When we think about classic Disney live action films, titles like Mary Poppins and Old Yeller pop into our heads. Pete's Dragon isn't usually included in this list. Although it has some kind of a cult following and has a lot of heart, the film is widely regarded as...bad. The music is catchy but dated. The acting is done well by some and awful by others. The story is cute. But the film was never a favorite among critics and audiences alike. I grew up with the film and while I enjoy some of the music and appreciate what the story is going for, I can't argue in the movie's defense. It is not good. It was a surprise to all when Disney announced back in 2013 that a reboot was in the works. Why would Disney reboot this of all films? I'm actually excited for the film. I think Disney would only want to reboot a project that needed lots of work so that the classics can remains classics and the one that needs work could get a fresh take and redeem the story, hopefully. I think this reboot can certainly redeem the story of Pete's Dragon. Let's first address the changes that have been announced. The first change, and the most obvious and minimal, is Elliot the dragon who will go from a hand drawn animation to a CG dragon. This change was pretty much a no brainer. Since CG is the popular animation form these days. Hopefully this change will make Elliot more realistic but hopefully not too realistic like a dragon from Game of Thrones or Harry Potter. The second change regards a friend for Pete. Pete was on his own in the original film. Now he will be accompanied by a friend named Natalie. I'm not sure how big a role Natalie will play though she will certainly change the script and the character of Pete quite a bit. While I like Pete on his own and his bond with Nora, I think him having a friend will be nice. I hope this reboot can balance Pete's relationship with both Natalie and Nora so that he can have a mother figure and a friend instead of one acting as both. The final change, and the biggest one, is that the new film will not be a musical. These changes are big and different but in my opinion fresh and exciting. I am actually looking forward to seeing this movie in theaters. By the looks of things, I feel like this project is similar to the recent film Where the Wild Things Are. While I'm not a huge fan of that film, it is good. I'm kind of hoping that these changes hint toward a similar style of storytelling in that Pete's Dragon could be a movie about childhood but not necessarily for children. It could be a more organic film and make fantasy much more of the reality it truly is. Or it could take an entirely different route though I hope it doesn't. I did read rumors that they are changing the original plot where Nora will be a park ranger instead of a lighthouse keeper. Of course I will keep an open mind but I do wish they would stick to the original story because there was a romanticism to the lighthouse and Nora's longing for Paul to return. What do you guys think of the reboot? Are you excited or does it make you cringe? Let me know in the comments!
There are some movies that hit the big screen that you watch and make you want to create. Take for example, Ratatouille. It isn't the best Pixar movie but it sure makes you want to eat delectable food or make something delectable yourself be it food, writing a book, or designing an advertisement. I think Disney has taken this aspect of creative inspiration and paid it forward with their newest hit, Big Hero 6. When you think about it, many super hero movies are about creativity. Spiderman has to design his own machine to shoot out web and Batman has to creatively stump his opponents like the Joker. And in Big Hero 6, main character Hiro, loveable robot Baymax, and Hiro's buddies have to creatively harness their talents and figure their way out of sticky situations. But it isn't even particularly the super hero aspect of the film that inspires the audience but the technological advances these characters could make (and now that I think about it, super heroes usually have access to crazy technology so I guess this still exists in the super hero realm). Watching Hiro present his microbots idea made me feel as if I was at an attraction at Walt Disney World. It makes you wonder, would Walt approve of this film?
Like him or hate him, no one can deny that Walt Disney was some sort of genius. His desire for innovation and creativity is what has given us some beloved movies and amazing theme parks, and being at the parks often inspires creativity too. It inspires us to tell stories and make things. Hiro's use of materials in Big Hero 6, like Walt's, inspires kids and adults alike. The film has already been linked to creating via things such as the World Maker Faire in New York City and the X Prize Challenge. Creativity isn't always looked at as a virtue per say yet I would argue that it is essential to living in a better world. Big Hero 6, like Ratatouille and Walt Disney, calls us to create and think deeply about things. This brings us closer to human understanding. This element of Big Hero 6 is what makes it a really great film. While it isn't perfect and has many faults, the main characters all call us to make something and make something bigger than ourselves. What sort of things would you love to create that would make our world a little better? Let me know in the comments or speak your mind on the Talk Magic to Me Forums. And be sure to listen to the newest episode of Talk Magic to Me where we talk about Big Hero 6!
