Tangled Does Well, Very Well

From Tangled and Harry Potter 7 face off over crowded Thanksgiving by Scott Mendelson at HollywoodNews.com:

Like a combination of Thanksgiving holidays past, it was a combination of Harry Potter holding down the fort against all newcomers, while a Disney animated property broke out of the gate. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part I still won the three-day and five-day weekend derby, but Disney’s Tangled had a smashing debut that set a record for a three-day opening weekend for a standard Disney cartoon (IE – not Pixar). The Disney fairy-tale scored $49 million over the Fri-Sun portion of the weekend and amassed a whopping $69 million since opening on Wednesday. Inflation and 3D price-bump aside (56% of ticket sales were for the 3D version), this best the $42 million opening of The Lion King way back in summer 1994 (which was one of the top-five opening weekends ever at the time). It’s also the second-largest Thanksgiving opening weekend in history, behind the $80 million five-day and $59 million three-day opening weekend of Toy Story 2 back in 1999 (that $57 million debut was the third-biggest ever at the time). The lesson here is a simple one: Disney REALLY should have opened The Princess and the Frog in wide release over Thanksgiving last year.

Considering that Disney’s most recent animated features (Meet the Robinsons, Bolt, The Princess and the Frog) had opening weekends of around $25 million, the opening sprint for Tangled is all the more impressive. I took issue earlier in the year with Disney’s marketing campaign, which tried to make the film look less like a princess empowerment adventure and more like a boy-friendly action picture involving a roguish thief who sweeps Rapunzel off of her feet, but something obviously worked. I don’t have age or gender demo stats yet, but the film scored a very rare ‘A+’ from Cinemascore. That’s genuinely refreshing as A) the film is pretty darn good and B) it is indeed a ‘chick flick’ false advertising be damned.

I still contend that part of the success was about the release date, as Disney was in a better position to treat their 50th cartoon as a prime attraction of the holiday season. They shot themselves in the foot last year, opening A Christmas Carol at the beginning of November, thus causing them to put off the wide opening of The Princess and the Frog until December 12th. Frankly, most of the press attention for The Princess and the Frog occurred on Thanksgiving weekend, when the film was playing in just four theaters. By the time the film went wide, everyone was talking about Avatar.

Tangled opened on Wednesday with $11 million, giving the film a solid 6x five-day weekend multiplier. The legs on this picture are going to be about as long as Rapunzel’s hair (sorry…), and it has a solid chance of becoming Disney’s first traditional cartoon to cross $200 million since The Lion King. And yes, the film looks gorgeous in 2D, so the eventual loss of 3D theaters to The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Yogi Bear, and Disney’s Tron: Legacy shouldn’t be too much of an issue. With numbers like this, I seriously doubt that this is the last we see of the princess/fairy tale genre from the Mouse House.

Just like I said. :) Mendelson thinks like me. Anyway, there is more in the article about other movies, too, and I am anxiously awaiting The King's Speech release here in Nashville which is my other film choice of the season.

Although I am pretty sure I'll be seeing Tangled again, too. A big deal for me who averages only 3-4 movie viewings a year.

So if Disney decides to return to fairy tales eventually (and they will even if not in the immediate future) which one do you hope to see interpreted?

CyberMonday: MP3s Deals

Off topic bargain hunting:

It's CyberMonday and I admit I have been shopping for deals off and on, almost none of them .  Today Amazon is offering $3 worth of MP3s for free which is nice but even nicer if you are interested in any of their $1.99 album specials.  (The husband was.)

Use code GET3MP3S and get $3 in MP3 downloads instantly. Credit good for songs or albums sold at Amazon MP3. Offer ends November 30. No purchase necessary.

To redeem it, just go to any MP3 listing page and click on the "Redeem a gift card or promotion code & view balance" choice under the Buy buttons on the right side of the page in the green box. Then choose a few things or one album to download and the credit will be applied. You don't have to buy anything on the page you redeem the code either, that's just the quickest way to redeem it if you are shopping.

