I was invited by the kindly folks at Disney to catch The Princess and the Frog at Disney studios for their new movie and event. If you’ve never been to one of these, they generally have them at the El Capitan in Hollywood, charge a pretty penny for your kids to see the movie and then go “backstage” to either meet the princesses or engage in whatever extra activity they have set up; usually it is a very cool thing to do and worth the money. This time it was set up in the backlot at Disney, itself a fun way to spend the evening, and in the tent all of the princesses had been assembled. It is here that we get a gander of the idols our little girls are being raised to admire. Old princesses like Aurora and Snow White join new princesses like Ariel and Mulan. If you’ve raised a little girl in America chances are you are well acquainted with each and every princess they created.
It’s a little strange to me that it took them so long to deliver a “black princess,” and it’s even odder that it would be this year, President Obama’s first year in the White House. We enjoyed the movie as it wasn’t just your run-of-the-mill princess story – here was a young girl who was raised to work hard for your dreams (as opposed to wishing on stars) and to do something with your life. This isn’t propaganda for rolling the dice genetically and having your good looks carry you through to happy ever after.
So it was somewhat disappointing to me that, after waiting for so long to Disney to right the whole princess thing, that the princess would spend most of the movie not as a princess but as a frog. Here is what the NY Times Manohla Dargis said:
It’s not easy being green, the heroine of “The Princess and the Frog” discovers. But to judge from how this polished, hand-drawn movie addresses, or rather strenuously avoids, race, it is a lot more difficult to be black, particularly in a Disney animated feature. If you haven’t heard: Disney, the company that immortalized pale pretties like Snow White and the zip-a-dee-doo-dah of plantation living in “Song of the South,” has made a fairy tale about a black heroine, a character whose shoulders and story prove far too slight for all the hopes already weighing her down. It’s no wonder she’s soon jumping into the bayou, green legs and all.
And the Village Voice’s Scott Foundas echoes Dargis:
So writer-directors Ron Clements and John Musker (whose 1992 Aladdin proffered a sinister, ear-cutting Middle East) send newly anthropomorphic Tiana and Naveen hopping off into the bayou rather than continuing to dodge ol’ Jim Crow on the streets of the Big Easy. There, Princess’s rampant a-historicism gives way to a veritable Mardi Gras parade of risible stereotypes: an Acadian firefly with the most exaggerated Cajun dialect this side of celebrity chef Justin Wilson, I gua-ran-tee; a 197-year-old voodoo priestess named Mama Odie; and, lest no Deep South caricature remain unturned, a trio of toothless hillbillies.
That they transform the princess into a frog for such a long time sends the message they were somehow uncomfortable with Tiana’s real story – where would they put her? How could her story become universal enough to appeal to all little girls? Sure, Ariel is both a girl and a mermaid but her identity is well-intact throughout. Perhaps Disney was making the point that it doesn’t matter what color you are – you could be green, purple, white, brown, etc. And it’s possible I’m reading too much into it – I can hear the comments now bemoaning the PC-ing of film in general. It isn’t that I felt it needed to be PC – it’s just that I wasn’t much into watching a long movie about two frogs hopping around the bayou. Cute but a little less than we’ve come to expect from the glorious films like Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, etc.
But Entertainment Weekly’s Lisa Schwarzbaum really loved the film, giving it an A and tying it into Hurricane Katrina:
The Princess and the Frog happens to introduce an African-American heroine, a Disney animation first. The story also happens to be set in an idealized New Orleans of an earlier time, a city whose historic beauty and cultural importance will forever be filtered by contemporary adults through grimmer awareness of the natural and man-made disasters of Hurricane Katrina. It’s all the more effective, though, that this Big Easy of a movie needs no overt mention of Katrina to move our hearts, and inserts no overt lesson in the history of civil rights to distract from the groundbreaking matter-of-factness of Tiana’s equality. What matters is that Tiana triumphs as both a girl and a frog, that dreams are fulfilled, wrongs are righted, love prevails, and music unites not only a princess and a frog but also kids and grown-ups.
If you think about the story, it’s hard to imagine what direction they would have taken it – Tiana needs money for her restaurant so she decides to marry a prince she doesn’t love to get the money for it – she becomes a whore. Scratch that.
