fadagaski: (take it easy turtle)
fadagaski ([personal profile] fadagaski) wrote2011-03-02 10:08 am
Entry tags:

Things, and also stuff

  • I made banana bread yesterday. It smells so good. Can't wait to have a slice tonight!

  • The house wireless network is sometimes made of fail. I can't currently access Kock (Popcorn Hour device) to edit some files. FAAAIL.

  • My problems are so First World.

  • I just watched Tangled again, and now I have

    • Tangled is a really dark coming-of-age story.

    • No, really! All the singing? That's Disney-metaphor-speak for sexual activity. She sings when she's alone in the tower; she sings when she's dancing on pub tables for a crowd of overlarge, rowdy thugs; she sings when she and Finn are alone on the lake.

      • This rule is applicable to most - if not all - Disney movies (see: Ariel (who swapped her voice for a vagina!), Jasmine (rollicking on a carpet!), Belle (she likes furries because geeky girls are kinky)).


    • Hair is symbolic of virginity. Untouched since childhood, 'mother' seeks to protect it and men seek to possess it. Finn's initial ignorance regarding the importance of Rapunzel's hair sets him up as a sympathetic character because he is coerced into helping her not because of the hair.

      • I'm still trying to decide what the crown represents.


    • 'Mother' is, of course, typical Disney evil-stepmother, but! She is also a catch-all for motherhood, full stop. Her motives are suspect, but in practice she is trying to protect her child from the clutches of men.

      • What's depressing about that is, in order to grow up, Rapunzel must make the conscious choice between her maternal figure and a man. There is no middle ground for her; most women don't abandon their parents when they fall in love (with some exceptions, I know).

      • The middle-ground-maternal-figure for Rapunzel is the Queen, who gets the audience seal of approval because immediately upon reuniting with her daughter, she gives her away to the man (by taking his hand and pulling him into the family unit).


    • It's interesting that Rapunzel's father occupies a non-role in the story. I think this is because she was brought up in a single-mother household, so 'mother' has had to adopt the characteristics normally associated with fathers/husbands, such as discipline - when she yells at Rapunzel. Fathers are also normally the protectors of virginity, which again is a position occupied by 'mother'. So in this way, Rapunzel's father is a castrated and powerless figure.

    • I think Disney has tried to make this a woman's story, which is admirable, but they fall down several times (typical of Disney, really). For one, it's narrated by a man. He has control over the narrative from the beginning of the movie. Second, there are 3 principle female characters and only two of them speak (silencing women = big no-no). Of the two speaking female characters, one is the antagonist who seems to embody a lot of aspects of modern women (desire for eternal youth, ability to thrive independently from men, intelligent, sexually manipulative, etc.). Frankly, she's awesome.

      The other, Rapunzel, is a child at the start of the movie and grows her sexuality through the course of events, under the guidance of her man. She is noticeably smaller than, well, everyone - putting her in a visual position of inferiority and weakness. Never at any point is she able to act without a man in her presence or inspiring her actions. She is fairly standard as a Disney princess.

    • If this was a live-action movie for adults, it would probably be rated 15 for sheer filth and innuendo.

      • I kind of want to see that movie!

[identity profile] shei.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 01:11 pm (UTC)(link)
I was just thinking earlier on the bus back home that if I survive this week I totally deserve to rewatch Tangled this weekend. Something to look forward to.

Yum, banana bread! Sounds awesome.

It's obviously nothing against you personally but I hate hate hate when people say "first world problems" like their shit is less shitty to them. Like I said, not against you but I really don't get it.
Edited 2011-03-02 13:12 (UTC)

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 07:42 pm (UTC)(link)
Tangled is the best reward. :)

Banana bread was yum! Sticky and delicious. Omnomnom.

When I say my problems are so first world, what I generally mean is that I'm aware what I'm complaining about is petty by any standards. A problem accessing the house network is hardly an issue, even for me. But I understand what you mean. I always say, you can only judge the problems of your life based on your own experiences.

[identity profile] moeshas.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 01:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Uh, popcorn hour? we have that too. it's a love/hate relationship. normally, I love it, but when it just turns itself off - quite often lately - it ennoys me to no end... but it's still great we have it... *internal dilemma*

funny, I just watched Tangled yesterday for the first time. (I wanted to go to the movies to watch it, but they only showed it in german and I didn't want to see that...).
it's a great movie, but I do have to agree with you on a lot of points. like that Rapunzel is really weak herself. and when she actually does something brave, she does it because of him or for him.
that's why I totally loved the chameleon and the horse. they're awesome. I love Disney side characters. :o)

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 07:45 pm (UTC)(link)
Ours is usually pretty good for playing things. Accessing it is a pain in the ass sometimes.

OMG PASCAL AND MAXIMUS ARE MADE OF WIN! I love Tangled so much. It's quite possibly my favourite Disney movie ever, despite its flaws.

[identity profile] moeshas.livejournal.com 2011-03-03 02:08 pm (UTC)(link)
I simply love how the movie looks. so beautiful.

they've really outdone themselves here.

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-04 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
Definitely! It's so gorgeous, and so different in style from other CGI films at the moment.

[identity profile] fyrie.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 05:04 pm (UTC)(link)
I love Tangled so much. I especially love Mother Gothal, who is just such an interesting character :)

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 07:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Tangled is my favourite Disney movie ever. I think Mother Gothel is one of the most interesting villains ever produced by the franchise. :)

[identity profile] fyrie.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 07:50 pm (UTC)(link)
I think the best thing is that she's just a woman, as well. No magic, no tricks, nothing special about her at all. So many of the recent villains have been all magical critters.

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-04 12:45 am (UTC)(link)
Yes, definitely. She reminds me an awful lot of Malificent, but not evil for evil's sake. I think most of her actions are driven by fear.

[identity profile] bluntedge.livejournal.com 2011-03-02 08:01 pm (UTC)(link)
I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on Tangled! They give me some food for thought too...

When I watched it, I kept thinking about what Gothel's backstory could've been like; hell, a whole movie from her POV would've been really interesting to watch. HMM...

And of course, Pascal and Maximus for the ultimate win! :D

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-04 12:43 am (UTC)(link)
Mother Gothel is so awesome! I've got some kind of backstory for her worked out in my head, which makes me happy. I even toyed with writing a little ficlet for her at one point.

I think Maximus is my favourite, but only just, because Pascal is adorable.

[identity profile] shei.livejournal.com 2011-03-11 09:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Cause I'm rewatching right now and I'm at the scene where the parents release the lantern when she's all grown up.

It's interesting that Rapunzel's father occupies a non-role in the story.

Well, in the original story the father sold his daughter to the enchantress in exchange for his life or freedom or whatever it was she was threatening him with so maybe they were also trying to get away from that.

[identity profile] fadagaski.livejournal.com 2011-03-12 01:22 am (UTC)(link)
I think you're absolutely right. It's difficult for the father-figure to fuck up if he's forbidden from speaking. :)