There's also lots of free Christmas music and other goodies for cheap, all inexpensive if you browse a little.

And although I owned it, I really recommend In Between Dreams by Jack Johnson who I love. It's one of the oldest of the deal offerings--many are recent releases--but it's a great one if you don't own it and like laid back music. Banana Pancakes is beloved in my house--the song, not the food.  I don't make pancakes often and I choose other fruit or chocolate chips if I have the choice.

Rapunzel Week: Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox

Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox and illustrated by Lydia Monks is the Rapunzel I am most often asked about in casual conversation by various people with varying levels of interests in fairy tales.  "Have you read Falling for Rapunzel?" I am asked. 

Yes, I have and I am always a little surprised at how big of a fan base it has. It's a fun Rapunzel spoof, using the classic story to make children and adults laugh. And it's a great book, but I am surprised at its widespread exposure. People I would never expect to have heard of it let alone read it ask me about it. First published in 2003, it's still in print in hardcover and paperback which also attests to its endurance in the fickle publishing world.

Product description from the publisher:

The prince is hoping to fall for Rapunzel, but since she can't quite hear what he asks for, everything but her hair gets tossed out her window. Instead of her curly locks, she throws her dirty socks. Instead of silky tresses, out go lacey dresses. And you can predict the guaranteed-to-crack-kids-up clothing she sends down when the prince simply says hair. . . .

Finally Rapunzel heaves out something that makes all the prince's dreams come true, showing how misunderstandings can lead to happily-ever-after.

Hilarious text, clever page-turns, and vibrant, eclectic art make this a non-traditional Rapunzel kids will want to read about again and again.

And all of the reviews were great when it came out. I agreed. And it is a fun book, an excellent holiday gift choice for new fans of Rapunzel after seeing Tangled, too. The ending is surprising and fun but don't read the reviews if you don't want it spoiled. Some of them do and that's too bad.

And the same author and illustrator team has also produced a Sleeping Beauty spoof if you like this one: Waking Beauty.

Rapunzel's Hair Again as Rapunzel Week Reboots

This video from ScienceFriday.com (courtesy of Disney) was NPR's Video Pick of the Week. I tried to start Rapunzel Week last week with a discussion of the possible science in the story and then was consumed by other projects as the week progressed. So I'm rebooting with this video and short discussion of Rapunzel's hair animation in Tangled. (And, no, this week will not be all about Tangled. I discussed the movie in short detail last night. Most of this week will be about literary and illustrated Rapunzels.)

More from NPR's interview for the video:

LICHTMAN: Speaking with Kelly Ward, she said, you know, you want it to look real like it's real hair. But if Rapunzel was for real - you know, she has 70 feet of hair in this film - she'd be carrying a lot. That'd be like 80 pounds...

FLATOW: Wow.

LICHTMAN: ...that she'd be towing behind her. I mean, she would not be...

FLATOW: Or headache.

LICHTMAN: ...doing summersaults and...

FLATOW: Right.

LICHTMAN: ...back flips like she does in this movie. She'd be her neck would be strained and she...

FLATOW: Right. They had to fudge it a little bit about what real hair would how much it would weigh and how you could fool around with it.

LICHTMAN: Yeah. It was interesting. It was sort of making the physics look real in some ways and then, you know, giving it weight so it looks like a real object, but not too much weight...

And, to comment on last Sunday's comments on that hair post: No, this isn't about overthinking the fairy tale. We all know it is a fantasy. However, it provides a learning impetus for children (and adults) to learn about real hair, biology and physics, for it brings the topics into an interesting context. I'm not trying to ruin the fairy tale, but to encourage learning across disciplines. After all, I was once a physics major and still have some of that scientist personality buried within me. Science is still such a mystery to so many kids that if using fairy tales helps them learn more in a fun way, I'm all for it.