Tiana falls in love with the prince who is really a frog and must search the bayou for a spell that will undo it; she isn’t technically a princess so kissing him doesn’t help. I’m picturing Snow White with the forest animals as Tiana makes her way through the bayou, charming the alligators and the frogs and lightning bugs. That could work. But how do we turn Tiana into a princess so that she can kiss the frog and have him become a prince, etc.?
Tiana is secretly a princess but she doesn’t know it. So she never tries kissing the frog because it won’t do him any good. At last, she discovers that she really does love him and so her kiss is genuine. No, too much bestiality.
Either way, that is only the minor flaw in an otherwise enjoyable film. It should be considered one of the strongest contenders in the animated race — Up still dominates in every way possible, from box office to critical acclaim, etc. Up should have some competition with The Princess and the Frog, The Fantastic Mr. Fox (even if the animators are angry at Wes Anderson for bailing on the set, they should reward their own for all of their hard work). A Christmas Carol should be one of the contenders but who knows whether it will make the cut. Mary and Max, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs — it’s a very good year for animated films.
18 Responses for "The Princess and the Frog"
*sigh* This article just goes to show how non-color-blind the writer is. When I saw the preview I thought nothing of the race of Tiana, and thought it a rather cool twist to see that the princess was turned into a frog rather than a kiss simply undoing the spell. It’s a sad day when those who are arguing for racial equality are those who seem to be most uncomfortable simply letting a person’s, well, *person* define them rather than their color.
I think it’s kind of racist when critics won’t shut up about the fact that Tiana’s black, as if she’s the only non-white princess. In the last 20 years Disney has introduced an Asian princess, a native American princess, an Arabian princess, and a non-princess story about a Hawaiian girl. Somehow that’s not diverse enough for some people…
And it really is a remarkable year for animation. Nothing I’ve seen has been able to top Coraline for me, but I have a feeling even some of the non-nominated films this year would’ve been stronger contendors in a less crowded year.
It would have been nice to have her as a black woman throughout the film, but I can see why they flipped the story a little – it makes it interesting.
Disney is famous for stereotyping people in their animated films, there is nothing new there, I mean stereotypes exist, we keep living up to them – however they also get modernised.
Y’know, the beauty of this whole thing is that kids really won’t care if she’s black the entire movie or not. If it’s bright, musical, has goofy characters, and makes them feel all warm inside, then they’ll eat it up like Grandma’s cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving dinner. I know that if this came out when I was a kid, I would sure as heck see it and sure as heck not give a damn if they were all black or not. I would make note of it briefly, then continue drinking in the experience of watching the film.
It’s funny, it’s always the adults who react most sensitively to these things. “Where the Wild Things Are” and, to a lesser extent, this film, are making parents re-evaluate what is appropriate for kids or not. And I think that’s a good thing, make them feel, make them think, don’t have life be in black and white where everything is comfy and cozy. Life can be cozy, but it’s unhealthy to ignore all of our strife in society (from racial differences to what is appropriate for our kids).
I just pray that the racists don’t boycott this movie. :/ God knows they’re there, waiting to strike and rear their ugly heads.
I don’t understand why there’s so much discussion on the girl’s skin color. How long are we going to keep making that the focus of everything?
If it were me, I don’t think I would mention it, “Tianna is a princess who turns into a frog to…” and get it over with.
Why must everybody open their reviews with “the first black Disney princess”…”they were always white/pale”, “Mulan was the first Asian princess”…”sure Ariel was a mermaid, but she was white”
Why? to keep marveling at the fact that Disney “finally” did it? To warn parents that they’re taking their kids to a movie with a black girl? To make blacks kids want to see it because the princess is black?
What’s so revolutionary o life changing about this? Let it go, it’s a movie about a girl who turns into a frog…do people seriously believe that a kid is going to suddenly yell “mommie mommie…she’s black…what’s wrong with this movie mommie?”…
Do you believe that parents will take a minute after the movie to explain to their kids “listen sweetie…let’s talk for a second about what you just saw…let me explain why the Disney princess was black…don’t be scared”
Kids won’t care…and neither should grownups…
It isn’t the focus of EVERYTHING – it’s just that a big deal was made of the “first black princess” — and now that she’s been delivered, well, there isn’t much of her in the film. Generally I agree with you – if it’s a good enough movie, it won’t matter. And it is an enjoyable romp. It just isn’t one of their biggest nor best princess movies, I guess.
