I have been anticipating the release of The Princess and the Frog for the last year! When I first heard that Disney was finally debuting an African American princess, I could hardly maintain my composure. Like most Americans, I have been enamored with Disney since my first visit to the Magic Kingdom in 1969, as a bright eyed and curious three year old. Through the years, Disney has been a staple in my life. My son celebrated his 5th birthday at the Magic Kingdom. We own every Disney movie known to man. So the introduction of a princess that not just resembled, but actually looked like that bright eyed three old, now turn 43 year old mother of two amazing daughters would be the icing on the cake.
To show how excited I was about this film, I purchased tickets to attend the exclusive premiere engagement of the film at the Walt Disney Studio in Burbank. Not one to do things in a small fashion, I purchased the Royal Package, which included reserved seating, commemorative beads and a limited edition lithograph picture. My daughters and I could hardly maintain ourselves as our premiere day rapidly approached. With all the TV commercials, advertisements and banners announcing The Princess and the Frog, we knew we were in for an event of a lifetime. Finally, it arrived! We had reservations for five (my two daughters, their friend, her mother and myself) for the 7:00 p.m. show of The Princess and the Frog!
We showed up an hour early, just to make sure we didn't miss anything! We parked and in the impeccable fashion of Disney, followed the "frog feet" that lead to the entrance. We showed our tickets, pontificated about the fact that the popcorn was not included in the $50 Royal Package, and followed "our yellow brick road" to the grand theater. Due to the fact that the movie has not been released nationally, we had to turn in our cellphones and go through a metal detector. A mere inconvenience for what was about to take place. We found our "royal" seats in the back of the theater and settled in for one of the "best films we had ever seen". I was shocked to see that the majority of the patrons in the theater did not look anything like me. However, let's face it....everyone loves Disney!
As the live entertainment played his last note and the lights dimmed, my heart started racing as I look over to the three young girls sitting next to me with smiles that appeared to be as wide as the building. The music came on, and my long awaited film began. I sat there a watched every single moment. I was in awe! Then my princess a.k.a Tiana turned into a frog! Now, I was okay with that because I knew that was part of the story. Here where things went south for me........................
I didn't realize that my princess was going to remain a frog for the greater part of the movie. I kept waiting and waiting and waiting for her to again look like me and my daughters. As a matter of fact, at one point I thought Disney was going to send me into cardiac arrest and have her remain a frog. The next time I saw my princess' face was when she kissed frog Naveen and the two of them became human again. She stayed on the screen for another 5-7 minutes, and wala it was over and she was gone! There was brief silence, a small around of applause and everyone started exiting the theater. I sat in my chair, horrified and extremely disappointed! I could hardly speak. I looked over at my friend. The look on her face spoke the sentiments of my heart! Our three young girls were happy, yet surprisingly reserved. Walking out the theater, I said to my friend "So, what did you think?" She replied "Not right now. I need to gather my thoughts and regroup."
The two of us walked silently to the "interactive" show where all of the Disney Princesses were waiting to greet the guest. Our daughters ran around the room, taking photos with all of the princesses. I decided to go and retrieve my "limited edition lithograph". What awaited me was indescribable. I opened up the envelope and inside is a picture of my princess and Naveen as FROGS! Not as the beautiful princess she turned into. Not the handsome prince Naveen from Macedonia - but FROGS! I was done! My friend was so done, that she asked if we could leave and she left her lithograph at the lot. Speechless and stunned, the two of us just walked to our car in pure amazement. How could something so special be reduced to something so........demeaning? Of all the wonderful ads Disney has used to promote this movie, the only picture they could find for a "limited lithograph" was Tiana and Naveen as frogs! Wow!
Now, I am definitely not one to immediately jump onto the "race" bandwagon. I am astute enough to know that everything is not racial, however, I realize that some things are racial. I began to think of all the Disney princess movies (Snow White, Ariel, Mulan, Belle) and I cannot recall any of them not showing the face of the primary character throughout the film. So, that begs the question "why did Disney decide to go a different route with Princess Tiana?" "Why does she have to be a frog for the majority of the movie?" What is the subconscious message? I know, I know - folks are going to say that I should be glad that Disney finally created an African American princess. For the record, I do applaud Disney for their effort, however, that does not change the end result for me. I also realize that Disney has to appeal to the "masses", so this may have been their way of doing just that - having an African American princess and mass appeal! After all, would the masses sit in a movie theater and watch an animated African American girl for over an hour, with or without Disney's "rubber stamp?" Well, that remains to be seen.
Okay, realizing that I might have been reading a little too much into this whole frog thing, I did my own mini survey. A number of my friends attended the exclusive engagement. Not baiting them or even letting them know my disappointment, I personally asked all of the same question, "So, how did you like the movie." Every single one of them made the same or similar statement, " I was really disappointed about her being a frog for so long in the movie. That really bothered me." When I asked about the lithograph, the majority of them said they threw it in the trash, because they were appalled . Ah ha, so it wasn't just me. My feelings were real!
Hundred of people are going to flock the theater this weekend to see the debut of Princess Tiana. I'll let you be the judge. What's great about America is that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and we can always agree to disagree. To that end, again I have to say I appreciate Disney for their effort. Nonetheless, I would be remissed if I didn't express my sadness at the finish product. Many folks would argue that we are currently living in a post racial nation; yet I would contend that true progress continues to be slow. It continues to be slow.
