A Modern Look at Disney Classics

Fairy tales have always been a source of fascination and inspiration for film-makers. Walt Disney Animation Studios have been dishing out animated “happy” versions of these tales, for the better part of the century, for the kids. With the movie of Alex Finn’s novel Beastly, which deals with classic tale of Beauty and the Beast, set in modern-day New York, starring Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Hudgins and Neil Patrick Harris, up for release this summer, I recount the modern day movies that have been “inspired” by age-old stories, made immortal as classic Disney Fairy tales.

Snow White and her Seven Dwarves:

The classic tale of a young girl whose flawless beauty invites the wrath of an evil queen  who banishes her. The girl takes up with seven dwarves who help her defeat the evil witch and live happily ever after.

The Modern Take: Sydney White

Changes for Modern times: The dwarfs are replaced by a rag-tag team of underdogs and the Evil Witch is changed to the Snooty *itch.

Cinderella:

One of the most explored themes in Hollywood, this tale is of a young girl whose father remarries a horrible woman with two daughters, before untimely kicking the bucket. The stepmother and her daughters, then take it upon themselves to harass the poor girl, to the extent of not allowing her to attend the handsome Prince’s Ball. Enter, a Fairy Godmother who helps our heroine to win the heart of her One True Love.

The Modern Take: Cinderella Story, Another Cinderella Story

Changes for Modern times: Not many changes really. The Fairy Godmother is changed to a kindly teacher or an elder family friend. The prince is the usual high school sweetheart – rich, popular, jock etc.

Little Mermaid:

A mermaid, daughter of the King of the Ocean, falls in love with a human sailor, living on the surface. She escapes to the surface with a pair of magically acquired legs, in exchange for her melodious voice, to win the heart of her true love. But he has no love for her; he is in love with another…

The Modern Take: Aquamarine

Changes for Modern times: This is tale of a modern day mermaid who falls in love with a local lifeguard. Though there is not much of a love triangle complication, he would rather be her boy-friend, than “true love”. Enter two friends, who make her understand that true love is need not necessarily be between husband and wife, true love can also exist among friends.

Tangled:

Though  Tangled released just last year, film-makers have been exploiting Rapunzel’s story for quite some time now. The main gist of Rapunzel is the story of a young girl, sheltered from the world by her guardian(s), who escapes her capitivity and sees the world through eyes of a free man, who she also falls in love with.

The Modern Take: Roman Holiday, Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahi (Hindi)

Changes for Modern times: The man who helps the girl always has an ulterior motive. If Rapunzel’s rascal wanted the crown, the modern hero wants fame or fortune. But as usual Love Triumphs.

Aladdin:

A favourite with Bollywood filmmakers, this is a tale of a street urchin who falls for a beautiful princess and tries get-rich-quick schemes to win her heart with dubious, double crossing character. When it fails, he masquerades as a rich prince, only to discover his double-crossing ex-boss is, also, vying for the princess’s hand for selfish reasons. Enter a Genie who explains to him that true love does not depend on riches or clothes, but on what’s inside.

The Modern Take: too Many to count

Changes for Modern times: This is one story that filmmakers absolutely refuse to change. So, the princess becomes a gorgeous girl from a wealthy family while the hero is a poor orphan from the slums. The genie can be anyone from a virtuous teacher to a childhood friend.