Film is a very intense way of story-telling. Being the visual medium that it is, it depends less on interpretation and more on wowing the audience and presenting certain images to foreshadow or represent something/someone as a metaphor. Of course there are a good amount of films that challenge the viewers in unique ways but the majority of films aren't very intellectual endeavors. The audience sits in front of the screen and watches images set before them. That doesn't take much thought. The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad stems from two great works of literature and presents Disney with a unique challenge, especially when it comes to Ichabod's story. Adapting book to screen is always hard. In this blog I want to talk about both sides of this film...Ichabod's and Toad's. I will first start out with Ichabod and discuss the visualization of the headless horseman. I will then move on to Mr. Toad and discuss why Walt Disney might have chosen this character out of all the other main protagonists in The Wind in the Willows to represent half of this package film.
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There are plenty of examples of literary works where the author literally invites the reader to write their own version of the story, and no I don't mean fan fiction. I mean the author leaves the reader with questions that allow them to imagine what might have happened. This challenges the reader to understand character psych and writing style and create their own ideas. For example, why did Alaska really drive into another vehicle (Looking for Alaska by John Green)? How will Nick handle his relationship with Amy after all that has happened (Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn)? Did Pi truly survive on a lifeboat for most of the year with a Bengal tiger or was it all just a metaphor he created in his subconscious (Life of Pi by Yann Martel)? And in the case of Ichabod, we the reader have to ask - did he really see the headless horseman or was it all just an illusion (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving)? As readers, we are invited to take guesses and work out reasons why our guess is valid. But film takes on such a different tone because the story is no longer just words and images we created in our head. A film is a literal picture and leaves no room for interpretation in this way. Of course many great films know there are ways to distort an image to make the audience think but it is still visual and never quite like a book. In Ichabod's case, we are entirely dependent on the animation we see before us to tell us the story.
Disney does not try to be like the source material and leave the audience guessing in such a way (and it could be argued that they couldn't do such a thing in the same way the book does) but they do create their own interpretation and therefore drop hints to the audience as to what they were intending. A great movie knows that they have to show the audience and not tell. A great example is the film Clueless. In the film, main character Cher has a crush on new kid Christian. Through subtle hints during their interaction, the filmmakers drop hints that let us come to our own conclusion that Christian is gay. It is only when Cher needs to be let out of the dark when another character actually voices this fact. In Disney's adaption of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow we are never actually told who the headless horseman is. We are given many clues that it is Brom Bones but at the end of the day still wonder if it could have been a demon. While the book offers a much wider gap for interpretation, the film does a good job tapping into a similar spirit and should be applauded for doing so.
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The choice of who is going to be the main character to represent a film is a hard one. As discussed earlier, a film depends on visuals and requires more wow factor because audiences can often be shallow. The main characters in The Wind in the Willows are Rat and Mole. Toad is more of a plot point and side character - the trickster character which was discussed on the most recent episode of Talk Magic to Me (listen at the end of this blog post). So why did Disney choose Toad to be one of the faces to represent this film?
The obvious answer is that Toad is very interesting. All of Rat and Mole's adventures are slow and would be quite boring to a child audience. But when Toad comes along, things become fast paced and suspenseful. The reader is constantly wondering - how will Toad get out of this situation? Naturally, this makes Toad an interesting character and a good face for a film. But I believe there were other motivations for Toad's casting as well.
When I read The Wind in the Willows for the first time (actually I listened to the audiobook), I found that Toad reminded me of Walt Disney himself! That may sound weird because Walt Disney didn't steal cars or go on train chases...but he was very obsessed with the newest pieces of technology. The similarities between man and character are most apparent when Toad sees the motor car driving up the road and becomes mesmerized. Even when his friends restrain him, Toad can think of nothing else but that motor car. He goes through many lengths to get that car. Walt Disney was the same way. He was straight forward and knew what he wanted and didn't try to hide it. When he saw his daughters reading Mary Poppins, he knew he would go to all lengths to make that story into one of his motion pictures. Mary Poppins was his motor car. Both cross boundaries yet at the end of the day we love them and route for them. I'm sure Walt saw some of himself in Toad.
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There is so much more that can be said about this film but I will end it there. Be sure to listen to our newest episode of Talk Magic to Me where we discuss this very film, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad!
These changes are big and different but in my opinion fresh and exciting. I am actually looking forward to seeing this movie in theaters. By the looks of things, I feel like this project is similar to the recent film Where the Wild Things Are. While I'm not a huge fan of that film, it is good. I'm kind of hoping that these changes hint toward a similar style of storytelling in that Pete's Dragon could be a movie about childhood but not necessarily for children. It could be a more organic film and make fantasy much more of the reality it truly is. Or it could take an entirely different route though I hope it doesn't. I did read rumors that they are changing the original plot where Nora will be a park ranger instead of a lighthouse keeper. Of course I will keep an open mind but I do wish they would stick to the original story because there was a romanticism to the lighthouse and Nora's longing for Paul to return. 
