Sunday
Dec132009
My Review of "The Princess IS the Frog" & Box Office in Perspective
Sunday, December 13, 2009 at 11:10PM Gina, The Blogmother
So I saw the Princess and the Frog, which should be called "The Princess IS the Frog."It wasn't the kind of movie I would want to see again and again. It was no Lion King or Incredibles( Which I watch to this day), more like a Lilo and Stitch. There were only three children in my movie, the rest were adults. As it should have been since we didn't get out until 9:30. The kids didn't appear to be all that excited other than when she turned into a frog and with Mama Oldie. The love story made no sense.On the positive, the Princess was Black.
On a side note, why was DJ, the pimp from Hustle & Flow, up in my cartoon? I was trying so hard to get into the movie, then all of a sudden, the voice of DJ starts coming from the screen. Literally, same accent, same Terrance Howard falsetto and everything.
I cried when the lightening bug died and went on to be with Evangeline, but then I cry in every Disney movie. Ain't been right since Scar convinced Simba that Simba caused Mufasa's death. The climax wasn't climactic. There was no grand fight, just a bunch of neon lights. The villain got taken out in short measure. There is a lot of dark magic in this movie, but you could say the same for The Little Mermaid and Sleeping Beauty. The evil spirits kinda reminded me of Sleeping Beauty.
Of course it was a Disney film so it contain the requisite bad message to young girls about being incomplete without a prince. I could go on, but by this point those of you who believe it is sacrilegious to speak ill of this Disney film are already frothing at the mouth. I'm closing to say that in Mulan, I had the dragon, in The Incredibles, there was Dash, Edna and Elasta Girl, In WALL-E, there's WALL-E, in the Lion King, there's Poomba Timon, Mufasa, Simba, and Scar. In this movie, none of the characters are memorable except Ray and that's because he cried and then died. Mama Oldie was okay, but she was on screen for all of 5 seconds.
Music
The music was aight. Sorry, it was just wasn't memorable. I can sing every single lyric of the Lion King "oh I just can't wait to be King! Everybody move left, Everybody move right.". I know a song from every Disney movie I've ever seen. I can't even remember what any of the songs in The Princess and the Frog were about. None of them had catchy tunes or melodies. The funniest character, IRONICALLY, in the movie that was supposed to have a Black princess was the sugar baron's daughter, she was a mess, but memorable.
The Black Prince
To all of y'all complaining about the prince not being Black, y'all are clearly blind and ignorant of history. Naveen had about as much melanin as Tiana. Clearly Maldonia or wherever he is from was conquered by the Moors.Therefore according to the American caste system, Naveen is Black. Now, if we were in Brazil, then y'all might have a point, but here in America, its the one drop rule. Naveen has plenty of drops. Plus, if Disney had made Naveen Black, all Hades would have broken loose because of his non-existent work ethic.
Beyond the Box Office
Earlier this week, a WAOD reader attempted to lecture me about saying I was meh about the Princess and the Frog. She said that SHE understood money and that SHE was going to go out and see the movie because that would guran-day-um tee that Disney would make more movies featuring African American princesses. Hogwash! The problem with her logic, is that she has none. She doesn't understand the movie business at all. Black folks have been duped into believing that a #1 US box office debut is all that is required for a movie's success. No, that's only success by Tyler Perry Standards. The truth is the bulk of Disney's PROFIT on its animated films come from the international box office and merchandizing.
From Box Office Mojo
Pochohontas
Domestic: $141,579,773 40.9%
+ Foreign: $204,500,000 59.1%
= Worldwide: $346,079,773
The Little Mermaid
Domestic: $111,543,479 52.8%
+ Foreign: $99,800,000 47.2%
= Worldwide: $211,343,479
Mulan
Domestic: $120,620,254 39.6%
+ Foreign: $183,700,000 60.4%
= Worldwide: $304,320,254
Beauty and the Beast
Domestic: $171,350,553 45.4%
+ Foreign: $206,000,000 54.6%
= Worldwide: $377,350,553
The Lion King
Domestic: $328,541,776 41.9%
+ Foreign: $455,300,000 58.1%
= Worldwide: $783,841,776
Finding Nemo
omestic: $339,714,978 39.3%
+ Foreign: $524,911,000 60.7%
= Worldwide: $864,625,978
Yes, the film came in first place, but so did Tyler Perry's Diary of a Mad Black Woman which had NO overseas box office revenue of note. :
Why Did I Get Married
Domestic: $55,204,525 98.8%
+ Foreign: $658,361 1.2%
= Worldwide: $55,862,886
Madea's Family Reunion
Domestic: $63,257,940 99.9%
+ Foreign: $50,939 0.1%
= Worldwide: $63,308,879
Here is the NY Times take on the first weekend take for the Princess is the Frog.
