Death of the Disney Princess.

So I read an article recently stating that 'Tangled' is set to be Disney's last fairytale for the foreseeable future. A spokesperson for Disney says, 'Films and genres do run a course...'

But do they?

As a child ‘The Little Mermaid’, ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Peter Pan’ were my three favourite films, like, ever. As a young adult, I own all three on DVD and regularly listen to the soundtracks on my iPod; warbling away to 'Kiss the Girl' and 'Be our Guest' is one of my favourite ways to pass a long car journey. In fact I have two friends at University who are in a band called 'Disney Rascal', needless to say the focus of their set is a re-vamped acoustic/reggae rendition of all the classics. The first time I saw them play I couldn't believe my ears, hit by a wave by nostalgia I couldn’t help but love what they were doing. Having attended a number of their gigs since I have to say the reaction, for the most part, is the same from anyone in the crowd seeing them for the first time.

I understand the feminist debate surrounding Disney Princesses. Is it healthy to present a young child with images of these flawlessly beautiful, skinny girls who always end up with the rich and handsome guy at the end?

Well for a start, Beauty and the Beast’s Belle is so much more than that. I have strong memories of myself strolling round the garden; arms flung wide, singing “there must be more than this Provincial life!” at the top of my voice and clutching a book to my chest. Her character is an outsider, described as odd, and a ‘funny girl’ for her passion with reading and her active imagination. I didn’t care about the Prince at the end of it all. I wanted to feel the rush of excitement that Belle’s character experiences when she walks into a library. Surely this isn’t a negative outcome from watching this?

So why are Disney cutting this storyline from their upcoming films? Because it no longer sells. Why doesn’t it sell? Little girls these days are given far too many real-life alternatives to the perfectly animated examples of my childhood. Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens……The list is endless. Are these girls better role models? Sure, they are real. They go to High School, sing songs and get the flawless boyfriend. They even seem to struggle a little on the way to this happy ending.

Real, they may be, but they are almost less realistic than their cartoon predecessors. These girls are among the richest and most spoilt teen stars in the world. They want for nothing. Their franchise ranges from TV programmes, to Movies, to cosmetics and clothing. You can get your hands on ANYTHING with the High School Musical branding on it these days. The characters these teens play are loved and admired by every little girl who watches them and buys their products.  

Herein lies another problem with presenting children with living role models: these role models grow up. They become rebellious, like any other girl in her late-teens would if they had been as overindulged and spoilt as they are- attending parties, smoking, tattoos, you name it. This would never happen to our fictional Princesses!

Belle, Ariel and Wendy are better role models by far. At least with them, you can be sure that they aren’t going to be sent to rehab for a drug addiction, be arrested for drink driving, or release a sex tape on the internet…

Disney I beg you, from one who has grown up with every one of your original animated Princesses and considers herself to be relatively unscarred by their anti-feminist messages, don’t kill these characters off. 

I would like to close this by telling you that I am the shoemaker. And I think I live with elves. Every morning when I come downstairs, they have left me a little pile of washing up to do. How kind of them. 

So I lied a little....

That was not exactly my first article. This was:

Sex Sells?

Tabloids littered with yet another scandal about a footballer and a prostitute, teen movies showing boys indulging perversely in ‘warm apple pies’ and various female ‘heroines’ prancing around in their underwear…Sound familiar? 

Sex has been used to entice us since advertising began. From the first ‘American Pie’ film, to the giant billboard of David Beckham in his underwear covering Selfridges, these marketing ploys are guaranteed to get us talking. 

But I want to touch on that formidable word…Feminism. What with sex being used willy-nilly to grab our attention, where are we women expected to find a suitable role model? I hear you groan. However, it seems to me that there is a growing trend of contemporary ‘feminist’ films on the market. Perhaps the movement is changing and its no longer sex as gratuitous nudity, desire and teenage angst that sells, but more a call for strong and influential role models of either sex that we are looking for.

‘The Full Monty’, arguably the most risqué film of the 90’s, can show us some strong feminist themes. The tragic unemployed steel workers in Sheffield: stripped of their masculinity in losing their labouring jobs, they are forced to take off their clothes to entertain women. For centuries stripping has been a female profession, and yet these men are given no choice but to humiliate themselves for the gratification of women. Tragic, but does it leave us with a sense of empowerment that men are finally being exploited in the way women have had to be?

