Review: The Princess and the Frog (Disney)

I was excited to finally watch this film a few weeks ago. Having spent a lot of time studying Disney at various stages of my degree, the lack of racial diversity and positive representations of people of colour is one of many aspects of Disney ideology that seriously bothered me. I am ever increasingly aware of my excess in privilege. As a white, middle class Australian, I do not have a strong understanding of the experiences of minorities in America except what I see through media. I do not feel adequately equipped to discuss at length the representations of race in this film, but will attempt to outline some of my concerns.

The final credits state the film was "inspired in part" by the novel by E. D Baker The Frog Princess. Pretty much the only thing taken from the novel is the idea of the girl become a frog instead of the frog returning to his Prince form when they kiss.

Highlights:

• The decision to have an African American princess is good. It is a good thing, but I do have some reservations about it (see Problems).
• Tiana is an interesting character, she has personality, aspirations not solely focused on marrying a Prince, and something she is passionate about.
• Tiana's future happiness is not entirely based on finding a husband.
• The relationship is not love at first sight, there is some kind of relationship development.
• The film shows that working hard for what you want is rewarding in and of itself.
• The idea of the princess turning into a frog is cool, and removes some of the more problematic aspects of the original fairy tale (creepy frog sleeping in the girl's bed, her father making her etc.)

Problems:

This is a pretty good post that shares many of my concerns about the film, but is also somewhat positive.

Race:

• For some time now Disney has been "diversifying" their Disney Princesses. I use inverted commas because I do not believe that this is much more than a token gesture by the corporation, and Tiana does not seem like an exception.
• The fact it took Disney until 2009 to create an African American princess is ridiculous. 
• Disney ideology is a pervasive and incredibly powerful cultural force and has been for some time. It has significantly contributed to racists discourses. The fact there was no attempt in this film to address any kind of discussion on the racist history of America (despite being set in the 20's) undermines the attempt to represent non-white experiences.
• A particularly good critical analysis of the way race is depicted in this film can be found here.

Gender:

• The plot primarily revolves around Tiana and Prince Naveen's developing romance, and while it's not love at first sight it still happens pretty quickly, and despite Naveen's clearly depicted character flaws.
• It perpetuates the myth of "fixing" someone through a relationship, which is never healthy.
• While Tiana's character is much more rounded than some of the other Disney Princesses, the other female characters are pretty stereotypical and one dimensional.
• There were significantly more male characters than female. 
• Ray's weird "relationship" with Evangeline, like a woman doesn't even need to be real for you to have a relationship, all you have to do is talk at her. (This is mostly an irritation in the context of broader cultural representations of women than the specifics of the film).

Class:

• One of the strongest aspects of Disney Ideology is the Americanism of hard work = success. Therefore is you are unsuccessful you didn't work hard enough, and it's your own fault. This movie fully embraces this ideology.
• Poverty is not that simple, the world is complex and it is set up to help certain kinds of privileged people succeed. 
• Class has really strong correlations to both race and gender and the film really glossed over all the kinds of obstacles and difficulties a character like Tiana would actually have faced in this period (and quite possibly still today)
• The representations of the fireflies made me very uncomfortable. They were extreme and unkind stereotypes.

Overall:

While I can be very critical of Disney, and particularly their films, I do actually really enjoy most of their content (perhaps nostalgia has something to do with it). However, I did not enjoy most of this film. Through out the film I had a growing sense of unease, as it became clear the film lacked of any meaningful engagement with racial, gender or class issues. I didn't really connect with the story, in part this may be because of how much I liked E.D Baker's novel. The novel is a really great adaptation of the original fairy tale and her protagonist Emma is fabulous, flawed, strong, compassionate and relational. Most of what made the adaptation so great was lost in the film.

I think what I disliked most, and why I wouldn't bother watching it again, is that there was a real opportunity for positive representations and it fails significantly to live up to the expectations I had.

Some Thoughts (and a small experiment) on Book Covers

One of the most interesting people I follow on Twitter is YA author Maureen Johnson. She spends a lot of time generating discussion on various aspects of the book industry. Recently, she came up with the idea of #coverflip, in which she encouraged people to imagine what a book cover would look like if the author's gender was flipped. A good summary of the ensuing discussions is on her tumblr, which I recommend reading.