Will the movie have legs? I don't know, but all of you angry desperate people foaming at the mouth for saying I wasn't bowled over by the early marketing campaigns have better go buy out Toys R Us Princess and the Frog Merchandise and go see this movie every weekend until Christmas.
Moral Of the Story- Guilt Marketing Only Works on US
Call me crazy, but it would appear that the rest of the population has this wild and CRAZY notion that entertainment companies are supposed to lobby US to see a film as opposed to US lobbying entertainment companies. Going to the movies isn't a peace offering to entertainment companies. The movie should have been marketed as a GENERAL AUDIENCE movie, it wasn't. Sorry, it wasn't marketed that way. They just should have made a great adventure movie without trying to be historians or documentarians.
If you want to know what Guilt Marketing looks like, look at every major film backed by Oprah Winfrey. Can you say Beloved? Oprah threw her heart and soul into that movie and it didn't live up to her expectations. Why? Because it's one thing to mindlessly watch television. Its another thing to get in your car, stand in line. Pay an obscene amount for food, fight for a seat and sit down and watch something for 2 or three hours. The vast majority of people go to the movies to escape. Because they want to, not because they have been implored to in the name of social progress. Guilt Marketing only works on US, but WE alone can't make this movie a success.
There will be other movies featuring little Black girls in the lead. If not, that's not Disney's fault... its ours, not because we didn't appease Disney, but because we placed our dreams and visions in the hands of someone else. Hoping someone else would validate our existence and worth... that NEVER ends well.
In the end, I was going to go see the movie regardless, but that didn't stop me from being annoyed by people telling me I HAAAD to go see it OR ELSE. It wasn't a bad movie, it just wasn't one of Disney's best.
Commence the gnashing of teeth.
On a side note, why was DJ, the pimp from Hustle & Flow, up in my cartoon? I was trying so hard to get into the movie, then all of a sudden, the voice of DJ starts coming from the screen. Literally, same accent, same Terrance Howard falsetto and everything.
I cried when the lightening bug died and went on to be with Evangeline, but then I cry in every Disney movie. Ain't been right since Scar convinced Simba that Simba caused Mufasa's death. The climax wasn't climactic. There was no grand fight, just a bunch of neon lights. The villain got taken out in short measure. There is a lot of dark magic in this movie, but you could say the same for The Little Mermaid and Sleeping Beauty. The evil spirits kinda reminded me of Sleeping Beauty.
Of course it was a Disney film so it contain the requisite bad message to young girls about being incomplete without a prince. I could go on, but by this point those of you who believe it is sacrilegious to speak ill of this Disney film are already frothing at the mouth. I'm closing to say that in Mulan, I had the dragon, in The Incredibles, there was Dash, Edna and Elasta Girl, In WALL-E, there's WALL-E, in the Lion King, there's Poomba Timon, Mufasa, Simba, and Scar. In this movie, none of the characters are memorable except Ray and that's because he cried and then died. Mama Oldie was okay, but she was on screen for all of 5 seconds.
Music
The music was aight. Sorry, it was just wasn't memorable. I can sing every single lyric of the Lion King "oh I just can't wait to be King! Everybody move left, Everybody move right.". I know a song from every Disney movie I've ever seen. I can't even remember what any of the songs in The Princess and the Frog were about. None of them had catchy tunes or melodies. The funniest character, IRONICALLY, in the movie that was supposed to have a Black princess was the sugar baron's daughter, she was a mess, but memorable.
The Black Prince
To all of y'all complaining about the prince not being Black, y'all are clearly blind and ignorant of history. Naveen had about as much melanin as Tiana. Clearly Maldonia or wherever he is from was conquered by the Moors.Therefore according to the American caste system, Naveen is Black. Now, if we were in Brazil, then y'all might have a point, but here in America, its the one drop rule. Naveen has plenty of drops. Plus, if Disney had made Naveen Black, all Hades would have broken loose because of his non-existent work ethic.
Beyond the Box Office
Earlier this week, a WAOD reader attempted to lecture me about saying I was meh about the Princess and the Frog. She said that SHE understood money and that SHE was going to go out and see the movie because that would guran-day-um tee that Disney would make more movies featuring African American princesses. Hogwash! The problem with her logic, is that she has none. She doesn't understand the movie business at all. Black folks have been duped into believing that a #1 US box office debut is all that is required for a movie's success. No, that's only success by Tyler Perry Standards. The truth is the bulk of Disney's PROFIT on its animated films come from the international box office and merchandizing.
