Jim On Film
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Kids’ Stuff, part two
While definitely not as popular a pastime as Disney animation, Disney live-action films have a special place in the hearts of many Disney fans. Since the early 1990s, Disney’s live-action fare has varied greatly. While there have been high quality films like Remember the Titans, The Princess Diaries, and The Rookie, there have also been more kid-oriented films like Heavyweights, My Favorite Martian, and Max Keeble’s Big Move. But the love of Disney live-actions films is rooted in the classics, the quality films Walt Disney oversaw, the films made with love and out of a sincere interest to entertain and not just to make money. It is these films, and those that were made after Disney’s death that follow this tradition, that are of interest to most Disney fans. Compare it to those who like the films of the Cohen brothers. Some like the Cohen style; I like the Disney style. Quality film-making is quality film-making, no matter the star, the producer, or the MPAA rating.

Disney is like ice cream. When I was young, I loved ice cream more than any other food. Lots of kids love ice cream. They like ice cream cakes, visits to Dairy Queen, and the ice cream truck, but that doesn’t mean that as an adult, I am eating a child’s food if I like ice cream more than ever.

Disney Products
I know it seems odd to you when I walk out of The Disney Store with a Mickey Mouse keychain or order the Lilo and Stitch soundtrack from the LaughingPlace.com store. After all, there is a remarkable difference just between enjoying a film and wanting to buy Happy Meal toys.

Think of it no differently than the men who come to Kmart stores early in the morning to look at the latest shipment of Matchbox cars, women who pay upwards of $100 for the latest designer Barbie, or the adults who buy baseball cards by the cartload. Even Star Wars toys, superhero action figures, comic books, and Pez dispensers have become socially acceptable collectable items for adults. But people fail to carryover this national movement of adult collectors of "children’s products" to the Disney product. And there’s a reason why.

Quiz
Directions: For each question below, circle the most correct answer.

1. Identify the most realistic film from the descriptions below.

2. Which film is the film most intended for adults?

3. Pick out the most mature film.

The answers are:

1) a, b, c; or, just a; or, just b; or just c; or any combination of two
2) d
3) We cannot tell.

Perhaps some of the most unlikely comments concerning the subject of Disney as children’s fare come from the same people who love the latest toilet-humored comedy, professional wrestling match, or the newest far-fetched action flick. As bizarre as the plot description of a young Chinese woman goes to war in her father’s place, taking along her guardian dragon and lucky cricket may sound, it’s about as realistic as the plots of the Jurassic Park films, The Mummy movies, or the Star Wars series. The difference is in the medium and the MPAA ratings.

Remember, there is a distinct difference between something that is mature and something that is adult. There are many middle school students who swear, make suggestive comments, or act violently. That doesn’t make them mature. It makes them feel adult; however, most people would agree that not only do those actions not seem mature, they come from a remarkably immature thought process.