Showing posts with label Aladdin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aladdin. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Happy New Year of the Dog!

Hans Tegner, from Fairy tales and stories, by Hans Christian Andersen, New York, 1900
(We know we have posted this before as a header, but it's probably our favorite illustration from this tale. We think it has quite the Gustav Doré feel about it.)
Now that kids are back to school and people have returned from their various 'vacationings' (and those who hold on to the Yuletide season until it's uconsidered seemly have finally given in to 'de-Christmas-sy-ing' their houses #guiltybutnotsorry), we are popping in to say:

May this New Year bring change for the better,
as well as joy, comfort, love, health and,
dare I say it, prosperity
(especially by way of friendly saucer-eyed dogs!)

There is a variant of the Tinderbox called The Soldier and the Candle, described as "The Aladdin of the Basque Country". (A condensed text can be found HERE, though you may need the help of Google translate to read it.) It's an interesting way to look at the tale and opens up the edges away from the politic-heavy subtext Andersen deliberately wove into his fairy tale. It would be interesting to see some retellings taking this slant for a spin on a storytellers wheel, especially with some new takes on the sleeping princess issue. (A hint to all fairy tale writers for the year!)

Some more images from this favorite tale filled with delightful, dish-eyed dogs below. All of these are by Hans Tegner as well.

All images above and below are by Hans Tegner,
from Fairy tales and stories, by Hans Christian Andersen, New York, 1900
A quick reminder that much fairy tale news is being tweeted - and retweeted - via our account over on Twitter HERE, along with other folks we have recommended, if you're needing a daily fix of fairy tales (and who isn't?).

A very Happy New Year 2018 to all our readers!

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Live Action 'Aladdin' To Be Musical (Probably) & Keen To Avoid 'Prince of Persia' Mistake

Related image
from the Broadway adaptation of Disney's Aladdin
Guy Ritchie, the film's director, has answered the 'other' question about Aladdin: Now that musicals are back in vogue, and music was such a big part of the animated feature, will the new live action movie have songs - and dancing - too?
“I think it’d be tough not to make (Aladdin) a musical. It’s too early, because I’ve really just immersed myself into that project. So I’m still looking for cast members, we still haven’t found exactly which direction we’re going in. I’m confident at some stage it will reveal itself to me. But right now it’s just a bit too premature.” (source)
Ritchie's response seems pretty clear, though he does mention it's early days, and it should be taken into account that film morph a lot in the development stage AND that Guy Ritchie is not a director who does the 'typical/standard thing' with his movies. (For reference, Ritchie's better known films are: "Snatch", "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels", the "Sherlock Holmes" movies and "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.")

With Will Smith on the official IMDB page (but a qualifying 'rumored' recently added next to his name, since no contract has yet been signed) and Ritchie's direction, the potential for a new dimension of the Aladdin story is obviously there, though it's going to be difficult to ever get past the lack of Williams as the Genie.

This will be an interesting film to follow the development of, whichever way it goes, however. Disney is keen to avoid the embarrassing white washing present in Prince of Persia but the questions is how authentic will they/can they go without getting tangled (pun intended!), especially with the songs from the original?

There was even an unsuccessful petition to pressure Disney to produce the remake based on the original story - and by original, they mean with Aladdin being Chinese, not of Middle-Eastern origin. We're thinking it's almost certain that direction isn't being considered. Instead, we think how Disney handled the relatively recent Broadway adaptation probably has some clues... BUT, it's early days...
Related image
Here's a handy Disney versus original comparison of the story of Aladdin. While it would make for fascinating viewing in today's push 'n' pull on inclusivity and equality in Hollywood, we're not sure Disney would be happy to take on all the cans of worms this potentially would contain.

Oh, and officially announced yesterday, Guy Ritchie Wants You To Audition For (the lead/title role in) Aladdin. Ritchie apparently is looking for 'new' actors (ie. not necessarily inexperienced, but unknowns, not stars) for the roles of Aladdin and Jasmine, and singing, at least, has to be part of the package. Good luck folks!

Friday, May 5, 2017

Freeform's Weekend Fairy Tale Programming To Celebrate Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings Premiere (on May 7)

Press release:
In anticipation of the premiere of "Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings," FreeForm (part of the Disney/ABC Television Group) invites you to relive all of your favorite love stories during the network's weekend programming event starting SATURDAY, MAY 6 and continuing through SUNDAY, MAY 7. Follow along as Tiana kisses a few frogs to find her prince while Snow White patiently waits for true love's kiss, then cheer on Cinderella as she gets ready for the ball.