From Box Office Mojo
Pochohontas
Domestic: $141,579,773 40.9%
+ Foreign: $204,500,000 59.1%
= Worldwide: $346,079,773
The Little Mermaid
Domestic: $111,543,479 52.8%
+ Foreign: $99,800,000 47.2%
= Worldwide: $211,343,479
Mulan
Domestic: $120,620,254 39.6%
+ Foreign: $183,700,000 60.4%
= Worldwide: $304,320,254
Beauty and the Beast
Domestic: $171,350,553 45.4%
+ Foreign: $206,000,000 54.6%
= Worldwide: $377,350,553
The Lion King
Domestic: $328,541,776 41.9%
+ Foreign: $455,300,000 58.1%
= Worldwide: $783,841,776
Finding Nemo
omestic: $339,714,978 39.3%
+ Foreign: $524,911,000 60.7%
= Worldwide: $864,625,978
Yes, the film came in first place, but so did Tyler Perry's Diary of a Mad Black Woman which had NO overseas box office revenue of note. :
Why Did I Get Married
Domestic: $55,204,525 98.8%
+ Foreign: $658,361 1.2%
= Worldwide: $55,862,886
Madea's Family Reunion
Domestic: $63,257,940 99.9%
+ Foreign: $50,939 0.1%
= Worldwide: $63,308,879
Here is the NY Times take on the first weekend take for the Princess is the Frog.
It is too early to say to what degree he succeeded. Initial ticket sales are on the soft side of industry expectations, but the movie has received mostly glowing critical notices. The picture is also likely to benefit from relatively light competition for the family audience through Christmas. The film’s ultimate success will also turn on its ability to boost Disney’s princess merchandise, a $4 billion annual business. NY TImes
Will the movie have legs? I don't know, but all of you angry desperate people foaming at the mouth for saying I wasn't bowled over by the early marketing campaigns have better go buy out Toys R Us Princess and the Frog Merchandise and go see this movie every weekend until Christmas.
Moral Of the Story- Guilt Marketing Only Works on US
Call me crazy, but it would appear that the rest of the population has this wild and CRAZY notion that entertainment companies are supposed to lobby US to see a film as opposed to US lobbying entertainment companies. Going to the movies isn't a peace offering to entertainment companies. The movie should have been marketed as a GENERAL AUDIENCE movie, it wasn't. Sorry, it wasn't marketed that way. They just should have made a great adventure movie without trying to be historians or documentarians.
If you want to know what Guilt Marketing looks like, look at every major film backed by Oprah Winfrey. Can you say Beloved? Oprah threw her heart and soul into that movie and it didn't live up to her expectations. Why? Because it's one thing to mindlessly watch television. Its another thing to get in your car, stand in line. Pay an obscene amount for food, fight for a seat and sit down and watch something for 2 or three hours. The vast majority of people go to the movies to escape. Because they want to, not because they have been implored to in the name of social progress. Guilt Marketing only works on US, but WE alone can't make this movie a success.
There will be other movies featuring little Black girls in the lead. If not, that's not Disney's fault... its ours, not because we didn't appease Disney, but because we placed our dreams and visions in the hands of someone else. Hoping someone else would validate our existence and worth... that NEVER ends well.
In the end, I was going to go see the movie regardless, but that didn't stop me from being annoyed by people telling me I HAAAD to go see it OR ELSE. It wasn't a bad movie, it just wasn't one of Disney's best.
Commence the gnashing of teeth.
Reader Comments (24)
Went to a 1pm showing on Saturday. The theater was 80% full and equal parts Black and White with most adults escorting kids to see it. I enjoyed it. Thought the antimation was very beautiful and story was fun and funny. Best characters were Tiana and Mama Odie. May go see it again when it makes it to the 2nd run theater.
I'm on the fence about seeing this. I'm all for support but it annoyed me to find out Tiana is a dayum frog. I may still go...but we'll see. We really need to be creating, distributing and supporting our own projects. Good point about guilt marketing. It's also why those projects aren't all that compelling and why I feel slightly resentful about spending my money on them (or refuse to).