Cinderella Bespoke: Dresses For Children

Luxury gifts for kids always fascinate me, so here's the latest...Custom Princess Gowns from Cinderella Bespoke. Usually these gifts are furniture which I've featured a few times.

Create a custom princess gown for your young daughter. Made in the USA, each dress is unique and custom-made for your little Cinderella, Snow White or Sleeping Beauty. More than a Disney princess costume, your princess gown is hand-made by children's book illustrator and designer Alison Relyea and her Wisconsin seamstresses, using the best fabrics, textures and accessories -- and all green, of course. In collaboration with you, each dress is truly one of a kind and designed specifically for your little princess. If you dream it, we can create it.

After you place your order, you will have a personal consultation with Alison. From beginning to end, the process to create your daughter's princess gown takes 3-4 weeks. For Christmas delivery, it is best to place your Cinderella Bespoke order immediately, as our schedule is limited and does fill up.

And yes, the price makes these a luxury item. Not that Alison doesn't earn her money designing and sewing them. I'm married to a creative who has to earn a living with art, too. The hours and materials spent on the dress make it reasonable when considered by its parts. But I can imagine many people balking at the price of the dress for a child. I'm not criticizing, in other words, just trying to be fair before the comments fill up with "Insane, for a girl who will quickly outgrow it!" etc. There is a very specific audience for this service and I hope they find Alison if they desire something like this. And I can imagine some flower girl dresses for Renaissance themed weddings, can't you?

Here's a video, too:

Thoughts on Tangled

So, I finally saw Tangled last night. I was entertained. So were my husband and my sister who went with me. It’s Hollywood. It’s Disney. But it wasn’t repulsively either one. Ever since working in Burbank years ago near the Disney lot and dealing with its culture, I admit I have more problems with the Disney culture than even its products. Familiarity bred contempt in me but I usually refuse to share the stories for I really don’t want to burst everyone’s bubbles. I am also too jaded with Hollywood’s production methods in general to let myself step outside my prejudices to enjoy many movies to their fullest.

Yet I am human. I wanted to escape for a few hours. I wanted to relax and be entertained. (And, yes, I felt I needed to see it for the fairy tale element, but it would have been my movie of choice for the weekend either way.) This movie hit all the buttons for me. I didn’t look at my watch once which is high praise from me, for I get antsy in most movies anymore, wishing for a pause button and a fast forward button. I was fascinated with what few elements of the original tales were incorporated into the story whether on purpose or inadvertently. And, really, there are a few elements from the Italian and French Rapunzels, more so than the Grimms if I were to count them, I think. Don’t know if that was at all on purpose or just coincidence, although I tend to be a pessimist and lean to the latter until I hear or read otherwise.

And the animation is really pretty. Yes, it is an idealized world, no dirt, no blood, no bruises. Well, there is a bit of blood near the end actually. I remember watching The Little Mermaid and feasting on the bright colors—and I’ll admit I have never really been a fan of that film, throw rotten tomatoes now, even before I became as well-versed in fairy tales as I am now. The messages of the film irked me no end as a young woman trying to find her place in the world. But for imagery, Tangled/Rapunzel blows it out of the water, whether you want to hate 3D animation or not. I don’t, for I think there is a place for all kinds of animation techniques. The flying lanterns are gorgeous and I wanted to be there living in that scene, forget the story.

I don’t synopsize the story. That’s being done elsewhere and that’s not my job. I only will list some favorite parts and elements, at least what I can remember at the moment.

*SPOILER ALERT*

1. The lanterns I mentioned earlier. I loved the lanterns. So much that I am tempted to see it again in 3D--we saw the 2D--just to see that scene in 3D.

2. Although I love musicals, I appreciated the quieter music values of this film, a little less Broadway, a little more intimate. The wildest one is at the Snuggly Duckling and was so much of an homage to Monty Python that I was smiling on several levels.

