Jim On Film
Page 3 of 3
The Disney Brand
One important reason why Disney has such a large following is in how Disney treats its
brand. Disney treats its properties as something special, and so, that is how their
audience reacts to it (and this is one reason why I think the straight-to-video features
could be potentially harmful to the Disney name in the future).
Disney carefully uses their icons. The Warner Brothers characters are very popular with audiences, but they have been licensed to sell any number of products--from Internet service to chicken. There is very little to tie them to the Warner Brothers studio because they have been associated with any number of non-Warner Brothers products. The fact that most voices for Bugs Bunny and friends that are recorded today don’t even sound like the originals speaks volumes. Disney has found actors to voice Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, Winnie the Pooh, and a host of other characters that sound like the original voices, and it shows the love and care they have for their product.
Disney also further identifies their brands. Just as Warner Brothers is now, Disney is no longer just Walt Disney products, but they know how to keep the brands separate from each other. It’s easy to see Snow Dogs even though it doesn’t look terribly appealing because you know the Disney name; the name Disney means something. In contrast, Warner Brothers is just a name. People in the general public don’t know who the Warner brothers were, and they don’t care.
Some people attack Disney for being the marketing giant it is, but that is one of the reasons why we enjoy buying their stuff. Not only do they create the Disney image that helps create a Disney following, but they then make collectable products available. I know I, for one, would probably find myself sucked into buying merchandise for many different non-Disney things if they were available (such as 7th Heaven action figures), but Disney is smart enough to make it available. They’ve taken great care in using their name to identify a style and image, and people eat it up.
Disney as Kids’ Stuff
In the past, members of my family, who will remain nameless, have wrinkled their faces as
I suggested watching The Adventures of Ichabod and Mister Toad. "Disney?"
this person would say, "I’m not a kid." That’s before he/she would
turn the television to professional wrestling.
There are many ways to get me to pull out a soapbox, and one of them is on the subject as Disney being for kids. This topic will probably fill up a future column, but a few thoughts for now:
Walt Disney never intended his works to be solely for children but for everyone.
There’s a difference between something that is adult and something that is mature. Pinocchio, in my opinion, is a very mature film; Jurassic Park II: The Lost World, while thoroughly enjoyable, is not mature. Similarly, Remember the Titans is mature film while Man of the House is not.
If you, an adult, enjoy a movie, then who is to classify it as a kids’ flick?
People who obsess over Disney are no different from those who obsess over other things--art, sports, film, literature, etc. The big difference is that our society views Disney as kids’ fodder. But there are more than a few good reasons for Disney fans to love the Disney product, but mostly, it’s just good entertainment. So buy your DVD of The Hunchback of Notre Dame with pride, and enjoy!
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-- Jim Miles
Jim On Film is published every other Thursday.
The opinions expressed by our guest columnists, and all of our columnists, do not necessarily represent the feelings of LaughingPlace.com or any of its employees or advertisers. All speculation and rumors about the future of Disneyland and the Walt Disney Company are just that - speculation and rumors - and should be treated as such.
-- Posted March 21, 2002
Copyright Jim Miles. Licensed to LaughingPlace.com.