I just can't.
Practical Pig
Well-Known Member
I recently finished watching the full film through for the first time since I watched it in a theatrical re-release as a child or early teen (I've watched bits here and there since, but not the whole thing in entire context).
Your summation is spot-on.
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Of all the problems with this movie (and there are many) I never caught this one. I always took it as the mother didn't want Remus hanging around her child, not because of his race, but because she didn't like how his stories were filling her child's head with "nonsense".
She didn't like make-believe and feared the stories would give the kid a false outlook on life, making it seem more "Zip-a-dee-do-dah" than the realities she knew.
Little Green Men
Well-Known Member
Yikes I never saw it but that’s just beyond awful
Rich T
Well-Known Member
I agree, that’s the Mom’s motivation. The problem is entirely with Remus’s reaction. His abandonment of his friends, family and community and his pouty, self-pittying attitude—all over not being able to talk to one white kid he just met—it destroys his character development. It’s just ridiculous. It makes it appear as though the opinion of one white woman is worth more to him than all the decades of love, respect and friendship he’s gotten from his community and extended family.
Well, you’re right, that was the reason. It had nothing to do with Remus being black. The issue comes from the aftermath of her decision, particularly Uncle Remus’ behavior and decisions.
We have a term (a few terms, actually) for black people like Remus within the African American community, but I can’t repeat it here.
I highly recommend watching the movie, if you can find a screening of it somewhere. I bet you can find it to stream online.
That never hit me until now, but yeah, he just tucked his tail between his legs and fled. Some issues with this movie hit you like a brick ((Tar Baby)), and others sink in after awhile how they were poorly executed story-wise.
I'm still going to miss the Brer characters and some of the signature songs, but it's apparent why Disney is wanting to step away from this for good.
BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
And we would welcome them with open arms. My Disney would be diverse and inclusive™!
Nothing says diversity and inclusion like a jolly black face character who speaks in slave dialect and is an Uncle Tom. That’s exactly what we need to freshen up the DLR in this day and age!
Brer Panther
Well-Known Member
Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, there's a reason why they don't have a Tar Baby in the ride.
BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
Honest question: did the tar baby not originate in the "authentic" folktales? My understanding was that that was not an aspect of the tales that came from Joel Chandler Harris.
But then again it's never been clear to me through this whole discussion how Harris's versions of the tales are different or why that even matters.
But then again it's never been clear to me through this whole discussion how Harris's versions of the tales are different or why that even matters.
Depending on the culture, the story calls for a sticky substance. For peoples familiar with natural tar pools, the baby is covered with tar. For others not familiar with tar, they use honey.
The "baby" part is synonymous with a "doll." When you construct a small animal, it looks like you're making a child's doll, which is often a baby they take care of.
It was long after folktales of tar-covered babies that racists used the term "tar babies" applied to Black children. Amongst racists, the punchline is as simple as "see, because they're *black*!!" Blackness was sufficient enough to be seen as inferior and 'funny.'
So, yes, "tar baby" did not originate as something racist, but racists made it racist.
Brer Panther
Well-Known Member
Aren't there Disney picture books adapting the story that use a "glue baby" instead?
TP2000
Well-Known Member
It was a concept very, very early in its development. And it was being pitched heavily on its ability to sell Instagrammable food and merchandise, not because it was a fabulous story to tell. This was a complete 180 from how E Tickets were pitched and sold back in the 20th century. Back then, the story was the top priority, and then the merchandisers came in and made some cutesy souvenirs based on the story being told. This was a flip-flop of that process entirely.
To be fair to WDI, their entire business model is based on pitching ideas to add or remake new attractions and lands to any park that wants to pay them to do so. They need the business, and they aren't stupid enough to not see how things have changed under Chapek. If all theme parks suddenly stopped adding new rides, a lot of Imagineers in Glendale would be out of jobs and be stuck with a Tesla payment they suddenly couldn't afford. WDI has got hundreds of ideas ready to go for any park that wants to pay them. The Tiana's Bayou Bash N' Splash, Presented by Ziploc concept was just one of hundreds, and conveniently was sitting on a shelf in its infancy ready to meet the moment of erasing some history in 2020.
It's also incredibly telling, and obviously damning, that the ride is still operating in its allegedly offensive and "racist" format currently on both coasts. So, is it racist or is it not? Apparently it's not that racist, because it's still operating daily on both coasts.
That's because the Tiana replacement was not a fleshed out and developed concept. It was a basic proposal very early in its development. But thank God it was even at that infant stage, because Iger could claim they had big plans to erase Song Of The South and replace it with Tiana.
But that original racist log ride keeps operating nearly a year later on both coasts, because the Tiana concept was not nearly ready for prime time and still needs a lot of work and Imagineering to make it a reality. Check back in 2023. Until then, just try and forget that it's an allegedly racist log ride, if you'd be so kind.
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