Like Pinocchio, the 1999 film Tarzan has a few stand-out dark moments that kids still remember years after they watched the movie for the first time. When Sabor, the leopard who killed Tarzan's parents, returns to attack Tarzan's family after he's grown, he fights and kills her.
Although The Hunchback of Notre Dame is already considered Disney's darkest animation for its themes of sin and lust, the original novel by Victor Hugo looms with despair persistently.
What's going on? While some social media users have theorised scenes are being made darker to cover up shonky CGI, industry experts say the current trend towards dimmer scenes comes down to two main factors: artistic choice, and the switch from film to digital shooting.
The Dark Side of Disney is a film inspired by the bestselling book examining how far Disney fans are willing to go for a good time. The Dark Side of Disney is a film inspired by the bestselling book examining how far Disney fans are willing to go for a good time.
Tarzan and the Trappers | Full Adventure Movie | Gordon Scott | Eve Brent | Rickie Sorensen
Are Disney movies based on dark stories?
However, whether it's Hans Christan Andersen's original heartbreaking ending to The Little Mermaid or the brutal desperation of Cinderella's stepsisters in the Brothers Grimm tale, the stories that inspired the films are often much darker than our favourite childhood films.
While lighting itself isn't all that expensive, darkness can be used to hide a lot of things. Halle Bailey is not actually a mermaid, and so having the scenes be darker makes it easier to disguise the CGI work.
The animated The Little Mermaid doesn't have many dark undertones woven into the storyline, but the new live-action version takes on a more serious and dark vision of the fairytale.
Why is the lighting in The Little Mermaid so dark?
The film's reason for its minimal lighting is to cover up the special effects. It's a common trick of the trade. If your special effects don't look great, place it in a dark setting or obstruct it with something.
Hades. Hades from Hercules is the Greek God of the underworld and the ruler of the dead. He is known for his dark, villainous appearance, his deep and menacing voice, and his fiery temper. Fans recognize his line, "I'm the Lord of the Dead, baby" and his desire to take over Mount Olympus and enslave the mortals.
Even the Cars movies sold a lot of toys. But A Bug's Life, released in 1998, generated the lowest box office gross of any film in Pixar's first 20 years of existence. It inspired no sequels and predated the Best Animated Feature Oscar, robbing us of a showdown for the ages with The Prince of Egypt.
In the movie The Little Mermaid (Clements & Musker, 1989), Ariel displays symptoms of disposophobia, which is defined as the fear of getting rid of things.
Ursula's electric eels shock sea creatures and people and incapacitate them. A trident kills a character. Ursula's undersea territory is dark and scary, with fire and creepy, grasping creatures, as well as the bones/skulls of merfolk.
One fan pointed out that her hair looked less vibrantly red because the film is "lit realistically." After seeing this trailer, it's not that the Little Mermaid doesn't have color. It's just all lit realistically.
The reported box office result of The Little Mermaid 2023 remake is about $560 million. On paper, these numbers look good. The film grossed over $298 million domestically and more than $263 million internationally.
Ariel, is a fictional character, with no defined skin color in her original material. She was originally written by a Danish author in the 1800s. She has been portrayed in ballet and movies by Asian, Russian, and mixed-race individuals, her cartoon depictions are typically pale.
The Disney adaptation makes many changes to Hans Christian Andersen's original fairytale, but Ariel's age is consistent as she's depicted as a teenager in the original tale too. The decision to fix Ariel's age at 16 years old was also likely to appeal to the target audience of Disney's version of The Little Mermaid.
Summary. The Maleficent movies, while containing elements of great fantasy, have darker moments and violence that may not be suitable for young children. The films have been given a PG rating due to fantasy violence and frightening images, recommending parental guidance for younger audiences.
While there is no absolute age at which scary movies are appropriate, Dr. Dry recommends not introducing them to very young children because of the potential to create long-term anxiety.
And then we come to The Princess and the Frog, the first time truly African American characters appear in a Disney animated film. They did a great job with the story and hiring wonderful African American actors.
