The 6 Best Endings in Disney

            I have not been posting nearly enough this year and I want to steer back from that.  To that end I have found a 30-day blog challenge and fluffed it out to 31 entries (since December has 31 days).  I have done a 30-day challenge before for movies, though that one was poorly executed (I started it in the middle of a month, at one point I posted 2 entries on one day, it is a mess).  I did another one just this year in August on Video Games, that one was better, go read it after this one, all of it.  Or don’t, no pressure.

            Today is day 29 and the topic is “Favorite Happy Ending”.

            I thought about making this the last entry for the month, but decided to instead go with the really long Top List spread over two days and mostly referencing earlier entries in the month.  I think it will all work out.

Spoilers for this entry.  Obviously.  It is about endings.  I mean, I guess a bunch of Disney stuff is drawn from Fairy Tales and you can generally accept that happily ever after will follow a triumphant defeat of the bad guys by the good guys, spoiling that is not gonna ruin anything.  Disney is not hiring Lars Van Trier to make his version of… anything.  So, let’s make this a top 6, because I don’t want to just point at one movie and then talk about its epilogue.  That is a little too easy.

Generally speaking, there are only two types of endings in Disney films.  The first type is the one everybody knows and expects, “And they lived Happily Ever After.”  Knowing that the rewards earned in this adventure defined the character’s lives till the end is a satisfying way to give the audience closure.

The second ending, which I feel is more common these days—for reasons I pointed out in the “Best Sequel” entry—is, “And The Adventure Continues…”  which in contrast to “Happily”, this ending indicates that this is only the first of many tales yet untold.  This sort of denouement fires the audience’s imagination, not just to hope for future movies, but to imagine their own adventures for the characters and world.  I generally prefer this type, as I think people need to be encouraged to think about doing more and going on their own adventures, instead of just waiting for their “ending” to come to them.

These are the two most common and the best ways to end a movie.  So before we talk about those, let’s talk about a shitty ending.

There is a third type that I think most people would agree with me is the worst.  The ending that just stops.  There are elements of the story left unanswered but no promise of future adventures to resolve them, Disney doesn’t run into this issue too often and off the top of my head I can only point to one strong example, “The Sword in the Stone”.

Generally speaking, if your movie's ending is someone having a fantastic destiny thrust upon them thru no will of their own,
Then you are writing the story backwards.
Think of how many stories start with some goober being told they are "The Special"?
Here is an example, "You're a wizard, Harry."

You cannot tell me that the most interesting time in King Arthur’s life was BEFORE he became king.  Why are we not looking at the more interesting part of his life?  It is not like the movie is too long, it is 79 minutes, you could easily integrate more of the legend in there.

Show some more adventures.  Make him a little older, have him face off against the Black Knight, throw in Guinevere as a love interest, hint at how important the holy Grail will one day be to Camelot.  The existing final resolution of the movie isn’t even good as an ending.  It is resolved entirely by accident.  If not for the knight he is squiring for needing a sword Arthur would have never even seen the sword.  He has no concept of the importance of the action and no real agency in assuming his destiny.  “BLEH!”  I say.  “BLEH!”

Note: There is a bunch of Pixar on this list.  There is a reason that company has had such an impact on family entertainment these last 20 years.

Top 3 for “Happily Ever After”

“Up”

Coming to the realization that your life was worth living and that the memories made are something to be treasured even if it was not the life you dreamed of is a good lesson.  There is also the lesson that you can make a go of adventuring at any point in your life and it still be a harrowing and worthwhile experience that will be enriching.  And there is also a lesson about how it is never too late to try and pass on what you have learned about life to the next generation and use what you know to serve as a mentor and fatherly figure to the young and that such things are valuable to both the young person and the mentor.

This movie is deep.

“Wall-E”

I love me some robots, but I am only lukewarm on this movie overall.  It is cute but it sure as hell is not subtle, I actually think that “Wall-E” has contributed to a modern Luddite type thinking, as stupid people resisting the advent of more automated systems in day to day life, “We can’t have self-driving cars, it will put too many drivers out of work.”  Completely ignoring that the ultimate end of the movie was not an abandonment of technology and automated systems, but using those systems as a means to free up time to better spend it appreciating life and the natural world.

The end of the movie is a call to action on the environment and to cast off the most comically over the top lampooning of consumerism ever put to film.  These are not bad morals.