Book covers are very important, they can be essential in a person's decision to read or not read a book. I was inspired by the discussion around the idea of #coverflip to look at my own book buying decisions.

Reasons I buy a book:

• Pre-read: If I really like a book someone lends me, or I borrow from the library, or our family had when I was growing up I will most likely buy it. Depending on the book, I might actively go and look for it, or perhaps just buy it because I've come across it when browsing a store. Often, but not always, I'll actively look in second hand bookstores, but I still often buy new books.
• First Time Read: If I buy a book I haven't read before it is either because: 
• It is by an author I love. I think the primary motivation behind my book purchases is the author.
• It was recommended to a point I got excited about it. Mostly I look for recommended books in the library, but sometimes the library doesn't have the book I want so I buy it.
• I found it on the shelf and circumstances were favourable to an impulse buy (e.g. money in my wallet).

Motivations behind my book choices:

• Recommendation: This is the most common reason I read a book. I have hundreds, if not thousands, of books on my 'To Read' lists based entirely on a recommendation. 
• Personal: Most often a book recommendation comes from my sisters or mother, we all enjoy the same sorts of stories. I also rely on recommendations from friends I know have good taste, and sometimes from teachers.
• From Industry: I often read books recommended by other authors I like. This is particularly easy when following authors on Twitter. I also follow a few literary agents who represent authors I like, and make good recommendations. 
• Familiar Author: If I like an author I will read, and probably buy, all of their books.
• Necessary for Study: Currently the most common reason for buying a book.
• Library: If at the library I will often get out and read books simply because they are in a section I like (e.g. YA), and often if I really like a book from the library I will go and buy it. 

A bit of Content Analysis (my experiment):

Impulse Buys:

I went through my bookcases, and pulled down all the books I bought just because I thought they looked interesting: books and authors I had never heard. The majority of these books (but not all) were bought between the age of 15-17 because that's when I had the most disposable income (I bought a lot of books in this period). Overall, there were 18 books I bought entirely on impulse.
When considering these books in relation to my entire collection of owned books, and the kinds of books I read, I think that my impulse buys are not indicative of my overall taste in reading, but do suggest some interesting things.

Results:

The main things I considered were:

• If I'd borrowed this book from the library would I still have bought it?
• Is the cover misleading?
• Does the cover do a good job of suggesting the kind of book it is?

General Findings:

• All were book new, so clearly I buy familiar books when I go to the second hand bookshop. 
• Only one of them is by a male author, and only two have a male protagonist (Exchange and The Merlin Conspiracy). So clearly, when I impulse buy I'm drawn to female authors/characters.
• All of them are within the very broad category of Young Adult fiction: about a third contemporary, half fantasy (if fantasy includes paranormal) and a few others. 
• At least half these impulse buys resulted in future purchases from that author, and five of my, now, all time favourite authors are on this list.

On Covers:

• Half the covers had people on them. I do not like covers that have people on them
• Most covers seem not to be misleading, but I feel there is a lot of room for improvement.
• Most covers seem pretty generic (boring).
• There are certain covers that absolutely grabbed me, and that I think are beautiful in their own right even unconnected to the book. 
• Every cover that featured a person, that person was a skinny, white girl (this is a really important issue).

Here they are:

Ones with artistic-y covers

Heretic by Sarah Singleton: I probably wouldn't have bought it if I'd borrowed it, but I did enjoy reading it so don't regret buying it. The cover isn't misleading, but is not especially revealing. It looks kind of spooky, so it fits with the gothic aspect of the novel.

Our Little Secret by Allyson Webster: I didn't like this book. Something about it just didn't click, it tried to deal with serious (and important) issues, but I felt like it didn't quite work. I definitely wouldn't have bought it if I'd borrowed it. The cover is fairly generic, but I think the black and white suggests a serious topic. 

Exchange by Paul Magrs: I love this cover more that I loved the book. It is the reason I bought, I just through it looked beautiful. I enjoyed the book, but the ending fell a little flat, and I probably wouldn't have bought it if I'd borrowed it. The cover is quite relevant, the story is all about books, so the letters work quite well.