The highlights are:
Saturday, May 6
(8:00 - 10:00a.m. EDT) A CINDERELLA STORY: IF THE SHOE FITS (live action movie with Sofia Carson)
(10:00a.m. - 12:35p.m. EDT) THE PRINCE & ME (live action movie with Julia Stiles)
(12:35 - 2:40p.m. EDT) DISNEY'S SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (feature animation)
(2:40 - 4:45p.m. EDT) DISNEY'S THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG (feature animation) - repeats on Sunday, May 7, at 9:05a.m. EDT.
(4:45 - 6:50 p.m. EDT) DISNEY/PIXAR'S BRAVE (feature animation) - repeats on Sunday, May 7, at 11:10 a.m. EDT.
(6:50 - 9:00 p.m. EDT) DISNEY'S TANGLED (feature animation) - repeats on Sunday, May 7, at 3:20p.m. EDT.
(9:00 - 11:30 p.m. EDT) DISNEY'S FROZEN (feature animation) -  repeats on Sunday, May 7, at 5:30p.m. EDT.
(11:30p.m. - 1:30 a.m. EDT) DISNEY'S ALADDIN (feature animation) - repeats on Sunday, May 7, at 1:15 p.m. EDT.
Sunday, May 7
(8:00 - 9:30 p.m. EDT) DISNEY'S FAIRY TALE WEDDINGS - FreeForm PREMIERE
Getting married is one of the most special days of your life and one you will never forget. For three exceptional couples, their weddings will include some Disney magic and elegance, as well as a few surprises thrown in, to give them the wedding they always dreamed of and more. And while three couples are entering wedded bliss, one lucky couple is just about to start their wedding journey with a proposal of a lifetime. Hosted by "The Bachelor" alums Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell, "Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings" will give viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the one-of-a-kind weddings, including a surprise performance by the multiplatinum-selling a cappella group Pentatonix and magical engagements that take place at Disney Destinations around the globe.
* All dresses pictured are from Disney Bridal

Note: we're not sure why Frozen is being featured - there's no wedding in that movie!

Monday, March 13, 2017

Advertising From the (Unpublished) Vault: Sky Broadband Fairy Tale Commercials & Fairy Tale Times


We don't think we ever posted these from 2010, a few (!) years ago, but they're worth a repeat viewing either way. We like that the theme of change (linked to transformation in fairy tales) is used so inventively. We do remember posting The Boy Who Cried Wolf ad from 2011 though. (You can find that HERE.)
The Princess and the Pea
The Frog Prince
 Little Red Riding Hood
Aladdin
Pretty fun take on fairy tales we think!

We also recently found these Fairy Tale Times pages for Sky Broadband, which we hadn't seen before. Looks like the advertising team had a lot of fun with these! We've included full sizes of each page where available, as the text really is an enjoyable read.
               

           
 We love the variety of tales included here! Kind of makes us wish we could subscribe to a fairy tale newspaper.

Thursday, March 9, 2017

Guest Post: 'Five Fairy Tale Films & Their Forgotten Beginnings' by Diamond Grant

Every year we find ourselves watching feature films based on classic tales throughout the seasons, some of which relate better to winter, others more fitting for summer. It's inevitable we'll discover new fairy tale films as part of our culture.


By the time most people hear about fairy tales, they've been turned into huge cinematic films, but we often forget their humble beginnings. Some of the most popular and loved films that have made their way into most families’ favorite collections all started as lesser-known fairy tales.


Some stories were adapted or loosely based upon original tales and characters from writings, while others stayed truer to the story that not. It's worth paying homage to where these beloved films originated, and to possibly learn some lesser known facts of how they made it to the big screen.

Let's start with one you probably know well, both as film and tale. Will we still be able to surprise true fairy tale fans here with some forgotten facts? Let's find out!


The Little Mermaid
Disney's 'The Little Mermaid' development art

We're all familiar with the feature Disney film The Little Mermaid. Not so many know it started out as a lengthy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen. A master storyteller, Andersen's stories are the source for many of the household fairy tale films we've all come to adore today. The film stays true to the written story in many of the main parts; however, there are some differences between the tale and movie that are startling.


The comedic characters Sebastian, Scuttle and Flounder, while great additions to the film, do not appear in the original, although the little mermaid is described as being so friendly with the fish of the sea that they would eat out of her hand, much like stereotypical land princesses who are friendly with forest creatures. Less well known is that in Andersen's tale the little mermaid ultimately discovers she needs a soul (apparently merpeople aren't gifted with them) so she can avoid a foamy death after living for 300 years in the sea. To win the love of a human is the only way she's able to gain an immortal soul. In the film, she spots Eric, whom she falls for after seeing him for the first time but there's no complication of needing a soul. She'd be happy just to have legs - and Eric, of course. Ursula, who tempts Ariel with this possibility, is portrayed in the film as a witch who has her own agenda and actively wants to make life difficult for the mermaid. In the fairy tale the sea witch is the conduit of fate.
Disney's 'The Little Mermaid', Triton's Kingdom development art
Aladdin
Disney's 'Aladdin' development art

This well-known film and character originate from a lesser-known book of tales entitled One Thousand and One Nights, later referred to as Arabian Nights. Oddly, the story of Aladdin only appeared in the editions after the first European translation was made by Antoine Galland between 1704 and 1717, which has led some to believe he created the character and his story.


