Posts Tagged ‘nature’
2 items.
You’d think for as much as our 2 year-old son makes us watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, I’d have a better idea of how to draw Mickey Mouse. I guess I was in a rush. To see Mickey as the leader of a post-apocalyptic dystopia, vote for Theater Hopper at Top Web Comics.
Under the branch of their new Disneynature studio, the planetary documentary Earth comes out today. I’m actually very excited to see it despite the fact that it was originally released internationally 2 years ago as an accompanying cinematic experience to the popular television series Planet Earth The series, which was shot by the BBC, aired on The Discovery Channel during that time as well.
I don’t know. Maybe I’m just a sucker for for animals. Maybe I fell in love the minute they played “Hoppípolla” from Sigur Ros in the trailer. Either way, it looks great. A fantastic cinematic experience.
Disney is catching a little guff from critics, believe it or not. Jesse Ellison from Newsweek suggests that the film is too harsh to be rated G because it implies (but doesn’t show) the death of a few animals at the hands at of the elements.
On the other hand, Jeffery Wells from Hollywood Elsewhere suggests that the film doesn’t go far enough and obscuring the harsh reality of nature coddles children too much.
I guess I fall somewhere in the middle. Certainly I don’t derive much entertainment value from watching wild animals die on screen. I wouldn’t seek it out. As the parent of a young child, I can see how such scenes could be upsetting.
But at the same time, I agree with Wells that you can’t shield children from everything. The challenge of being a parent isn’t measured by your ability to protect them from everything that might upset their limited world view. Rather, I feel it’s my responsibility to arm my kids with information in context so they can make sense of their own feelings and opinions to interact properly with the world at large.
But I shouldn’t presume to tell anyone how to raise their kids. Fundamentally, you have to be aware of what you think your kid can and can’t tolerate and be prepared to help them make sense of things if it’s too intense for them.
At least, that’s what my common sense tells me.
Is anyone else excited to see Earth this weekend or do you think it’s redundant 2 years after Planet Earth aired on The Discovery Channel? Are you concerned about the realities of nature being toned down or “Disney-fied” to meet the standards of being a family friendly film?
Leave your comments below!
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I’m more of what you call an “indoor kid,” so I’m not a very big fan of man-vs-nature movies. Into the Wild, The Edge, Alive, The River Wild, 127 Hours – they make me anxious and bore me at the same time.
But the innate charm of Liam Neeson attracts me like a moth to a flame. So I was willing to give the trailer for The Grey a try.
First things first. I have a theory about Liam Neeson that he’s basically become a fult-tilt workaholic after the death of his wife Natasha Richardson in 2009. That’s why you’ve seen Neeson is so many paycheck movies over the last few years.
I certainly don’t mean to make light of Richardson’s death or what I am certain is Neeson’s very real pain. If I were in his situation, I’d probably do the same thing. All I’m saying is that scenes of Neeson tenderly holding hands with a wife he’s afraid he’ll never see again kind of drives this theory home.
I don’t know. Pet observation.
Secondly, I don’t know what I can say about this movie – not being a fan of the genre. Although I give it points for making a hungry pack of wolves the antagonist and not just the elements themselves.
I would say that I was completely won over, however, with the last scene of Neeson strapping single-serving whiskey bottles to his knuckles and breaking them over rocks to create jagged edges to fight the wolves one on one.
…just like a real Irishman would fight!
GO GET ‘EM, LIAM!
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