The Reign of Disney

A: Now, I'd just like to say that Walt Disney has dominated the cartoon greatly. To many people in the thirties — and that was the golden age of the cartoon — to many people then and since the cartoon has simply meant W.Disney's work.

B: Well, you have a point here, but I am not so sure about the golden age of the cartoon. I think many cartoons of later years have much more interesting plots and technique.

A: Perhaps. But don't you think that Disney's shorts have care­fully worked out plots, sometimes very neat? They are not simply a string of violent gags, in the style of later American cartoons. Well, you see what I mean.

B: Yes, I agree entirely here. There is a reassuring, homely qual­ity about his shorts founded on the resemblances between the ani­mal and the human world.

A: I couldn't agree more. His animal characters are actually hu­man beings in disguise and they behave like recognizable individ­uals.

B: That's exactly what I think. Mickey is the quiet little chap, who at the end of the race has outdistanced his more spectacular rivals. He and Minnie both, are the innocents who triumph over the wicked world.

A: Yes, that's true. That's my way of looking at it too. Donald Duck always flies into spluttering indignant passion. Pluto and Goofy are not too bright but both have hearts of gold and meet the world with a bewildered and bewildering enthusiasm. Disney in fact has presented the world of the average American, preaching a moral, giving a message of optimism, of success.

B: You may be right, but I think it goes further than that, a lot further. His stories end happily, the characters are essentially good fellows, the violence is not too extreme, cruelty and tragedy are ex­cluded. Any satire is more than gentle. This imitation world is pre­sented with supreme technical competence and the various fac­tors are blended to comfort and soothe the audience, to give it something easy and undemanding.

A: I see what you mean, but there are potentially cruel and dan­gerous characters in Disney's longer films. There is a case of "Snow White" having been given an "X" certificate. I myself have known children terrified by "Pinocchio". Perhaps what frightens them are situations in which the child hero or heroine is in danger or being ill-treated.

B: What you say's perfectly true. But all the same W. Disney's films are readily accepted by mass audiences conditioned to the Disney philosophy. All I know is that these films are very senti­mental though they have been widely popular.

11.Answer the following questions:

1. Have you seen any of W.Disney's shorts? longer films? What is your impression of them? 2. Do you agree with all that is said in the dialogue? With which statements dealing with his work do you disagree?

Use clichés expressing AGREEMENT and DISAGREEMENT given in the dia­logue (Ex. 10). You may also use other phrases to express disagreement:

A. You can disagree mildly: Well, I wouldn't go quite that far; I'm not so sure; That may be so... but...; Yes, that's true, but take my case; Oh, you wouldn't think so...; I wouldn't say that exactly; It might be right but...; On the other hand....

B. You may disagree strongly when you can allow yourself to be abrupt or even a bit rude: Rubbish!; That's totally • unfounded;

That's all right for you to talk but...; You seem to think that things are different for me.

12. Work in pairs. Read the statements and agree or disagree with them. Agreement or disagreement should be followed by some appropriate comment where possible:

1. In the twentieth century people are much more fascinated by theatre than by cinema. 2. Cinema is an art of illusion. 3. It is neces­sary for a film to leave certain shadows, unresolved fantasies. 4. Cinema can help a lot in the field of education. 5. In most films music is seldom used to advantage as it is extremely difficult to achieve a harmonious collaboration between the plot and music. 6. Violence should not be shown on the screen. 7. The success of a film mainly depends on the film director. 8. Cinema is not an ear­nest art. It is just entertainment. 9. Literary works should not be adapted for the screen as people simply stop reading fiction: see­ing a film is "easier" than reading a book.

13. Read the following text. Look for arguments and counterarguments for remaking films. Copy them out in two columns (I — "for", II — "against").

Make it Again

In the motion picture industry, remakes are^a fact of life. They have been with us almost from the birth of the art form and as long as good fresh story material is ^carcejthey will remain.

A remade movie doesn't have to be a bad movie. Produced with a talented cast, a capable director, an intelligent screen-play, an ample budget, and, most important, good judgement, these pic­tures can be thoroughly entertaining and, in some cases, surpass the quality of the original.

Film-makers are not absolutely opposed to the practice, al­though there are a couple of schools of thought on the subject.

Henry Blanke, who has produced many "second editions" in his time declares: "Never remake a picture that was previously suc­cessful. Remake one that was miscast, miswritten, or misdirected. In other words, a flop."

Producer H.B.Wallis takes the opposite viewpoint: "If you have a good piece of material that has not been filmed for a number of years, there is probably a brand new audience for it. So, I wouldn't hesitate to re-do a script with a new set of characters."

 

14. Discuss the text in pairs. One of the pair will take the optimistic view and insist that remakes should be done, the other will defend the opposite point of view. Be sure to provide sound arguments for whatever you say. Con­sider the following:

 

For:

1. There is always a shortage of new, fresh story material.

2. The public wouldn't notice or wouldn't care that they were paying to see the same story.

3. There is always a valid reason 3. for doing it (the theme is timely, a new cast is available, the economic situation is favourable).

4.The coming of new screen techniques (sound, colour,

wide screen) inspired the studios to film their more popular pictures again.

5. A remake of the same director gives the artist theopportunity to correct any mistakes he may have made in the first version.

6. The public at large seems to enjoy comparing the performances of current stars to the legendary ones.

 

 

Against:

1. Most subsequent renderings of the great cinema classics have been complete failures.

2.The director doing a remake might decide to "improve" the original story, to insert certain things, characters or eliminate others.

3.It is dangerous to use the original script almost word for word. Some stories require an updating of the dialogue.

4.In many cases, the moral values of the situations in a once exciting story have become so antiquated that the plot is not workable for contemporary audiences.

5.There is always the audience's memory of the earlier successful production, which can prevent spectators from receiving the film properly.

15. The extracts given below present rather controversial subjects. Team up with another student, work out arguments "for" and "against" and discuss the extracts in pairs. Use the conversational formulas of agreement and disagree­ment.

A. Does the audience influence the process of film-making? It is obvious that the audience of today, influenced by television and space research is very different from the audience of years ago. Most films produced decades ago have little current impact. A more

detailed analysis of human reaction is necessary, and will be much more so in the future. Similarly a new kind of artist and film-maker will be needed.

B. Should the printed word or films be used in the classroom?

Film is particularly useful for describing processes which can­not be easily demonstrated in the classroom. So far, however, its potentialities have only just begun to be exploited. Conservative teachers still resist breaking away from the printed word.

C. Should actors speak different languages in films?

Usually a director, aiming his film at an audience of compatriots, has everything spoken in the native language. In some films of Federico Fellini each character speaks his native language, which isn't usual in films. The director says he often mixes languages to express the truth of a given situation. But there is a language barrier.

D. Can critics give an objective judgement of a film?

The critic merely by saying, "I am a critic," inflates himself and causes himself to see not what exists but what he thinks ought to exist. But things are only what they are. Therefore, the critic is usu­ally mistaken. Sometimes he doesn't refer to himself as such but rather to his experiences of what other artists have done in a simi­lar situation. But when a critic tells how the work should be accord­ing to his taste, which has been formed by a certain culture and certain artists, he is still judging by what is congenial to him.