Turning Red

[Kyle]

From what I gather from my facebook feed, conservatives hate this movie, lol
They're saying to not let your kids see this movie, Disney has changed for the worse, etc.

They don't like how the message seems to be to defy your parents.

[Sotiris]

I'm surprised by how poorly this film has been received by conservatives. Plenty of family-friendly content shows kids disobeying their parents. I can only imagine how they'll react when Disney starts including LGBT characters in their films.

[estefan]

I also assume they hate that a Disney movie is tackling menstruation, even though the allegory is subtle enough that the large majority of children won't pick up on it. It will be a movie that children will love because of the funny antics with the giant red panda and then they re-watch as an adult several years later and notice the messages about puberty.

A Disney production tackling puberty and preteens experiencing physical changes isn't anything new, though. There was, of course, the infamous "Story of Menstruation" short, which Disney sent out to schools all over America to be shown in health classes. There's also an episode of "Lizzie McGuire" where Lizzie wants to buy a bra. I even read one interview where Domee Shi mentions "Lizzie McGuire" as an influence when writing "Turning Red."

[PatrickvD]

I'm surprised by how poorly this film has been received by conservatives. Plenty of family-friendly content shows kids disobeying their parents. I can only imagine how they'll react when Disney starts including LGBT characters in their films.

Not surprised at all. America is deeply conservative. And these people have a boatload of platforms on which to vent their frustrations.

Maybe now is the moment to throw ‘The Story of Menstruation’ on Disney+?

[Sotiris]

Apparently, they also objected to Mei and her friends fantasizing about boys. They seem to be bothered by depictions of heterosexuality too, now. How strange.

"Disney has long held an established trust by parents in this country that anything that had the Disney label parents just knew about vetting they could trust to be safe for this children but Disney has finally now officially violated that trust once and for all by publishing this smut," one review wrote.

Another reviewer praised the film for its animation, but found fault with its depiction of hormonal teen girls. "Thirteen-year-old girls being obsessed with boys may be common, but it's not an ideal I want for my girls," the reviewer wrote. "She's doesn't learn that it's a waste of time to sexually fantasize about older boys, but instead the mom learns to respect 'my panda, my choice!' Seriously what?"

Another review criticized the movie for being marketed toward children but still touching on "topics inappropriate and sensitive for many of its very young audience." "Leave sexuality out of [children's] entertainment," the reviewer wrote. "Let kids be kids and let parents handle the coming of age issues"

Source: https://www.lmtonline.com/culture/artic ... 000768.php

[Disney's Divinity]

Sounds like this is another case of misogyny being at the root of it all. A female character showing attraction enraging that sort is nothing new.

I wouldn't be surprised if conservatives hate this because the four girls together reminds them of their built up nightmare, the Squad. Non- White, non- Christian ( some of them?)--seems like something they'd malign.

[carolinakid]

Why target Christians with your bias? I can’t imagine Orthodox Jewish, Muslim or Hindu parents thinking these are appropriate subjects for a children’s/family film.

Conservatives aren’t just Christian.

Back in the day, Disney movie posters and newspaper ads all carried the slogan, Look to the name Walt Disney for the finest in family entertainment. Sadly, that’s no longer an automatic given.

I was just talking to a Latina mother from Honduras who came into our store who no longer lets her children watch modern Disney films. They are a very devout family, but that’s kind of the point.
They shouldn’t be maligned for their opinions and beliefs. They’re not trying to get this stuff “canceled” like the oh so tolerant other side.

[PatrickvD]

Why target Christians with your bias? I can’t imagine Orthodox Jewish, Muslim or Hindu parents thinking these are appropriate subjects for a children’s/family film.

I think the American Christians are the loudest critics so probably that’s why.

The reason they are the loudest is because they thought they had forced Hollywood/Disney into submission of their views. But luckily, with streaming studios seem to care less and less what these people and their organizations think.

[carolinakid]

I never heard of any American Christians “forcing” Disney into submission. Most Christian families who care about such things gave up on Disney years ago. It seems to me the only groups Disney is afraid of
offending are Communist China, and the groups responsible for all the “woke” changes in the parks... Splash Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, banning of Zip A Dee Doo Dah from the F of F parade, and so on.

Today’s Disney doesn’t give a rat’s ass what Christian families think about their product. That’s not where the money is nor where the hearts lie of those with power at Disney.

[Farerb]

https://twitter.com/PixarTurningRed/sta ... xtnMg&s=19

[Disney's Divinity]

I think the American Christians are the loudest critics so probably that’s why.

The reason they are the loudest is because they thought they had forced Hollywood/Disney into submission of their views. But luckily, with streaming studios seem to care less and less what these people and their organizations think.