I feel like Gina on this one. I would not have heard the end of it had I not taken my 9 year-old daughter to see this movie. It was a charming enough story, but I thought, this entire movie is just marketing tool used to sell merchandise. I have gone near bankrupt purchasing other Disney Princess products. I'm glad they have a beautiful brown (black) princess but it really was not a classic fantasy as the other princesses are. It is a story retold in a different day and time.
I did not care for all that VooDoo, but know that all the other fairy tales have some kind of dark magic and it makes sense to use voodoo because they are in New Orleans and the people are black. I don't like that but is halfway logical for the time.
True to form it showed a hard working black woman, not bitter -- but hardworking none-the-less working 2 jobs so she can fulfill her dream. And another thing, I thought Tiana was one of those Afrocentric names that came about in the 70s. Am I wrong? They changed the name from "Maddy" (sounded too slave-like) because of the time, but the young girls most likely know a Tiana or Kiana or whatever -ana.
And you are right about Prince Naveen. All the complaining about him not being black was not heeded by Disney and smart on their part. Had he been black and lazy, Al and Jesse would have called out the masses -- protesting at every Disney property and movie theater around showing the film. At least he had access to money, but was a bum and only a prince in the titular sense for most of the movie.
I didn't like frogs before the movie and I still don't like them but the movie was cute-sie and a love story. I will have it as soon as it comes out on DVD. Gotta love 9 year-old little girls.
I actually enjoyed The Princess and the Frog very much as a film. It was sweet little romantic screwball comedy that happened to be animated and featured POC in the leads. It wasn't a perfect movie but I'd pay to watch it again. My sister and I took my niece and nephew. They liked it but I know that I definitely liked it a lot more because I wasn't caught up in the hype about Disney's first black princess and saw it for what it really is which is a beautifully drawn entertaining rom-com because ****Spoiler****There are no real princesses until the end of the movie because Charlotte (Tiana's friend) was just rich not royalty.
Now this movie will probably be a financial disappointment for Disney because black themed films tend not to do well internationally that's a fact. For this movie to be profitable it needs the international grosses and I just don't see that happening. Will Smith is the only bankable international black movie star although Denzel's last 3 major movies grossed more internationally than domestically. The upside for Disney though they will sell a lot of merchandise and I actually think this movie will do well on DVD. If Disney really wanted a true bonafide hit then they should've let the story and the animation sell the film and not mainly focus their marketing strategy on the fact that this is the first black princess in the house of mouse.
Yup her name was Maddy initially but of course there was an outcry that it was a slave sounding name which was weird b/c in my part of town Maddy sounds like a white girls nickname. But oh well some black folks sit waiting to be offended. Didnt catch it this weekend maybe next.
I was interested in seeing it b/c the music, Elton John felt that it was the best Disney soundtrack.
Guilt marketing is a very common tactic black folks use on other black folks, I am not gonna discuss the black beauty company with the celebrity spokes people that sells lotion worth $5 for 30 bucks
My daughter and I enjoyed the movie. I'm thinking about taking her and my little cousins to see it again, next weekend.
I just want people to support this movie by going to a theatre and paying to see it. Not purchasing a fuzzy bootlegg copy from the lazy a** weed guy. Everytime I looked up they were selling "Precious" for two dollars and some change. Just infuriated me.
are folks still buying bootlegs? Like seriously folks are standing in line at 3 AM on a black friday and then buying bootleg movies witht the back fo the audience head showing?
blkchik, believe it or not underground priacy is a big problem!!!
I went to see it with my own Prince Naveen- loved it, and sad to say, as soon as we left I went into a consumer frenzy and bought everything the P&F section at Barnes and Noble had..... Still looking for the doll...
And cosign on the Oprah movies....two plus hours of bw getting whooped up, sufferin' and overcoming does not a good date movie make...
I haven't seen the movie and i haven't heard the kids in my family talk about wanting to see it.
I say if you would normally go and see a Disney movie like this, go. If not, don't. Treat it like any other flick. I am disappointed however to hear that it doesn't really stand out. Could just be a weak story line, etc. but I have a sick feeling that even Disney itself mistakenly thought the black angle would carry this flick and didn't pour its usual majic into it. Not because it was a black film but I think they thought the historic angle was the hook. Then again maybe they are unsure of how an animated film with a black lead will pan out overseas and in merchandising and they sort of went a little soft on how much they poured into making it. I think that is why she is a frog longer than a person in the movie.
blkchik, bootlegs have improved greatly. no more loud comments, popcorn chomping and heads in the way. you have to know the right person, though. bypass rayray and check out kim su and dim.
"No, that’s only success by Tyler Perry Standards."
