I would like to share with you this hilarious (well I find it so) video that has been going viral. Take a little moment and enjoy...
Watched? Enjoyed? Good. The guy is called Jon Cozart and appears to be a scrawny kid from Texas who has a real talent at singing, pulling great faces & putting together a brilliant parody of what happens to some of our Disney princesses when the happily ever after is over.
For those of you who have chosen not to watch the video because you think it's mushy Disney crap I recommend that you click play. Ariel's ecosystem is being destroyed by oil spills and whaling, Aladdin has been arrested in the War on Terror, Belle is going to be burned at the stake by her crazy village and Pocahontas is going Last of the Mohican on our arses. Who couldn't blame her? She was after all the grand old age of 11 when she met John Smith who was pushing on 30. I guess child protection laws weren't in effect in Colonial America.
What I love about this most is that someone who clearly loves the Disney can also see the twisted side of it all. And, as I am talking about twisted I would also like to share the Twisted Princess series on Deviant Art created by an artist called Jeffrey Thomas. I cannot help myself, I am clearly a morbid creature.
I happen to adore the Disney movies- the art, the songs, the way I just feel better after having watched a Disney movie marathon. Maybe it's because life can be crap and sometimes, just sometimes, it's nice to escape into a world where 100% of the time the good guys win, the girl gets her man and the bad guys end up falling off tall buildings/ clifftops/ aircraft.
Then, when I am feeling particurly NeilGaimany I like to dabble in the dark side and sample from the various reminders of where these stories actually came from. Modern authors are getting in on the act. Neil Gaiman has his 'Snow, Glass, Apples,' a re-telling of the Snow White legend from a more sympathetic point of few of the step-mother. Angela Carter has her anthology of short stories based on fairy tales in 'The Bloody Chamber,' a book I love so much that I really, truly wish I had written it myself.
The modern authors and artists get in on the act where it comes to the horrifying side of Disney but I happen to have a copy of Grimm's Fairy Tales and for anyone who knows about this sort of thing knows that the source material isn't exactly sunshine and happiness. Cinderella as an example has a glorious section describing how each of her step-sisters start hacking away at their feet just for the chance to squeeze into the shoe. The prince notices the blood seeping from the slipper and realises that neither are his gal. I know people can be desperate to not remain single but c'mon ladies....
When I was younger The Little Mermaid was all I wanted. I had the games, t-shirts (not the doll though- curses!) & the books. As an adult I have two copies on DVD, one I can watch and one for 'collectors' purposes and I went to see the Broadway play when I was in New York. I also remember reading the original version when I was a child and was both fascinated and horrified. No Flounder or Sebastian but instead tongues being cut out, sisters offering knives for a bout of heart stabbing, feet that bleed when our heroine dances and a far from happy ending when she loses the man she loves to another woman and then turns to foam.
Say what?? Isn't it fantastic. For every 'modern' re-telling of anything involving a fairy story just go back and look at the original. It's nothing new- these writers just want to go back to the source.
People complain that Disney have perverted the true fairy stories. Well yes. And no. If I had a five year old I would be much happier with them watching the Disney way of life and frankly there are moments in time when I am far happier regressing to my 7 year old self and singing my heart and soul out to 'Tale as Old as Time.' However when I am feeling a bit more 'mature' I like to read fairy tales as they were originally intended, warning's about the evil, bad and sinister.
That's the great thing about Disney and fairy stories. Sometimes you're in the mood to read about women making sacrifices (by er, not committing murder) and spending eternity earning a soul and other times all you want to do is watch colourful fish dance around a red-head.
So I shall enjoy my little trip to Disney, wear the Mickey ears and meet the characters and maybe when I'm back I'll start on that mini fairy tale I've been trying to work on when it's cold and damp...
Squee Moment of the Week:-
Spent last Sunday watching big burly Rugby men doing their thing at Twickenham thanks to an invite from my friend Beth :) It was bloody fantastic! Though not too bloody thankfully. We were so close to the try line that we could see sweat and tears (not that there were any, this isn't football) and muscles and... well I'll stop now before I get into trouble.
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