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff: I love Meg Rosoff, and am so glad I found this book, I've bought all her subsequent books, bar one I haven't found in a bookstore yet (but read in the library). She is a phenomenal writer, her stories are beautifully crafted, poignant and thought provoking. So much love! The cover is really pretty, probably motivated me to buy the book, it is the sort of cover I'm attracted to. It doesn't really connect strongly to the book, but I think evokes a suggestion of the atmosphere. 

Covers with White Girls

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta: I would definitely buy this. When I did buy it, I had actually read Looking for Alibrandi, but didn't realise it was the same author (despite the fact it actually says so on the cover). I love Melina Marchetta's books, having bought nearly all of them. She's a fantastic writer. The cover seems to fit reasonably well, but isn't especially appealing to me. I bought it based of the blurb and the fact it won a Children's Book Council: Book of the Year award. If I remember correctly, the bookstore had a recommendation on it.

Guitar Girl by Sara Manning: I enjoyed reading this and if I'd borrowed it from the library I probably would have bought it at 15, but now maybe not. It's a contemporary YA novel, reasonably well written, but not really notable. It covers some interesting issues. It's a neat enough cover, and does depict a girl with a guitar, which as suggested by the title, is the protagonist of the story. Possibly off putting to certain readership through the 'pink' factor. 

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey: This is quite a funny book, it subtly pokes fun at the paranormal YA romance genre, while still participating actively within its parameters. While the cover is very generic, it kind of suits given the self-aware nature of the book. I'd possibly still buy it if I'd borrowed it. 

Golden by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: I really like Jennifer Lynn Barnes, she's fascinating to follow on twitter, as she is a psychology professor at a US university and studies the psychology of popular culture, particularly about books. Anyway, I've bought a few more of her books, so I'd probably have bought Golden if I'd borrowed it. The cover is a über generic YA cover: the torso shot. BORING. I like the glowy-ness though, it fits pretty well. 

Pretties

Rosemary For Rememberance by Felicity Pulman: I really enjoyed this when I read it, and bought the rest of the series, but got bored with it within the next few books. So given that hindsight, perhaps wouldn't have bought it if I'd borrowed it, but I did really like it the first time around. The cover is quite cool, I like the borders, they fit really well with the period the story is set it (Mediaeval - early-ish after Norman invasion).

Maddigan's Fantasia by Margaret Mahy: Margarent Mahy is a really great author, who has publish in a range of age groups. I'd definitely buy this again, it's really a well crafted, complex fantasy. The cover is reasonably suitable, I like the normalcy of the girl's appearance, but I've seen nicer covers of this book.

Hush by Donna Jo Napoli: I bought this book because it looked intriguing, and despite my dislike of people on book covers, I think this had a lot to do with the cover. It does reflect the feeling of the story, and (maybe a stretch) considering the importance of water and ocean in the story the blue gives that atmosphere. I like Napoli's writing, and possibly would have bought it if I'd borrowed it.

The Secret Countess by Eva Ibbotson: I LOVE Eva Ibbotson, and The Secret Countess is my favourite of all her books. I am so so glad I picked up this book, and decided to buy it. I like the gold print on the cover, I feel like it kind of reflects the Russian nobility emigre situation, maybe. Subtly. I do like Ibbotson's other covers better, the ones without faces. I definitely would have bought this.

Pink!

The Prophecy of the Gems by Flavia Bujor: I reread this a few times as a teenager. I enjoyed reading it, I chose it because the blurb intrigued me, and I was at an age where I was very into fantasy. I think the cover is fairly reflective of the story, but I feel like the excessive pastels and pink were a bit unnecessary, it would have worked in a bolder colour scheme. I might still buy it, but probably wouldn't have been on the look out for it.

The Girl Who Could Fly by Victoria Forester: This is a really cute book. I enjoyed it a lot. Probably would buy it second hand rather than new though. I like the cover, but what made me pick it up was the title.

The Frog Princess by E.D. Baker: I picked up this book, and the next two in the series (there are seven and I now own all of them) in one go. I love fairy tales, so that was my primary motivation. Out of the whole series this is my lease favourite cover. The whole series is really great, so I'd definitely have bought it if I'd borrowed it.

