M and I watched this movie the other night and here is a big

!!!SPOILER WARNING!!!

:)

I was surprised at how creepy it was. M linked me to a handful of online discussions about it this morning, and one of the bloggers made brief mention of the villain as the main source of creepiness. This was my response:

I think in other Disney films, the villains are either unseen or seem to be motivated by something understandable, like greed (for money or power). Even if you don’t agree with the motivation, even as a child you can at least comprehend it. But in this movie, the villain’s motivation seems to be simply abject cruelty, which is difficult to cope with, even for adults.

With other Disney villains, while they had their lairs, their interactions with the good guys usually happened in neutral territory, unless the good guys were kidnapped and taken back to the lair. In this movie, there are shadow demons and voodoo heads that can appear whenever they want to and can, in a sense, create the bad guy’s lair wherever they want. Rather than having scenes where the villain is present and then having scenes where you’re free of the villain, the villain and his “friends” can and do invade at any time, giving (at least the perception of) a lot more screen time to the villains than other Disney flicks do.

In the other Disney movies, the villains can be escaped from, hidden from and outsmarted. In this movie, there is no escape from the shadow demons– you can’t hide from them, you can’t outsmart them, and if they capture you, you can’t even fight them. Others can fight them for you (shining light on them temporarily immobilizes them), but if no one is around, you’re powerless.

I think with the other Disney villains, too, children see the hero of the story managing to eventually overcome the villain, and can then imagine themselves overcoming their own fears. In this story, the good guys sort of overcome the bad guy, but it’s ultimately the creepy voodoo heads that bring his downfall. And the creepy voodoo heads, which are actually the biggest villains in the story, never get defeated.

As a contrast, in The Lion King, though Scar is creepy and powerful, Simba clearly overcomes the emotional hold Scar has on him, and the physical hold Scar has on his kingdom. And though the hyenas end up actually defeating Scar (by destroying him), it’s already been established that the hyenas are easily defeated by one or a group of powerful lions, and they therefore aren’t more powerful than what the good guys can overcome, while the voodoo heads are.

I liked this movie. I thought it was really cute with a good plot, interesting characters, and the celebration of good values (hard work, family, love). But I wish it was less creepy. I’m sure we’ll watch it again at some point, even if only to see how and if our perceptions have changed. But if I recommended it, I would indicate that the rating, rather than being the G it proudly sports, should actually be PG for frightening themes and images.

Edit: The “voodoo heads” are actually demonic, talking tribal masks.

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