Happy International Women's Day!

The Disney Princess FB page had four princesses -- Belle, Jasmine, Mulan and Rapunzel -- but Mulan seemed the most appropriate choice. While her feminism is a source of debate for many academics, I feel like, in terms of "women's economic, political and social achievements," she's the best Disney Princess--closely followed by Tiana. 

I'll freely admit: I didn't really know today was "International Women's Day" until I saw all the social media posts...and even then, I didn't fully know what it was. I mean...I get the basic context from the name, but still.

So, according to the Wikipedia page (and since this isn't an academic piece, citing Wikipedia is totally okay):

"In different regions the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation, and love towards women for women's economic, political, and social achievements. Started as a Socialist political event, the holiday blended the culture of many countries, primarily in Europe, especially those in the Soviet Bloc.^[3] In some regions, the day lost its political flavor, and became simply an occasion for people to express their love for women in a way somewhat similar to a mixture of Mother's Day and Valentine's Day. In other regions, however, the political and human rights theme designated by the United Nations runs strong, and political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner. Some people celebrate the day by wearing purple ribbons."

Huh. Interesting.

Seems About Right.

From the Disney Movies Rock My World FB page:

I mean...it's not like Disney movies don't appeal to "big kids" too...

...and it's not like I listen to the Disney station on Pandora on my commute...

...and it's not like "I See The Light" was the song my husband and I danced to at our wedding for our First Dance...

...oh wait. ALL of those things are true. 

via Buzzfeed: "42 Thoughts I, A Grown-Ass Man, Had While Watching “The Lion King” For The First Time"

So, this popped up in my FB feed a few days ago and it was, quite possibly, the 15 funniest minutes of my day:
42 Thoughts I, A Grown-Ass Man, Had While Watching “The Lion King” For The First Time
No, really. It's hilarious. Some NSFW language mixed in but, IMHO, that doesn't detract from the hilarity.

(And I fully agree: it seems weird that someone, somehow, could have escaped watching The Lion King or at least knowing the basic plot for his entire life. #firstworldproblems But The Lion King is, like, the *defining* movie of the Disney Renaissance Era -- even more so because it defies rigid classification and appeals to both boys and girls. Everybody loves animals!)

NGL--we do get off to a bit of a rocky start:

As in--No. Just no. I have to respectfully disagree here, dude. I can get behind your point that, "when it comes the music of Disney movies, the '90s was where it was really at" because, yeah. Those Disney Renaissance movies had the *best* music, including the *best* Villain Songs. Scar's "Be Prepared"? Perfection -- down the evil laugh at the end. Ursula's "Poor Unfortunate Souls"? Car Karaoke at its finest. "The Mob Song" from Beauty and the Beast? I'll admit: I pretend I have a torch and a pitchfork in my hand when I sing along.

But to insult Frozen? Not cool. I mean... in terms of opening number, yeah, "The Circle of Life" is nigh impossible to beat -- for sure, "Beware the Frozen Heart" doesn't come close. But that's due to the perfection of the former, not a flaw in the latter. I'm also a HUGE fan of Book of Mormon and Avenue Q -- which were written in part by Robert Lopez (1/2 of the Frozen song-writing duo) and which are a very different type of Broadway musical than that of the 80s and 90s, which is where those Disney musicals draw their inspiration.

But everything else? On point.

 Proving once again the ingenious power of Disney marketing and merchandising: the guy hadn't even seen the movie and he still owned something with the characters on it. Amazing.