I didn’t have much thought about this one, and little to no expectations going in either. I actually thought it was kind of boring… Most of the Internet characters had interesting designs (Yesss, the internet search desk guy, the eBay boy), I guess. A film where Ralph had a romance with
Ralph EDIT: correction

, with
Yess while Vanellope was over in Slaughter Race would’ve been more interesting than what we got. I’m guessing the reason they didn’t go through with a romance is that they wanted the separation from Vanellope be a big dramatic moment at the end instead of just a walk away for Ralph to visit her any time he wanted. What’s stupid to me is that they make it out as if it would be so hard for Ralph to go online any time the arcade is dark to visit Vanellope and/or Yesss (in the case she had been a love interest). It didn’t seem like a hard thing at all for him to go online at the beginning of the movie.
Anyway, Vanellope was probably the only
character I liked in the first one, but she didn’t really feel like Vanellope to me in this. Maybe it’s because she and Ralph are friends at this point, but I missed the snarkiness. In the first film, Vanellope was smarter than Ralph while still being much more childish than him. In this one, she seemed like she was his babysitter. I didn’t care for the song as it is in the film. Julia Michaels’ version was better.
Now I’ve seen the princess scene, I have no idea what all the hullabaloo was about. I thought it was cute*, and I liked how they made a medley of their various themes when they rescue Ralph at the end. I made the little avatars in the end credits into a signature.

I loved how they mocked Merida—a PIXAR princess shouldn’t even
be there, imo. My only complaint is the whole scene feels very short. I’d have to look at stillshots to get a good look at their “comfy” clothes because they’re blink-and-you’ll-miss-it. The one silver lining to this film flopping is that if it had done well, they might’ve actually—stupidly—thought to make Vanellope part of the Disney Princess line. I still would love if they made a Wrecked Princesses spinoff, personally, complete with a Menken soundtrack. I would die if Tiana finally got the Menken song she deserved (and was stolen from her because of Lasseter inflicting Randy Newman on the film)!
* Although all the reactions online may be the reason the scene isn’t awful in the finished product, especially helping the designs be a little bit better. Jasmine still looked the worst, imo.
Sotiris wrote:
Pictures from the book "Vanellope's Girl Squad" (
part 1,
part 2,
part 3). Art by
Ami Thompson.

Oh, gross @ “girl squad.” Using Taylor Swift’s faux feminist vernacular, ugh. I can't stand that wants-to-have-her-cake-and-eat-it-too phony anymore. I liked her as a songwriter at one time, but where was she when white supremacists were using her song lyrics two years ago?
DisneyFan09 wrote:
I actually happen to love Beyonce, regardless of the demanding rumors, because I love her music, singing voice and do find her a genuine and warm person nonetheless. But I don't mind that Anika got the part.
I like her, too. All stars are demanding, not just the female stars, so that isn't something I dislike about her. She knows what she's worth, and that's a good thing. You brought up JLO, and I cannot stand her anymore. All those years on Idol pretty much showed her true colors. Live TV really exposes some people.
Sotiris wrote:
^The pop version is in fact played as the second end credits song but that doesn't get Disney completely off the hook. They could have easily put it as the first one and chosen to promote it as the movie's main song instead of the Imagine Dragons one.
I don't get why they didn't have Julia Michaels' song first either. She's a well-known name herself and "In This Place" is better--and more central to the movie--than "Zero." I like some of Imagine Dragons songs, but "Zero" sucked. I agree with you that the decision was obviously made because Disney wanted to stick it to Menken some more, just like how they didn't even submit anything for
Galavant. As you said earlier in this thread, Rich Moore pushing for it is the only reason Menken was there (just like the hand-drawn introduction of
Moana only exists because M&C had to fight for it, because Disney didn't allow them the choice of making a full hand-drawn film). I'm not sure who to blame for the treatment of Menken specifically, although I've always thought it was Lasseter. I'm glad Lasseter is no longer a Disney employee for that reason. His downfall--albeit for other, disgusting things--couldn't have happened to a more deserving person, after how he treated Menken, the hand-drawn animators, not to mention animators in general because of the wage-fixing scandal. Screw him and everyone who gave him that much power in the first place.
disneyprincess11 wrote:
What’s more upsetting is you don’t even see how Felix and Calhoun raise the kids. The kids are literally perfect angels at the end and it comes out of nowhere. And get this: Felix and Calhoun explain to the Surge Protector how they raised the kids. You don’t even hear it. It’s blocked out by the car beeps. Yes, seriously. I get that it’s a joke of how they were written out of the movie, but it’s still a big slap to the face who really want to see these characters.
I thought it was more a joke about the fact that nobody knows the "perfect" way to raise kids.
Sotiris wrote:
Lasseter is to blame for the Wrecked Princesses! He was the one who pushed for their inclusion. It's no coincidence the princess scene was changed to be more respectful and less irreverent as soon as he left. Can't say I'm surprised. He always resented the '90s Disney movies and their success and this was just another attempt of his to sully their legacy. If only he had been fired sooner, all of this could have been avoided.
Quote:
The movie’s filmmakers had a crucial ally for the updated portrayal: former chief creative officer John Lasseter, who had long wanted to bring the princesses down to earth, colleagues say. Mr. Lasseter had received approval and support for the scene from Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger, the CEO, according to people familiar with the matter.
“If I were to make the movies you guys wanted me to make about princesses, I would be murdered,” Mr. Lasseter once told a group raising concerns about the character Merida’s cynical attitude in “Brave,” according to a former colleague. He said, “I couldn’t make the movies Walt Disney made today.”
Source:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/beauty-and ... 1542430801I feel gross imagining how he'd like to portray the princesses.
Tristy wrote:
Oh and since we're on the subject of Disney Princesses and in light of some of the recent criticisms made about them, here's a quote from The Disney Odyssey in their article about the little Mermaid
Quote:
It seems as if viewers complain when female protagonists are ‘passive’ and also when they are ‘active’, when they are ‘kind’ and when they are ‘rebellious’. If protagonists are female, from critical point of view, they are always under scrutiny. It is annoying. Why can’t a character just be what it is … a character?! Characters who have virtues and vices, positive and negative qualities, etc.
https://thedisneyodyssey.wordpress.com/ ... maid-1989/This is so accurate. I don't know how often I've had to see and read people enraged over empowered female characters. Amazing--and disgusting.
JTurner wrote:
I have to say that I was quite disappointed with this movie. I liked the original, but this one felt like a hollow, soulless imitation doubling as a commercial.
The sequel doesn't bother me because the first one was already hollow and soulless product placement. To me, anyway.
Sotiris wrote:
She does! With a touch of Megara's attitude, maybe.