Mirror, Mirror by Nancy Butcher: Once again, motivation for buying this book was the fact it is a fairy tale adaptation (Snow White). It's a good story, enjoyable, and I'd probably buy it, but not definitely. Given the fact the story challenges the sorts of cultural assumptions that make 'girl books' pink, it seems an inappropriate cover choice, but I think you could argue both for and against this cover.

The first of some favourites

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale: Another fairy tale adaptation. I cannot express how glad I am I picked up this book. The cover is beautiful, the story is beautiful, I love Shannon Hale, and own so many of her fantastic books (one is even part of my thesis). I think this cover really captures the quiet beauty of the book.

The Merlin Conspiracy by Diana Wynne Jones: I really like this cover, the bright colours, and intricate details are very appealing (and reflective of the awesomeness of the books). Diana Wynne Jones is one of my favourite authors, I trawl through bookshops (new and second hand) searching for books of hers I don't yet own. 

Some Concluding Thoughts:

Genre (in all it's inadequacy) seems important to my impulse book purchases. While certain covers are much more appealing, a cover I dislike is not necessarily going to stop me from buying the book. Having people on the cover of a book is not only entirely unnecessary, but is almost as bad as having a movie cover. I seem to avoid pink covers, unless there are other motivating factors. Out of these books, I think my favourite cover is either The Goose Girl or How I Live Now. I'd like to see more covers like these.

Given that I am an absolute bookworm, and consider the purchasing of books to be as important as items such as clothing, perhaps these reflections are not indicative of other book buyers. If covers have some, but not complete, influence over my book choices, perhaps they are more influential to people who might not explore bookstore the way I do.

All in all impulse buys are a very small percentage of my overall book buying.

Perhaps next time I'm in Fullers, I'll have a longer look at sections outside of YA. Perhaps, I'll have a closer look at some of the bright pink covers, or stock standard torso photo covers. After all, despite not being misleading, most covers don't really tell you much at all about the fantastic story that could be waiting inside.

Review: Brave

Last weekend we watched the Disney Pixar animation Brave, a film I've been wanting to see for a while. Here are my thoughts on it:

Highlights:

• The Plot: It was an interesting story, enough in there to remain exciting, but not too much. It wasn't overwhelmingly complicated and it really complimented the characterisation. Also, overall the plot was about a mother/daughter relationship which is fantastic.
• The Characters: I loved the characters. They were interesting, they grew and changed, but still maintained a sense of clear personality. I liked that a lot of the minor characters had distinctive aspects to them. The characters love each other, and have to learn to work hard at understanding each other.
• The Animation:  I don't know a lot about animation but it was really beautiful. It was visually lovely to watch.  I especially liked Merida's hair (not blonde!) and the scenery. I think it was really well put together, and I loved the music.
• I love the fact they all had Scottish accents, not being Scottish I can't say whether they were real or not but considering until recently all Disney animations were in American voices regardless of the setting (think Aladdin or Mulan) it was refreshing.

A Few Problems:

I don't think that these were significant enough to not watch the film, overall it's pretty positive in its gender representations but it is important to be aware of the areas it was lacking:

• Women: Merida is the heroine and loves nothing more that riding through the forest, shooting arrows. She hates being a princess, the constraints and expectations, especially the idea she will have to get married. Contrasted to Merida is the Queen, who is portrayed as uptight and proper, who has to learn to let go. She's bossy, and frequently nagging her husband. It's a pretty binary representation of what women can be like. (There is a bit of flexibility towards the end)
• Men: The majority of the male characters are the members of the Scottish clans, all of whom are rough and ready, love fighting and need a strong (uptight, bossy) woman to get them in line. The main male character is Merida's father, who, while he is portrayed as a man who loves his wife and children, is also reasonable incompetent outside of a battle, or hunt. 

The reason these are problematic representations is that there is a lack of complexity, in order to show a strong woman (what does that even mean anyway?), the male characters must be belittled. In order to show Merida as a strong-willed independent girl, the mother must be the opposite. 

Overall:

I really enjoyed Brave, it was a beautiful, exciting, and quite often very sweet, film. I got totally caught up in the plot, even jumped a few times.

I think it is a fantastic film, certainly good for parents and children (probably a bit scary for younger children). I think it is the sort of film you can simply enjoy but also could spark some really important and great discussions (respect, love understanding etc).