I would also like to point out a good bit of narrative structure.  The conflict of the movie, that we not only care about getting back to Earth, but we also care about saving Wall-E from his mortal injuries, keeps the film exciting.  Contrast this with the “Lorax” CGI movie in which they are racing to plant a tree at the end of the movie, but no one’s life is at stake.  Weak ending.

Writing tip, to complicate and deepen the narrative in the third act, don’t just re-emphasize the initial goal, instead throw in an additional twist which will heighten the tension on an emotional level.  “Wall-E” is a good example of this in action, another good example?  “The Empire Strikes Back”, not enough to just defeat Vader, but since Vader is your dad, you now have to defeat your own potential to fall to the dark side.  That is meaningful.

“Toy Story 3”

I keep banging on about this movie, and its ending is why I keep doing so.  Almost the entire rest of the movie could be cut out except for the scene of Andy giving his toys away and it would still be the best happily (sadly) ever after out there.

Top 3 for “And the Adventures Continue!”

“Aladdin”

I really liked the sequel cartoon growing up.  Aladdin and crew were a medieval fantasy land Avengers in the 90’s that I watched each day after school, they had a colorful cast of villains and supporting characters with a range of motivations and methodology.  That being said, does the MOVIE set up the SERIES well by leaving the audience with the feeling that things will go on?  I think so.

Genie is set free and wants to see the world but remains a grateful friend of Aladdin, which promises a return.  The Sultan clearly has plans for Aladdin, and Al being aware of the poverty in the city will bring a fresh perspective to the palace about the state of the city and the value of its people.  Lastly, the world is still riff with potential for adventure, the original “Aladdin” story comes from a set of “1,001 Arabian Nights” which is name checked multiple times in the movie, that is a hint at a world that is rich with stories to tell.  (You might say, "A Whole New World").  This ending feels like the start of something more, and more came down the pipe.

“The Incredibles”

The fact that this thing was not turned into a massive franchise is baffling to me.  IT ENDS WITH THE START OF ANOTHER ADVENTURE!  It’s a superhero story which talks about there being lots of bad guys and lots of history.  This should be more movies!

“Inside Out”

            The movie ends with a montage showing the complex and strange emotions of dozens of people.  “Inside Out” was one big event in the life of someone who has a whole life full of big events waiting for her to go thru them.  Not to mention all the people of the world going thru life changing events and the swirl of conflicting emotions that come with each.  We are all tiny little universes and each has stories to tell.

The Beg for Attention

            Share your own thoughts on this in the comments.  I know I am not the only person out there who is nostalgic for Disney products, and I am sure many people disagree with my selection for today’s entry.  

I picked Disney stuff just because I knew there was so much of it to talk about and it lends itself to discussion in the comments.

What is your favorite ending for a Disney movie?

Or family movie in general?

What is your favorite 3rd act twist?

Do you think I am giving “Up too much credit?

Share your thoughts below.

______________________________

If you like or hate this please take the time to comment, +1, share on Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook, and otherwise distribute my opinion to the world.  I would appreciate it.

Top 5 Saddest Disney Moments

            I have not been posting nearly enough this year and I want to steer back from that.  To that end I have found a 30-day blog challenge and fluffed it out to 31 entries (since December has 31 days).  I have done a 30-day challenge before for movies, though that one was poorly executed (I started it in the middle of a month, at one point I posted 2 entries on one day, it is a mess).  I did another one just this year in August on Video Games, that one was better, go read it after this one, all of it.  Or don’t, no pressure.

            Today is day 17 and the topic is “Saddest Moment”.

It is another Top 5 List, because I could think of 5 entries and they were all sad, so I am going to make a list.  Strangely, even though there are 5 entries, there are only 3 types of Sad… You’ll see what I mean.

Number 5

I have shockingly little connection to this movie.  I am sure I have seen it, but I have almost no memory of it and know that it is sad more as a cultural touchstone.  Everyone sort of knows what you are talking about when you mention it, and its effect on children has been parodied a number of times.  I am speaking of Mother’s death in the movie “Bambi”.

This is a great scene, the snowfall obscuring the whole world is a fitting metaphor for the loss of a caregiver.  The sad impotent calls for help as the world grows colder and darker… This is sadness type 1.

Number 4

This one is sadder, mostly because of how it happens to a much stronger and more interesting character.  There are lots of elements, the scope of the threat, the immediacy, and the surrounding sense of dread and betrayal.  Is it not enough to lose your father, but to think you were responsible?  That is the icing.  I am talking about Mufasa’s death in “The Lion King”.

