Has Disney run out of ideas?

Emma Fischer|feature editor

Since 2015, there have been seven remakes of beloved Disney films. Disney won’t stop this mass production of remakes anytime soon, either. “The Lion King” comes out over the summer and four more remakes have a release date. Five Disney remakes have been confirmed but a release date has not been set. My question is–has Disney just run out of ideas?

It’s true that every story has been told already. The uniqueness of a story is how it’s told and what obstacles the protagonists face to get there. It’s also true that the remakes are not exactly the same as the original animated films, but to be honest, some of those films don’t need to be made again. They were wonderful the way they were.

Those films were my childhood. Too see them turned into a live-action film was exciting at first, but, I question how many Disney is going to crank out. Sometimes, I see a live-action film trailer only once before the release date. I didn’t even know that a remake of “101 dalmatians,” called “Cruella” is supposed to come out 2020.

What is the deal?

Remaking movies can be breathtaking when finished, but the fact that there are so many coming out at once has really caused me to want to roll my eyes. Believe me here–I love Disney. I love everything about it, but the fact that I’m seeing the same story told over and over with the same characters and setting has caused me to shake my head.

But I also know that when I’m in the theatre, I will cry my eyes out when I see the movies. It’s Disney. If someone doesn’t cry from a Disney or Pixar movie, there is something wrong(maybe not a cry but some feeling would be normal).

I’m not saying that these films are bad, either. They are actually quite good. I just know the story already. I know that characters and the story and the ending. I guess people could also say that they know the good-guys will always win(in American movies). People have asked–what is the point of going if you know the good guy will win? I go to see the movie to see how those characters win, how they get to the end, and who they lose along the way.

Then there is a question–if you read the book, why see the movie? I know that Disney has made many book-to-movie adaptations and so have many other companies. It’s easier. The story has already been uniquely and it is basically served on a platter for companies to turn into a film. Instead of the company having to create the story, it is basically handed to them.

I see the movie because it is often different(as most book nerds sadly know). I guess remakes can be considered the “movie adaptation” of the original. The metaphor could be simply that the original film is the book and the remake film is the movie. A lot of things could change. Things may not change, but it most likely will.

Movies and books allow escape, but if someone walks into a theatre with their mind already made up about certain films made before, it can cause the criticism to be much higher than the criticism of the people who hadn’t seen the original.

I’m honestly excited to see the remakes(most of them) and see what topic they will cover. Maybe with the more advanced story and characters, it’s possible that the film will cover more serious topics that people often avoid. I’ve already started to see books and films covering those touchy topics head on. I know it’s a kids movie, but I’ve seen plenty of adult jokes in kids movies. Take “The Incredibles” for example: one of the characters says in the short “Jack-Jack Attack,” “originally I was going to go for ‘babysitter’ but then I’d walk around with a big ‘BS’ and you understand why I couldn’t go with that.”

It took me my entire childhood to understand that joke.

Hopefully it’s possible that more serious topics and references can be made in these remakes.

I also hope that Disney comes up with many other stories along the way. I hope that they crank out more than just remakes, but many more stories with many characters that I have never met or seen before. I guess they just they have to remember–all stories have been told. It’s how you tell them that makes them special and unique.

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