So how is it that Disney movies contributed to my knowledge of the romance genre?
It's simple. All of my favorite animated Disney movies have the elements of a great romance novel.
1) The meet cute
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| See the grin on her face? She knows she's working it. And talk about a split up the side on that shower curtain skirt. WooWee! |
Even though Ariel sees Prince Eric dancing around on his ship and rescues him when the ship goes down, they don't actually meet until she trades in her sea legs for land legs. When Ariel, wearing nothing more than a bedsheet (was this movie rated G?) looks up at Eric with those doey eyes and then collapses into his arms, he's smitten. He just doesn't know it yet.
2) The romance
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| Sure, this looks pretty romantic with the flower petals and twinkling stars, but what about his hand on her bare midriff that's resting a little too close to, you know, "the girls." Didn't they just meet? Dang, Aladdin moves fast. |
Who doesn't love the romance between Aladdin and Princess Jasmine. I mean, come on, flying around on a tassled carpet? That's a pretty sweet ride.
3) The conflict
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| Why does this look like she's his breakfast and not his date? |
In Beauty and the Beast, there's a pretty clear conflict that's keeping them apart. Alas, he's a freakin' beastly creature and she's, well, a beauty.
4) The climax
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| I think I would give up, Prince Eric. This isn't looking good for you. Not good at all. |
Every good story has to have a climax or else it would just fall flat. Sleeping Beauty has one of the most outstanding climaxes, and I know because when my oldest son was three, he wanted to watch this scene almost every day (I think it had something to do with a sword and a dragon? You know how boys are...)
5) The resolution
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| And of course, every young girls' fairytale... |
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So, after years of Disney movie watching in which my tender girlie heart learned about the essence of falling in love, it's no wonder I now write romance. Because when you look at my role models (see above) I can only hope to live up to the bar they've created. Go Disney movies! Rock that romance!
What was your favorite Disney movie as a kid? Or adult? Or both...
Hahaha, I think I probably didn't watch enough Disney when I was younger. I like Pinocchio, and the Jungle Book, but neither is really romantic. I suppose that's probably why I'm not a romantic person. I have watched Frozen many times lately, but yeah, not so romantic there either. :)
ReplyDeleteDisney does put the idea of romance into all girl's heads. My favorite was Sleeping Beauty. What's funny is that Prince Eric saw Aurora once in the woods and then was willing to die for her.
ReplyDeleteI love the captures you included for all of the pictures. The Beast does look like he wants to eat Belle.
I blame Princess Diana. (Okay, so that fairy tale went to hell- the begining was awesome!)
ReplyDeleteI loved Old Yeller even though it is sad. For animated films my favourite is Fantasia. I love the music with the animation especially the devil on the mountain is quite bold for its day. I love the original fairy tales which would not sit well with Disney version since Cinderella's sister chop off their toes and heel to fit in the shoe and then their eyes get plucked out by birds. The little mermaid dies in the end since her love in unrequited...a bit different from Disney
ReplyDeleteThe happy ever after!
ReplyDeleteAs a kid, I liked Robin Hood and The Jungle Book best.
Favorite Disney movie? Hmmm... By the time The Little Mermaid came out, my childhood was over, so we're talking earlier Disney. I guess I'll have to go with Cinderella.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! For me it was Beauty and the Beast. I identified w/Belle as the bookish girl. =) But The Little Mermaid was pretty awesome too. That voice! I just saw the cutest LM toy at B&N the other day that I'd someday like to buy my niece. It was Ariel and Eric in the rowboat from the 'You Wanna Kiss Da Girl' scene. I kinda want it for myself... ;)
ReplyDeleteI love Disney. It has all the perfect elements nailed down. The Little Mermaid has my heart always. I was always Ariel for Halloween as a kid (although all the kids at school called me Vanessa since my hair is brown--meanies lol) But I own and adore pretty much all Disney movies. :)
ReplyDeleteI think you're right--growing up on those movies definitely has an impact on us! Although I grew up on the older versions of them--before computer animation. They were quite different in the 70s. In fact, most of the Disney animated movies back then were older movies. That was the era of the live-action Disney movie (Herbie the Love Bug, Return to Witch Mountain, etc.)
ReplyDeleteDisney's definitely great when it comes to romance! It's almost impossible not to root for any of their couples... :)
ReplyDeleteMy favorite Disney movie has always been Hocus Pocus, but if we're just sticking to the animated canon, then it's easily Hercules for me. (The Princess and the Frog has become a very close second over the years, though!)
As a kid, Aladdin was totally my favorite. What can I say, I like the guys that have more personality than a piece of cardboard. And as an adult, it's totally Tangled. Again, it's probably the same thing that drew me in. I think all characters should be believably complex, and when a guy has a twisted past, well, I'm all in. =)
ReplyDeleteI loved Disney movies as a kid. I was a total girly girl, pink room and everything, so I absolutely adored Cinderella. Then in college I saw Beauty and the Beast, which is another favorite. And I think Frozen is my favorite most recently. I loved that the sister bond is prominent, maybe because I'm so close to my sis. The get-to-know the guy before you fall in love was refreshing too.
ReplyDeleteI think all this Disney love inspired me too. It's what got me into reading and writing fairy tale retellings.
You missed the greatest love story of them all (and my personal favorite), Lady and the Tramp.
ReplyDeleteI love Disney animated movies. Beauty and the Beast is my favorite, with Tangled a close second. And I have to say it's not just boys who love that dragon in Sleeping Beauty. When we went to Disney World a few years ago, they had a huge replica of Prince Phillip battling the dragon made out of Lego bricks in front of the Downtown Disney Lego store. It was awe-inspiring.
ReplyDeleteSo true! I loved watching Disney movies as a kid (still do!) I was sooo excited when Frozen came out because it was like reliving my childhood - a romantic, girlie movie!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite as a kid was The Little Mermaid. Now that I'm older, I think my personality identifies a lot with Ariel - being adventurous, wanting more, not settling, and wanting to have the best of both worlds :-)