Less symbolic than the snowfall certainly, instead you have the action’s pace continue as Simba must flee the hyenas while going into exile while still grieving.  He is alone, guilt ridden, and sad… This is also sadness type 1, death of a parent.

            Ever seen grownups cry in a movie theater?  Cause these next three deal with the sort of sadness that strikes more at the heart of adults, but to children serve more as dark prophecies for them to deny until self-reflective episodes in their 20’s and 30’s when they attempt to write blogs on sad Disney movie moments.

Number 3

We all grow up.  But we don’t always get to grow up with our fictional characters.  When I am 70, Batman will still be 30 something.  When I am 80, Captain America will still be 30 something.  When I am dust there will probably still be Lego bricks in toy chests.  We do not get to take the things we loved as children with us.  Not because these things are unimportant or lack value, but because we change as people.  It is important to leave our treasures with those who can take care of them and treasure them so that those parts of us do not disappear.

This entry comes from the rare Disney franchise that has sequels, the sequels grow the themes of the story, and they reflect the time that has passed in the real world.  I am speaking of Andy saying goodbye to Woody and Buzz in “Toy Story 3”.  This is sadness type 2-A, loss of childhood via loss of treasured possessions.

(The audio quality on here will give you cancer.  Just a warning.)

Number 2

This is a more obscure entry.  I would venture to say that most people have not seen it, and that I am kind of an outlier in that I managed to watch it when I was a little kid.  “The Fox and the Hound” is about a puppy hunting dog, Copper and his time befriending a fox cub, Todd.  Why they did not name the copper colored fox “Copper” I have no idea.  That is not what we are here for.

The point is that as the hunting puppy grows into a hunting dog he and his friend grow apart.  I think just about anybody can identify with one of these two sides right?  Your friend goes off to the military or college, or you go, and returning home you two have lost that connection you had previously.  People grow and they grow apart.  Especially from when they were children.

Spoiler alert, this movie ends with Todd going into exile in the woods after being hunted by Copper, and them both having to team up to fight a bear.  The final cleft between the two is tear welling.  This is sadness type 2-B, loss of childhood via loss of best friend.

Before I get to my number 1—and since I can’t go a blog without reminding everyone how much of a cultured twit I am—I would like to point out how the idea of a wild man and a cultured man becoming friends to battle a giant and then one of them leaving the story is kind of like the first few chapters of “Gilgamesh”.  It is not a 1-to-1 comparison, just a theme.

In that story the wild man Enkidu befriends Gilgamesh and they go on adventures and ultimately Enkidu is killed.  I see Todd the Fox as Enkidu in this story and I wonder if watching your childhood friend die saving you from a threat after you had just been hunting them would be sadder than the parting on strained terms ending that was present?  Should Disney have killed Todd?  It might have been sadder on one level, but certainly less identifiable.  What do you think?

Number 1

            And because Pixar hates your happiness on a personal level, it is the opening to “Up”.

I do not think anyone will even argue with me about this.  This is the sort of sad that cuts on multiple levels, of looking back on someone you lost, all the opportunities you each missed out on, and all the pain of the deep personal tragedies you had to share.  This is sadness type 3, forlorn and regretful.

            Share your own thoughts on this in the comments.  I know I am not the only person out there who is nostalgic for Disney products, and I am sure many people disagree with my selection for today’s entry. 

I picked Disney stuff just because I knew there was so much of it to talk about and it lends itself to discussion in the comments.  So please, tell me how my opinion about cartoon movies is biased and how your opinion on cartoon movies is objectively right.

______________________________

If you like or hate this please take the time to comment, +1, share on Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook, and otherwise distribute my opinion to the world.  I would appreciate it.

Top 5 Disney Love Songs

            I have not been posting nearly enough this year and I want to steer back from that.  To that end I have found a 30-day blog challenge and fluffed it out to 31 entries (since December has 31 days).  I have done a 30-day challenge before for movies, though that one was poorly executed (I started it in the middle of a month, at one point I posted 2 entries on one day, it is a mess).  I did another one just this year in August on Video Games, that one was better, go read it after this one, all of it.  Or don’t, no pressure.

            Today is day 10 and the topic is “Best Love Song”.

            I am going to start off by saying, there are lots of these and they are near universally good.  The reason I start with that is I also have to point out that the songs skew HEAVILY toward romantic love and neglect almost entirely friendship and familial love as things to sing about—there are plenty of songs about friends, but not about loving a friend.

