I had an emergency phone call the other day. "I have a princess question and you're the only one who can help me!" And suddenly a pink tiara lit up the sky.
I called back today and the question was posed. "Out of all of the princess movies, which is the least scary?". Turns out my pal Jen has a princess-happy 3 year old thanks in part to the introduction from my princess-obsessed 6 year old, their time together, and Em's interest in whatever mck does or has that's pink and pretty. And so we got to discussing them all. And our verdict? They're all pretty freakin scary.
The breakdown:
Cinderella - at first I said somewhat harmless until Jen pointed out that the stepmother is a "mean mommy" and we remembered that the real mom dies and the cat is evil and tries to kill the mice. For a little girl who is in full on cling-to-mommy mode, a dead mom is as bad as an evil stepmom.
Snow White - that freakshow witch who becomes all gross-old-lady-like in the woods with the big wart on her nose and the spooky trees in the forest. Never mind the freakshow "little people" men all living together in a shack in the woods. What is UP with that?
Sleeping Beauty - I don't remember the witches name but not only is she scary looking but she "kills" the chick on her 16 birthday or something to that effect and then abducts her from her family. See above mentioned mommy-clingy-three-year-old. Not good.
Beauty and the Beast - while the Beast isn't inherently "evil", he flies into a rage or two of epic proportions. And those wolves? That forest? Yeah. Not just yet.
Little Mermaid - mean underwater gross looking octopus lady steals a beautiful girls voice. Add to that her two eel henchmen and you have a nightmare.
Alladin - while it was close to being a safe bet, I remembered the crazy old guy who tries to kill Alladin. I know he doesn't have a lot of screen time but Jafar is just a meany-pants. And considering this 3 year old was afraid of the old guy who was mean to Oscar in the movie Grouchland, Jafar probably isn't the best dude to have her start out with.
Pocahontas - does anyone even remember this movie? I don't.
Mulan - much like Pocahontas, its barely sneaks in to the princess movie category.
So as you see, disney has a bit of a nasty streak. And considering the meanest character this sweet little 3 year old has seen is Dora's nemesis Swiper, I think the authentic disney princess movies shall wait.
Swiper no swiping!
Like a waterfall in slow motion, Part One
1 year ago
2 comments:
I wish I could find it now, but I remember reading an article on how over-the-top we've gone with protecting our children from all the "scary" stuff. It was referring to the fact that kids movies that have scary stuff actually helps kids develop a foundation for dealing with the real-life scary stuff that comes along later in life. Of course, having a reassuring parent watching the movie by their side is pretty important too. :)
You'll get it when you have your own, my friend. Trust me. Protecting your wee ones is an instinct neither parent will ever shake, regardless of the articles that tell us not to quite so much.
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