Women love a chick flick, a romcom: gutsy woman meets wealthy eligible, but often rude, man. They squabble; they make up (and perhaps make love) and live happily ever after. ‘When Harry Met Sally’, ‘The Holiday’, ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’, the list is endless. The genre can be traced back to Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. And yet feminist critics have argued time and time again: why did Lizzie marry Darcy? He was a self-righteous, arrogant imbecile, she was plucky and intelligent and unimpressed by his attitude. But she took one look at his enormous estate, and accepted his marriage proposal. Yes it’s a happy ending, yes we probably would marry Colin Firth with his floppy hair, wet shirt and large country estate, but why has this prompted so much debate? Where is our perfect feminist?

Sex and the City, perhaps the ultimate chick flick, would appear to supply us with a whole host of suitable feminist candidates. Carrie Bradshaw, the successful and independent journalist? Samantha Jones, PR whizz and sexual connoisseur? Miranda Hobbes, Law partner and single mother? And Charlotte York. Perhaps not her. Essentially these women are obsessed with sex, shoes and finding the perfect man. Not really the epitome of feminist ideals, or the role model I’m looking for.

Gemma Arterton plays a young journalist in her latest role for ‘Tamara Drewe’ (based on Hardy’s ‘Far From the Madding Crowd’) and yet the recurring theme in each review of the film is how sexy Arterton looks in her tiny denim hot pants.  How can we search for our feminist when the neither the director, the stylist or the critics allow us to take these characters seriously?

Directors such as Nigel Cole in both his new film ‘Made in Dagenham’ (about a bunch of Essex factory girls in the 60’s demanding equal pay to men) and ‘Calendar Girls’ (the middle-aged Yorkshire women getting their baps out for a charity WI calendar) are beginning to prove that there is a new demand for films about sex. But not the sex we are used to, more an affirmation of our own sex: an identity to relate to, and an individuality to aspire to. 

Remains unpublished....

Article no.1

So I've been asked write an article for the student paper on the failure of the event I was involved in- Powderham Ball. I am the first to admit that we made a number of mistakes. However, I feel VERY strongly about the way that the University of Exeter, and the student guild in particular handled matters. 

Uncooperative, hypocritical, greedy and naive. We have had a lot of criticism over this issue, but below sums up my feelings pretty much to a T........

"The biggest social event of the year? Its back? Perhaps not… As a member of the Powderham Ball committee I struggle to put into words how disheartening it was to learn that our efforts over the past months had all gone to waste. Granted, the controversial price of the tickets had simply proved to be too much.

As head of entertainment I wanted to put on a night unlike any other in Exeter. A fantastic marquee in a beautiful location, with a range of acts tapping into a variety of musical tastes, a topless snake charmer, a stunning fire show and a champagne reception in the rose garden of a medieval castle do not come cheap.

“Apparently we only get six free drinks?” was the first question I was faced with on our launch night. Unsurprisingly it became obvious that alcohol was the clincher. After endless meetings with the Guild debating this we learned that not only were we not able to employ the generous and exciting offers from various well reputed promotions teams, but we were also absolutely forbidden from accepting the three mojito bars Bacardi had offered us, or the unlimited Smirnoff. Alcohol sponsors were out of the question, dispelling any hopes we’d had of an open bar.

We bartered the prices of drinks, haggled with the portaloo man and made a great deal with the snazzy marquee company. This is what goes on behind the scenes. The ticket prices were as such because this is simply what it costs to make an event function.

I speak for everyone involved when I say that despite the cancellation, it was a fantastic experience and one that I remain proud to have been involved in. I wonder if the concept will ever be successfully re-launched, or if there is just not the market for it here anymore. £60 seems high, but it would have bought you so much more than a cold night in a warehouse, miles out of Exeter with extortionate bar prices. Although I’m afraid clothing would have been mandatory.

These events must start small and grow popular: where people become so desperate to go that they sleep on the lemmy steps the night before ticket sales. We ran before we could walk, and we know this now. I want to apologise to, but also thank everyone who bought tickets. Please remember that essentially the aim was to raise money for Cancer Research UK, amongst others. I still find myself wondering why it was the Guild who would have made the biggest profit out of the evening."

............Let me know what you think? I've found the experience of writing a rather interesting one. I've always wanted something to be published in the student paper and have had a couple of attempts. But when writing about something that I feel very passionately about (as I'm sure you can tell) the words simply flow.

Have a lovely Saturday all xx

Blog Virginity.

Oh my word. Setting up a blog is rather more tricky than I had first anticipated. I must say that I find it very irritating when one is required to 'type the characters you see into the box' in order to proceed on websites. This seems to happen with almost everything on the internet these days: ordering tickets, signing up to new subscriptions, starting a blog.... Why do they make the font so impossible to read? I almost find myself reaching for the 'disabled' button, simply so I can have the characters read aloud to me.

Anyhoo, here I am. I think it is safe to say my blog virginity has been lost. The cherry is well and truly popped.