            To that end I decided to look at what I feel are the 5 most iconic songs about romantic love, a top 5 list in no particular order seemed like a great idea.  Then I recognized a fun quirk about each of the five, they each emphasized a different stage/aspect of romantic love so I decided to put them in that order.

Trepidation

From “Hercules” you have “I won’t say I’m in Love”

            This song captures the hesitation related to entering a new relationship, in this case those feelings issue from having been hurt previously—or in other cases just being scared of entering into a new relationship.

The best aspect is that the song is presented in a statue garden that presents numerous instances of a romantic ideal—a modern Western heteronormative ideal that is, in real Ancient Greece there would have been a lot more sculptures of gay wrestling—so even while surrounded by depictions of love and having the muses singing with her about the subject she is still trying to keep her emotional walls up.  She fails, but still.  

(If you want to learn more about Aphrodite, the love goddess barely appearing in the movie about Greek gods and has a subplot about romance, watch this video, it also talks about the Greek ideas about love.)

Swept Away

From “Aladdin” we have “A Whole New World”

            We have moved on from being afraid, both in this blog and in the movie, “Aladdin”.  Jasmine has been resistant to suitors and Aladdin has met that resistance as best he can with charm and wonder and… well, if a princess showed up to my house with a parade and then took me on a magic carpet ride (Euphemisms!  They’re great!) I think my resistance to entering a relationship would melt away too.  Allowing yourself to be swept up in the charms and taking your emotional barricades down is important to starting up an emotional journey.

It was my favorite Disney song for a long time because I think it captures the emotions they are going for perfectly, both in the animation capturing the rises and falls—subtext(!)—and the nature of the duet starting off as an invitation, answering with acceptance, and then coupling.  It’s great.

Making the Move

From “The Little Mermaid” there’s “Kiss the Girl”

            While the previous two have either trepidation or breaking thru trepidation at the start of a relationship this song takes place during a relationship that is going from quasi-platonic and flirty to full on romantic.  And the song is full on about reading signals and making moves.  Which can be difficult.

            Not everyone is taught how to seal the deal and not nearly enough people know when you should be trying to.  This song is about that little voice in your head telling you to do it because being around this person is making you so emotionally charged that every noise in your vicinity starts to sound like music.

Sexual Chemistry

In “The Lion King” they have “Can You Feel the Love Tonight”

            First and only song on this list that is non-diegetic, aside from the opening and closing by Timon and Pumbaa—and you can cut those elements from the song without losing the meat of it—all of the singing that is done by Simba and Nala takes place within their own heads while most of the music comes from an unseen chorus.  But that aspect is not all that important to what the song is really about.

            This song is about sex.  Unlike the other songs about romance, this song is about sex framed in a romantic sense.  It is not even all that sub textual, at one point in the song he gets he gets her wet and she is shocked by it.

 

Go ahead and tell me there is nothing symbolic about this!
DO IT!

True Love

“Beauty and the Beast” has the most aptly titled “Beauty and the Beast”

            Moving past all the previous entries there is one final aspect that needs to be covered, the romantic ideal.  This song contextualizes the romance between Belle—Her name means Beauty, You Get IT!?—and the Beast as “story old as time, song as old as rhyme”.  This is not just their relationship it is THE relationship.  The bad boy who will only be good to the one girl, the shut off girl who will only open up to the one boy.

            While the previous songs see the object of the affection as some sort of ideal that they are distant from.

“Who d'you think you're kidding?  He's the earth and heaven to you” -Muses from “Hercules”

“A whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew!”  -Jasmine from “Aladdin”

“Sitting there across the way, she don’t got a lot to say, but there’s something about her” -Sebastian from “The Little Mermaid

“Why won’t he be the King I know he is; the King I see inside?” -Nala, from “The Lion King”

            But this song is about Belle and Beast’s relationship starting from a completely different point and moving into romance organically allowing them to see each other as who they are rather than what they imagine the other person to be.  They are in love on a deeper level.  It is what the whole movie is about, seeing someone for who they are beyond appearances.

 

I am, admittedly, taking the exact opposite perspective most comedically oriented people do on this movie.
I mean, the old and tired joke is about Stockholm Syndrome.

