Category: Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures
-
Alice in Wonderland. Dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, and Jack Kinney. Walt Disney Pictures. 1951.
A distinctive croquet game featuring flamingos as mallets and hedgehogs as balls becomes a symbol of societal norms and power dynamics in human-animal relationships, reflecting the era’s outlook on animal rights. Whimsy deviates from the real-world issues depicted in the original text, becoming rose-tinted rather than a mirror.
-
The Muppet Christmas Carol. Dir. Brian Henson. Walt Disney Pictures. 1992.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is not only a heart-warming Christmas story from the Victorian period, it also speaks volumes about social class inequalities. In The Muppet Christmas Carol, Director Brian Henson uses the species of rats to emblematise the impoverished, low social class. This contributes to Dickens’s interpretation from the original novel, this…
-
Hocus Pocus. Dir Kenny Ortega. Walt Disney Pictures. 1993
Thackery Binx is one of the central figures of Hocus Pocus, and in doing this the film considers the status of domesticated animals within society and cinema. Hocus Pocus acknowledges cats’ role as a domestic sphere defenders. Binx is specifically transformed into a cat because of the meanings we associate with them in our society,…
-
The Emperor’s New Groove. Dir. Mark Dindal. Walt Disney Pictures. 2000.
Disney’s animated comedy feature The Emperor’s New Groove follows the journey of a selfish Inca Emperor, Kuzco, who is transformed into a llama by his megalomaniac royal advisor, Yzma. In order to revert back into his human self and stop Yzma from taking over the Inca Empire, Kuzco persuades the gullible yet good-natured peasant Pacha…
-
Togo. Dir. Ericson Core. Walt Disney Studios. 2019
In Togo (2019)[1], directed by Ericson Core, the eponymous canine hero recovers from a potentially devastating injury, portrayed as being due to Togo’s incredible relationship with trainer Seppala. Core utilises the emotional score composed by Mark Isham, as well as focusing on the ‘love story between a man and his dog’[2]. This sequence cements the…
-
Dumbo. Dir. Tim Burton. Walt Disney Studios. 2019.
“Fly, Dumbo! Fly!” Did you know that the story of Dumbowas based on a real elephant, Jumbo, in PT Barnum’s circus? While the beloved baby elephant found his happy ever after, the original was not so lucky. Awfully abused and in declining health, at the age of 24, Jumbo was killed by a train when…
-
Pocahontas. Dir. Eric Goldberg and Mike Gabriel. The Walt Disney Company. 1995.
In Pocahontas, the animosity between Meeko, the Native American raccoon and Percy, the English pug is a microcosm of the conflict between the Native and English humans. The animals are comic foils, providing family-friendly slapstick relief from human violence. However, the inclusion of animals adds meaning beyond just comedic value. The animals and humans both…
-
The Lion King. Dir. Jon Favreau. Walt Disney Pictures and Fairview Entertainment. 2019.
‘There’s a stampede, in the pride lands’, Zazu’s memorable line is word-for-word identical to the 1994 animation. But where the animation focused on a simple plot, Jon Favreau’s recreation with CGI animals creates depth by building more of the animals’ characterisation into the story, I will question how this creates problems with humanising certain animals…