MC’s T3 wide releases of the year (by Friday): Up, Ponyo, Fantastic Mr. Fox (more raves than Trek or Hell). That is most impressive for animated cinema. Or alternatively says something about live-action mainstream cinema.
This film was meh…The message: You beautiful strong woman, what you want is to run your own business and work hard for it but what you NEED is a well-to-do man. blah
I’m going to see it. Race or no race, I like Anika Noni Rose who was in Dreamgirls and really stole her scenes away from the “pros”…and she’s a good stage singer.
I think everyone needs a helping of Avenue Q right now: Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist, so we need to just take the film for what it is and stop worrying about how PC it is or belaboring the point that (gasp!) Tiana is black!
Anyways, even when she is a frog she sounds black, as racist as that sounds you all know its true. No one is going to forget that she is black. Let the race thing drop. Most of the reviews are dazzling. Check out the songs on youtube, theyre wonderful.
For those complaining about Sasha and others highlighting the protagonist being black, sorry to tell you, but it IS a big deal.
It’s not just that this is the first ever black lead character in a Disney film (and in 2009, that’s kind of sad), it’s that Disney itself is a company that’s held a track record of encouraging racial stereotypes, moreso in the pre-80s era than now.
Look at Dumbo, with the stereotypical black crows (including one actually named Jim Crow!). Look at Peter Pan, with the overtly racist view of Indians. Look at Lady and the Tramp and its presentation of the Siamese cats. Look at parts of Fantasia and Song of the South.
I think it’s great that kids won’t look at it as black or white. They shouldn’t. But I don’t think people born before the 2000s should be chastised for pointing out an important fact.
It is significant, just like it’d be significant if Disney ever had a Jewish lead, and I think we all know that won’t happen for a while.
In the future America will be full of Rosario Dawsons, Vin Diesels, Jessica Albas, and Dwayne Johnson. It’s delicious. So I love that this is essentially (excluding Pochohantas) the first interracial romance in a film. That’s something that I think people are overlooking. Tiana and Naveen are what many children see when they see their parents. And that is lovely.
It should be pointed out that in the featurettes Disney has been releasing for the film, they aren’t making a major fuss over her being black. When the directors, animators and actors are talking about the film, they’re ecstactic about returning to making hand-drawn animated musicals again and that they have created an extremely strong character in Tiana. I’ve only seen a couple of interviews where Anika Noni Rose is commenting on the fact that there’s a black Disney princess. But, what she is most excited about is the fact that she’s voicing a character in a Disney animated film, black or white, frog or human, she’s just happy to be a Disney character.
And I think that’s excellent and that really highlights the theme of the film. To quote Mama Odie, “Only thing important is what’s under the skin.”
Totally agree with Estefan.
The fact that disney has taken so long to acknowledge the fact thatc there can be African-American princesses is an abomination. and yes race is a factor here and shoudl be celebrated and that shoudl not even be debatable. to not ntoice is is just the narrow-mindedness that Hollywood has perpetuated throughout the years. the fact that she spends most the movie as a frog shoudln’t even be an issue. thissy. besides, it IS fantasy.
I just don’t understand why it took Disney so long to start portraying American humans of any kind in a good light. The self-loathing they have for their countrymen is disturbing. I mean we had the despicable children from Dumbo and then of course the “hunters” from Bambi. The only Americans they seemed to like prior to this decade were the anthropomorphistic Disney characters and the animal heroes from Oliver & Co., Fox & Hound, Rescuer’s Bernard, etc.
This decade Disney has begun to rectify it with Milo and Will Robinson, but it is nice to finally see an American princess.
Look. The only thing everyone is focusing on is the fact that disney is back to the old animation style and magic that made them famous. Lets not make the racial issue bigger than what it is. And who said kids didnt care about race? There are little black girls all over the country asking their parents why they dont have princesses that look like them, i kno just 10 years ago i was one of them. Honestly, kids arent as stupid as you think they are to be distracted by music and goofy characters. If they were, they would become stupid adults.
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