3. I liked that the villain—Mother Gothel--isn’t over the top. I weary very quickly of scene chewing witches (and other villains) in the Disney films. Gothel doesn’t morph into horrible monsters and frighten the children into nightmares. Her ending is poetic and I don’t know how many viewers understood that she had aged into the dust she would have been by that time if she had aged and died long ago as she was supposed to without the rapunzel magic. Of course, those familiar with their vampire lore or fantasy in general got it.

4. This can be argued in many ways, but Rapunzel and Flynn Rider save each other. It’s an equal opportunity rescue. They are partners in that ending and I thought, FINALLY! And the magical tears are from original tales so nice touch in the story.

5. I was worried that Rapunzel wouldn’t star in her own story, but she did. It was nice to have both characters, the closest to a classic romantic comedy that Disney has accomplished with any of their fairy tales.

6. I LOVED that the animals didn’t talk. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And yet they were some of my favorite characters.

7. I don’t care how true to the original tales the film is. I don’t require that of the other interpretations I read and see if they tell a good story. That’s the fun of fairy tales. I am not going to accuse Disney of doing exactly what I enjoy from other creators.

8. I loved that the children around me weren’t seemingly at all phased by Gothel’s death. But when Flynn died, there was absolute silence. One child sitting nearby kept whispering, “Why is he dead, Mommy?” Another one who had been coughing CONSTANTLY right behind me through most of the film—really too sick to be out although obviously in the final persistent cough stages of a cold—well, he was silent, his throat forgotten. It was better than a lozenge.

I attended the movie in a packed theatre and the irony was that we were surrounded by families with young boys. As I sat there I wondered if the marketing really influenced that or if this was simply the best choice for a young family film this weekend (it was) and families attended not caring much either way.

Which brings me to the next topic on this overlong blog entry—the news that Disney is foregoing anymore fairy tale stories for a while which has caused much wailing and gnashing of teeth this week. Heather Tomlinson sent me the first LA Times article (thanks Heather) and it is been picked up left and right in the media. A great publicity stunt IMHO even if it is true. For now. We all seem to forget how many years pass between many fairy tale films. The break between The Princess and the Frog and Tangled is the shortest ever. The first was a failure by Disney standards. Tangled will not. It is a much, much better film. The same sister (I only have one) sat through that one with me earlier this year and we both were bored almost to tears, constantly pausing it and finding many things to talk about and do. So I say, wait and see. And wait a few years. It might be ten or so, but there will eventually be another animated Disney fairy tale. They tend to save the studio when it needs the boost. And Tangled’s success will have some studio heads thinking. Go see it. Make it successful and see what happens in a few years. Money talks. Especially in Hollywood where projects live and die each day of the year.

What disturbs me about that news is not the loss of animated fairy tales but that the upcoming films at Disney and elsewhere seem to be very male centric, token one female character and all. Hollywood is still convinced that girls will watch “boy” movies but boys won’t watch “girl” movies. That makes me sad. That theatre was packed last night and the boys enjoyed the film, changed title, “girl” film or not. It’s about socialization not what they will truly enjoy. But girls are being pushed to the side. They are excelling in so many other places but in the business that is Hollywood, they are regressing once again to sidekicks and rewards for the male leads. That was true in every single preview before the film, too. I am depressed by that. Yes, I enjoy the Toy Story trilogy and such, but I want variety. And I didn’t hear a single little girl voice excited at the Cars 2 preview, only many little boys’ voices whispering, “Buzz McQueen!”

So what did you think of Tangled? I think Sleeping Beauty has finally been usurped or at least tied for first as my favorite Disney fairy tale. Yes, I like Belle, too, but her story as portrayed in that movie also disturbs me so I am always verklempt over it, marring my enjoyment.



BLITZDEAL104 for Two Hours

The code $20 off the iPhone cases for the next two hours is BLITZDEAL104. If this becomes one of the most popular sales today it will be repeated tonight, but no guarantees.

Thanks for supporting SurLaLune, too!

Even More Cases...

