how some disney movies just have their characters like.. one parent short..
maybe it's not true for all of the movies but.. still ... i just realized .. that today
the people of california are becoming pyromaniacs - and i have no problem with it
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It's really sad... And not sad for the characters. Honestly, the "one less parent" rule has been played to death so much so that it's become an annoying cliche of Hollywood to try and play off the minority of people that are single mothers/Fathers that now it's more so demeaning to them then anything, I think. What also annoys me is there is no reason for it, it's always "He died in (Tragic accident that serves no purpose of advancing the plot)" or vice versa, or he/she left because he/she could not contend with the responsibility of Husband/Wife and children, yet this does nothing to advance the plot, it just explains something that you probably knew already.
At least with movies like "Harry Potter", once you knew a bit about the parents, you kind of got to liking them because their death or disappearance served a purpose somewhat. See, that is just me. I think Hollywood (Disney) can probably take a break from that rule for awhile. Think about it, "The Incredibles" worked out well because it had parents, not one more or less. It was just better that way.
However, I do see the point of trying to comfort those who have/ are orphaned with merely one parent, but those kind of movies could lighten up a bit on it, or have an explanation for why this is happening (Have a importance or developed plot behind it), instead of the same formula. Maybe then, it could be tolerable.
Well, now that I've let off some steam into a message board to a movie I have not seen but congratulate the person who posted this so I could feel better, I'm gonna go to bed.
Bossa Nova Awesome!
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Many film characters have just one parent because the story doesn't have room for more. It's not usually meant to be a social commentary. It's just that the additional parents don't have a real role to play, so they're left out. The same thing often has to brothers and sisters in docu-dramas.
Screenplays aren't like novels. A novel has time to meander. Film is different; every character you show represents a considerable investment. This is doubly true in animation where you actually have to design the character from the ground up.
In any case, many of the Disney films are based on fairy tales, and many versions of those tales do indeed have protoganists with only a single parent mentioned (sometimes a grandparent).
Isau
Well said. I was just about to say this.
Remember due to the lengthy process of animating a film, and most animated films dropping in at around 80 minutes (with credits), there simply isn't time for the characterisationa nd exploration of relationships for both parents.
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I continued to watch The Wild again, and kept thinking... it would be great if they mentioned what happened to the mom, instead of making me think... 'hmm, maybe they* should go to maury and find Ryan's mum"
the people of california are becoming pyromaniacs - and i have no problem with it
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Okey, let me try to explain myself in my not-so-good english:
It's not just movies; if you think about it, most of the traditional folk "fantastic" stories for kids (fairy tales, bed stories, think for example of the Grimm brothers, etc) follow the same rule; it's one of the most typical "elements" in the storyline for theese. Personally, and a lot of people agree with me, this serves as "katharsis"; it's very useful because it helps kids in starting to understand and deal with death (I study Literature, and one of my teachers in the university always said, regarding to this, "Kids must suffer"; without going to that extreme, I think she was right.. seeing it on a movie or a story helps the kid prepare themselves for when maybe this moment comes in real life).
I recommend reading Todorov or Propp, two structuralists that analyzed fantastic tales; they surely can explain it a lot better than me!
Hope I was clear.
From Buenos Aires, Matilde./
i really dont mean to be patronising, but i just wanna clarify what you're saying:
fantasy stories for kids often have death in them, so that when the kid grows up and someone dies in their life, they can still relate to the stories instead of feeling like their life cant be a fairytale.
was that about right?
ur english is very good btw - probably much better than most people on here!
but that's just me.
I actually think it's to enable the plot to deal with an issue which seems to be quite an obsession in especially American movies and TV shows: father - son relationships. Particularly animated movies are often about a son wanting his father to be proud of him. And/or vice-versa. Another favourite is the father having to "grow up" and be a responsible parents - without losing his ability to be fun and "childish" once in a while.
I'm quite interested to know why that is. Because the stories are written/directed/produced by men, mostly? Because the target group is mainly boys (and their fathers)?
I found the storyline in The Wild to be very boring, there was nothing new. And yes, I know it's a kiddies movie and I'm 34, but I still love the old classics, like Aristocats, The Jungle Book and Robin Hood, besides a lot of the new animated stuff, like Flushed Away, The Incredibles and Over the Hedge. Here we see fun and entertainment combined with relevant and emotional issues, like friendship, trust, discovering who you are etc.
So enough already with all that "I just wanted you to be proud of me" - "I've always been proud of you, son" - "I love you, dad" stuff. It's not an issue with a large group of the audience. And I don't just mean girls and women, but also a large group of males, especially outside the US.
About fairy tales - it's a safe way for children to confront their fears. Like the fear of losing a parent. And also, human beings seem to like getting scared. Just look at the popularity of horror movies.
Many Disney movies has it, very often a father/daugther or mother/son. But I would still like to see a Disney movie where it has an genuine mother-daugther relationship
shareAs others here have mentioned, this is a time-honored plot-device when a child is the protagonist. It gives the child obstacles to overcome and emerge stronger. It's not as easy to have a compelling plot when there are two good parents. Examples: various Dickens novels, Huck Finn
shareYou're right. I never thought about that.
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