Thanks for taking the time to post those numbers.
People are always writing in to Roger Ebert, accusing him of racism for not reviewing every single Perry movie and the "huge opening day" argument is employed just about every single time as if that singe "fact" should have more weight than it's a Black movie and there aren't many of them. Any slasher movie can win a weekend if you pick the right weekend to release it: should Ebert have to sit through every SAW movie, too? Should readers have to hear about them? Not a good argument imo.
Saw it yesterday with 4 year old daughter. It was a nobrainer for me, she's got a princess fixation and one of them chicks needed to be Black, sorry the red and yellow ladies are great but like Q-Tip said "Black is Black." I was surprised how many white folk were in there with their small ones. Will definitely be buying some of the merchandising for under the tree, wonder how many of them will?
The movie was amazing. Enough Said. I enjoyed it. It Made African Americans look so good.It also showed a friendship between whites and blacks. I loved the movie. I would watch it over and over again.The first African American Princess and she did well! God is good! Thank you for mixing things up a little and showing that everyone deserves a chance to shine no matter what color. Every one has an opinion rather they liked it or disliked it, but money talks and this movie made plenty! :)
@miss Brown. $25 MIllion is not a huge opening by Disney standards. Its respectable.
I saw it with my 3 year old today.....LOVED IT.
But seriously whats with all the black this and black that. I love it when I see just as many other races watching the same movie as I. I am also happy to see that a Disney movie now have a multi racial couple. As I am multi racial and my daughter. We are kinda like in the middle. My mother always taught me to see pass color. There is a bad apple in every bunch. When we all die we are all the same...... dust and bones. COLOR IS IRRELIVANT!!!!!! SUCESS HAS NO COLOR, LOVE HAS NO COLOR.....PEOPLE SHOULD REMEMBER THAT. The way the people are today......everyone is all mixed up and color is not an issue....at leats were I am living at. We like a big ass melting pot and I love it. Most of the people who have that issue are about to kick the bucket any day now.....
I saw the movie earlier today and I sent a text message to sister to ask if my niece enjoyed the movie. I thought it would be nice to get her a little Tiana stocking stuffer.
She wrote back that my niece enjoyed the movie but she didn't.
I returned the message to ask why.
She wrote back, "I didn't like the racial stereotypes."
This was coming from a woman who has every Tyler Perry movie AND stage production on DVD.
I couldn't respond.
For most Americans (that means us too), "Disney" is synonymous with entertainment and childhood. For children and adults alike, Disney signifies a special place of celebratory play and uncomplicated amusement. In addition, Disney acts as a register for a golden age of innocence-an imaginary time in an imaginary past. Ironically, truth be told Disney is a multi-billion dollar Market driven global media oligopoly "whose annual revenues exceeded 22 billion dollars as a result of its ability to manufacture, sell, and distribute culture on a global scale". Given this reality, empower your child by helping him or her view this movie as a narrative to be critically analyzed through the lens of race, gender or class similar to “The Bluest Eye” or “I know why the caged bird sings”. Ask them to identity the protagonist, plot and how they are positioned within the story. Ask questions like "Was it the writer or producer who decided that the face of the first black princess should be “erased” throughout most of the movie"? Why? Do black girls in real life experience “erasure”? If so in what contexts? Parents use popular culture and popular media as tools for helping young people do important identity and cultural work while increasing their critical media literacy. And if you can get them to critically write then that is even better.
This statement:
that’s not Disney’s fault… its ours, not because we didn’t appease Disney, but because we placed our dreams and visions in the hands of someone else. Hoping someone else would validate our existence and worth… that NEVER ends well.
TOUCHDOWN! Don't guilt me into a Disney movie, just make a movie that I'll enjoy watching and you'll get my dollars. I'd rather see my folks in it but if not... hey, what can I say.
"Had he been black and lazy,..." ?????????????
Total co-sign, Just Me. You seem to be the only one talking about self sufficiency. Thank you.
I took my 12 year olddaughter to see if this past Friday not because it was the first AA princess, but she wanted to see it. I didn't want to see it because of the hype and critiscim, but I enjoyed the movie. We went to an early show(before noon) so the theatre wasn't full. Because of the area we live in, the audience was mostly Caucausian. I didn't find the movie to be something I would pay to see mulitple time, but if I daughter wanted to the DVD I would buy it.
The box office has shown the movie is just so so. It is kind of wasting money for Disney. Do you really think it is a good idea just to change a princess from white to black over an old story. Come on, if you really want to do so, just find a princess story from Africa.