The code for the iPhone case sale hasn't been published yet, but here's another few cases:

Arthur Rackham's Catskin by Surlalune
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Edmund Dulac's Little Mermaid by Surlalune
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Edmund Dulac's Beauty and the Beast by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's Children Reading by Surlalune
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Elenore Abbott's Woman & Dragon by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's The North Wind by Surlalune
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Margaret Tarrant's Sleeping Beauty Baby by Surlalune
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Warwick Goble's Parlsey (Rapunzel) by Surlalune
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Edmund Dulac's Gerda & Reindeer by Surlalune
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Reading Woman by Surlalune
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Reading Woman by Surlalune
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Reading Woman by Surlalune
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More iPhone Cases

I goofed. The sale is 3 hours from now starting at 12:01 CST for two hours. I will try to post the coupon code as soon as I learn it. And some more...including 3G requests:

Kay Nielsen's East of the Sun and West of the Moon by Surlalune
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Ivan Bilibin's The Firebird and the Grey Wolf by Surlalune
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Ivan Bilibin's Vasilissa the Beautiful by Surlalune
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Fairy Tale iPhone Cases Sale

Here are some of the requests I received for iPhone cases. The sale--$20 off which makes them half price--just started and will continue for two hours... I'm working on a few others. And if this is one of the biggest sales of the day, it will be repeated tonight if you are missing out right now.

Arthur Rackham's Old Woman in the Wood by Surlalune
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Kay Nielsen's East of the Sun and West of the Moon by Surlalune
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Ivan Bilibin's Baba Yaga by Surlalune
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Edmund Dulac's The Princess and the Pea by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's Garden of Verses by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's Girl with Book by Surlalune
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Gustave Dore's Little Red Riding Hood by Surlalune
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Walter Crane's Beauty and the Beast by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's Snow White and Rose Red by Surlalune
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Happy Thanksgiving and Mac Cases

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am planning to mostly avoid the holiday crush this weekend but I can't help but shop a little and go see Tangled.  And work on Cinderella Tales From Around the World which is almost finished and get ahead on some blog entries again.  (Yes, I write many of them in advance!)  I received a notification from Zazzle about their Black Friday deals, however, and now I am tempted to get a new case for my iPhone for they will be $20 off for two hours tomorrow (8:01 AM to 10:00 AM CST, 10: 01 AM to 12:00 PST).  I haven't seen one in person, but my case is much abused and to have a FAIRY TALE one would be quite lovely.  Problem is that I have the hardest time choosing the illustration to use.  Or picking someone else's like this one from Kristin Mills:

Fairytale Fantasy Art iPhone 3G Case - Wolf Within by kirstinmills
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The rest of these are from the SurLaLune library and what I designed first since they were most convenient.

Kay Nielsen's East of the Sun and West of the Moon by Surlalune
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Elenore Abbot's Ashenputtel (Cinderella) by Surlalune
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W. H. Robinson's Wild Swans by Surlalune
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Kay Nielsen's Twelve Dancing Princesses by Surlalune
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Jessie Willcox Smith's Little Red Riding Hood by Surlalune

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Anyway, if you are taking a Turkey break and want to order a fairy tale iPhone case tomorrow--3G and 4G cases are available as well as iPad cases-- please let me know which illustration you are interested in from the SurLaLune Gallery.  I'm happy to design anytime, but with the special pricing tomorrow, it may be the best price of the season.  Also tell me if you are interested in 3G or 4G or iPad (which may be more limited due to larger size).

Advice for Young Girls from a Cartoon Princess

Okay, I discovered these yesterday through Strollerderby on Babble and enjoyed.  They have some innuendo and allusions to adult themes, but nothing over the top.  I laughed.  Snow White is my favorite. And can I just thank the makers--Chicago-based comedy troupe The Second City--for titling them Advice for Young Girls from a Cartoon Princess.  Note that they aren't Fairy Tale Princesses, although to be fair some of the "advice" applies to the literary fairy tale variety princess, too.  But the videos are spoofing Disney versions, not the originals, and they do it well. Humor with some ouch.