This weekend, Disney releases another one of their reimagined fairytales — “Maleficent.”
The timing of the film’s release couldn’t make it more relevant even if Disney had planned it themselves, right smack dab in the middle of the #YesAllWomen campaign.
For those unfamiliar the campaign, it is a response to the 140-page manifesto written by Elliot Rodger, who murdered six people in California, last week. The manifesto, cited his hatred of women and sexual rejection as the reason for his rampage.
The resulting hashtag conversation has been a response to this event, the “not all men” argument, and misogyny that all women deal with.
And if you’re not aware of the role that Disney has played in defining a women’s role in society, well then you’ve somehow managed to make this far in life without seeing a Disney film…congratulations?
While Disney appears to be doing some damage control in recent years (ie – “Frozen”), the fact is, a lot of their female characters, especially the “evil” ones, paint some pretty petty images of women. They’re either pissed off that they didn’t get invited to a party, or are jealous of a prettier girl.
Seriously, try and think of another motivation for a Disney villainess (Okay, Ursula is kind of an exception…).
A film like “Maleficent” will hopefully help to flesh out at least one of these vain, petty, one-dimensional characters.
While I would never insinuate that Disney’s depiction of women has created the problem, or caused some mentally ill person to go on a murderous rampage, it’s nice to see them moving in a better direction. Here’s hoping that Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent is a bit put-off by something other than an invitation that got lost in the mail.
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More on the Story: TIME
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