“Barely even friends, then somebody bends, Unexpectedly.” -Ms. Potts in “Beauty and the Beast”

            There is one other song I could have included that blends elements of these and that complexity I think elevates it, so it will get its own entry down the line.  But for right now, these are five Disney Songs that explore love.

Bonus: Not a Song

            Let me be clear, as most of these movies are made for little children the idea of romance as something new to be explored means that romance skew young in these movies, but there is another stage of love that goes past first kisses and dances in a ballroom.  There is the sort of love that makes you feel incomplete without it and drives you to go on mad cap adventures trying to prove to yourself and the one you lost that it was all worth it.

            There is more nostalgic and wistful romance in “Up” than any movie with a prince or princess in it.

  

Beg for Attention

            Share your own thoughts on this in the comments.  I know I am not the only person out there who is nostalgic for Disney products, and I am sure many people disagree with my selection for today’s entry.

            Do you have a favorite?  Can you tell me why?  Is there some stage of courting I missed in this simplistic list of five things?  What would you suggest?  Please comment below.

I picked Disney stuff just because I knew there was so much of it to talk about and it lends itself to discussion in the comments.  So please, tell me how my opinion about cartoon movies is biased and how your opinion on cartoon movies is objectively right.

______________________________

If you like or hate this please take the time to comment, +1, share on Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook, and otherwise distribute my opinion to the world.  I would appreciate it.

Favorite Disney Animal Sidekick

            I have not been posting nearly enough this year and I want to steer back from that.  To that end I have found a 30-day blog challenge and fluffed it out to 31 entries (since December has 31 days).  I have done a 30-day challenge before for movies, though that one was poorly executed (I started it in the middle of a month, at one point I posted 2 entries on one day, it is a mess).  I did another one just this year in August on Video Games, that one was better, go read it after this one, all of it.  Or don’t, no pressure.

            Today is day 6 and the topic is “Favorite Animal Sidekick”.

            Back to talking about fun things that I enjoy.  I love dogs.  When raised by a loving home dogs are loyal, loving, and playful.  They do stupid things all the time but overall they are cuddly friends that we should be happy every day for.  My family has had several dogs that I have enjoyed playing with my whole life and since we do not currently have a pet it feels lame.

Sadly, my mom’s dog passed away earlier in 2016 just as my family was really getting to know him (she had adopted him from a friend and had known the dog for years, while the rest of us only got a month and a half), cause this year sucks!

This is just a random dog.
For the non-psychopaths in my readership this image made you marginally happier.

 I want to put that all up front because Disney makes animal sidekicks all the time and often main characters are the animals.  Just from the biggest hits of the 90’s you have a fish, seagull, crab, monkey, tiger, parrot, meerkat, warthog, cricket, humming bird, raccoon, dog, goat, and if you dip into the mythical there are also a pegasus and a dragon.

            Merchandising!  Merchandising!  Giving a character a pet or friend that often doesn’t talk, is cute, and is loyal is a pretty easy way to show the main character in a positive light.  Sure he’s a thief, but he has a monkey!  Yeah, he is a lazy coward but his buddies are the most laid back meerkat and hog ever!  She’s a liar, but Eddie Murphy likes her… I guess that is a good thing.

            There are so many animal sidekicks going all the way back to Cinderella’s mice that the idea of Disney handing out these sidekicks was parodied with… Eddie Murphy?  Weird.  When he played Donkey in “Shrek” over at Dreamworks.

            So I have plenty of non-dog things to choose from, but this guy made an impression immediately and I do not think anybody would give me trouble for picking him.

“My name is Dug, I have just met you, and I love you, my Master made me this collar, he is a good and smart Master and he made me this collar so that I may talk – SQUIRREL!! – My master is good and smart.” -Dug from the movie “Up”.

 

I am surprised I do not see Dug turning up in more places as far as products.

            And yes, it is a happy coincidence that this follows yesterday’s entry.  Ironically the best liked character on that show was the dog too.

            Dug is a good dog, and I love him.  That is all.

            Share your own thoughts on this in the comments.  I know I am not the only person out there who is nostalgic for Disney products, and I am sure many people disagree with my selection for today’s entry. 

I picked Disney stuff just because I knew there was so much of it to talk about and it lends itself to discussion in the comments.  So please, tell me how my opinion about cartoon movies is biased and how your opinion on cartoon movies is objectively right.

______________________________

If you like or hate this please take the time to comment, +1, share on Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook, and otherwise distribute my opinion to the world.  I would appreciate it.