This. There's no denying there is a wide and very vocal swath of White Christians in America who are espousing thinly-disguised hatred against anyone who isn't White or Christian (especially when it comes in the form of a female figure, the usual punching bag in today's politics), of which this cast of characters represents a mixture of all three of those things. Unlikely there wouldn't have been some crossover in that sentiment happening in the real world and viewer reactions. That isn't an indictment of the Christian religion itself because I am Christian; I don't feel that hatred against non-White or non-Christian people is what God stands for at all, that's on specific Christians.

[PatrickvD]

I never heard of any American Christians “forcing” Disney into submission.

You should dive into the history of the Hays code. Christianity has had a firm grip on morality in Hollywood going all the way back to the 1920s.

Disney didn’t emerge as a major studio until after its implementation, but as a family friendly studio they’ve always been under the microscope of regulators and more recently the MPAA. Not to mention the idiotic wrath of One Million Moms.

But streaming is changing things. The rules for network TV don’t apply to VOD. You already see drama series more easily dropping f-bombs. And there’s zero anyone could do to stop Disney from including queer characters in Disney+ originals. They just need to stop being afraid of conservatives. They hold no cards. So who cares.

[Sotiris]

Source: https://twitter.com/samba_tv/status/1503745967786545160

[carolinakid]

Patrick, we’re just gonna have to agree to disagree whether Disney is afraid of conservatives. Thanks for engaging with me. I do agree we live in a post Christian world.

[Sotiris]

You're both making the same point. While Disney was left-leaning back in the '90s/'00s, it did take into account conservatives and was afraid to upset them. Now, no matter how much they complain or protest, Disney doesn't care. They're only afraid of outrage and backlash coming from liberals. I think it's accurate to say Disney strictly caters to liberals nowadays. Well, at least, in the West they do. Although even that is starting to change as they're becoming more and more progressive in other markets as well.

[carolinakid]

Thank you, Sotiris! You said it much better than I could! I respect Patrick but find it laughable that today’s Disney cares ANYTHING about the Christian and/or Conservative audience of any or no religion except how much money they can take from them.

[PatrickvD]

The only reason I suspect they still care about the conservative voices is their refusal to include gay characters, when there’s no outright barrier anymore that prevents them from doing so. And their behind the scenes donations to conservative politicians.

Other than that I do think we’re making the same points yes.

[Sotiris]

The only reason I suspect they still care about the conservative voices is their refusal to include gay characters, when there’s no outright barrier anymore that prevents them from doing so. And their behind the scenes donations to conservative politicians.

As you can see, that's changing too. We already have a lot of LGBT content from Disney, both branded and non-branded, and there's more coming. As for the donations to Republican politicians, I have no doubt that after the recent debacle that's going to change as well.

[Kyle]

The only reason I suspect they still care about the conservative voices is their refusal to include gay characters, when there’s no outright barrier anymore that prevents them from doing so. And their behind the scenes donations to conservative politicians.

I think the gay thing largely has to to with non US markets, too many end up censoring it or refusing to screen movies with gay leads. So they get regulated to minor roles or more wink/nudge roles so that china and the like wont take much issue with them.

[Disney's Divinity]

It's weird how this conversation turned around. I thought we were talking about audience reactions to this movie and what the source of those criticisms were, but somehow we’re talking about who Disney caters to instead now?? The former is almost entirely due to conservatives, imo, but, yes, I think Disney learned a long time ago that conservatives will hate them regardless. Whether it's over climate change in WALL E, Ariel being too skimpily clad, nonsense conspiracies over "SEX" being spelled in TLK or the Aladdin nonsense, etc. etc. It's always going to be something with them, so why bother if the movies are successful despite their criticism. They know when liberals are angry over their actions--as when they catered to a dictatorship like China and filmed near where a genocide is taking place with Mulan 2020--they might actually suffer consequences at the box office.

LGBT still seems like the line they won't cross though, although I hope enough backlash has occurred that that might change finally. I don't agree that it's just because of overseas markets (and hopefully Russia is off-limits to them now anyway to the point they no longer care about them--I remember Russia banned B&tB-LA because of Lefou), I think they're hesitant in the U.S. as well. That's why they cancelled BlueSky's last film that was 90% complete already--they would've lost nothing by throwing that out there before they closed, it was clearly about the LGBT characters--or how they put the kibosh on The Owl House not because of ratings but because of so-called not having the "Disney feeling" or whatever nonsense excuse. 9 to 10 I'm willing to bet it's because of the LGBT on that show, although they're too cowardly to ever come out straight and say it. They don't want to go there with protagonists, only with background characters. And even that is only a recent development; I remember how Ryan on High School Musical was only allowed to be openly gay in the musical, but could only be coded as such in the film in "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" fashion.