In the original works, a woman named Shahrazhad (or Scheherazade) used her wits and creativity to delay her inevitable execution as she told the tale of Aladdin, and many others, to King Shahriyar. Each night, she told him part of the story, and because he wanted to hear more, he kept her alive.


The Disney film uses character traits and ideas from popular movies such as Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Thief of Baghdad, for their version and, reinforcing these tropes is set in Arabia, while the original was set in China. Whether or not Aladdin was Chinese remains a mystery!
Disney's 'Aladdin' development art
Chicken Little
Disney's Chicken Little (2005) concept art

In the original tale of Henny Penny, the main character, more commonly known in the US as Chicken Little, expresses and justifies her fears. The most popular Disney adaptation of Chicken Little is a science-fiction sequel that came out in 2005. Foxy Loxy becomes a bully instead of a rival and both Chicken Little and Foxy Loxy switched genders. Chicken Little is now a little boy and Foxy Loxy is a girl.


Not many know that before this quirky CG retelling, that there was a 1943 Disney adaptation which was manufactured at the request of the United States government to disgrace, and discourage Nazism and what it stood for.

(If you weren't aware of this before it will make watching Chicken Little again quite a different experience, won't it?)

The Princess and the Frog
Disney's 'The Princess and the Frog' development art
The Princess and the Frog was derived from the book The Frog Princess, a middle school novel written by E.D. Baker, who used ideas from the original Frog King (better known as The Frog Prince) fairy tale. The film caught the attention of many because it was the first Disney movie to include a black princess.


The moral of the story differs between tale and film. The fairy tale can be seen to suggest that you can get what you want in life even if you don't deserve it. The movie altered this to be a more suitable and uplifting for todays viewers, showing you can get what you want if you work for it.

The prince transformation differs greatly too. In the tale, the frog is thrown violently at a wall, which releases him from his enchantment, whereas in the movie, the frog turns into a prince when he is kissed. A nice little nod is given to this story's origins in the form of a fairy tale book that's read aloud in the film, retelling a more modern and familiar version where the frog must be kissed - giving the frog his reason for seeking a princess in the first place.
Disney's 'The Princess and the Frog' development art
Frozen
Disney's 'Frozen' character development and design
Now a part of mainstream Western culture, the film Frozen is a family favorite. But where did it really come from? Most fans know by now that Frozen originates from the Hans Christian Andersen tale The Snow Queen. What's less well known is that The Snow Queen is a segmented story, with seven unique 'episodes', each illustrating problems and solutions the heroine must face on her journey to save her friend. Differing from the movie, the tales' main characters are Gerda and Kay, who are like brother and sister though not blood-related.


It's also worth mentioning that in the original material, there are no trolls. The only similarity is the goblin (also described as the devil) who created the evil mirror that shatters, a sliver of which pierces Kay's eye and freezes his mind and heart. In an interesting parallel between movie and tale, in the fourth section of The Snow Queen, Gerda is told a story of marriage by a raven, about a princess who was fixated on getting hitched. In the film, Anna is very keen to marry Hans, so it's possible to see similarities in morals and lessons of the two versions.


Disney's 'Frozen' development art
Watch or Read?


Has dipping into the details on these classics given you a thirst for binge-watching these films? You can watch them on Netflix or use a U.S. connection if you're outside the country and desperately want access. Keep an eye out for the similarities and differences mentioned in this article; you can see where Hollywood has been creative or strayed from the original works and decide whether you like it or not.


It's also great fun reading the tales to see just how differently you interpret the stories. What your mind creates from the creativity of words will be different to what you see on screen. It also gives you an insight of how film manufacturers would have gone about deciding what to put in their movies and how to take the most entertaining and essential parts out to animate them.


Have knowledge on some differences between original works in fairy tales and movies? Or some cool information on where fairy tales were born? Leave a comment below.

Diamond Grant is a fairy tale enthusiast who enjoys reading original works and watching feature films. She also likes uncovering differences between versions of fairy tales, opening up a discussion as to which are more entertaining.

Thank you for being our guest writer today Diamond!

Would you like to write a fairy tale focused guest post for Once Upon A Blog? We'd love to hear from you!
Contact us at fairytalenews AT gmail DOT com. 
While we cannot always guarantee being able to post your writing, and usually schedule our posts well in advance, we are open to ideas and, depending on available time, are happy to work with you.

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Live Action 'Aladdin' Looks to Guy Ritchie To Direct

Disney unused poster concept art by John Alvin

It's not official yet, but it's official enough that people know the deal is legitimately being worked out: Guy Ritchie, director of the Sherlock Holmes movies with Robert Downey Jr. is in negotiations to direct the Disney live action version of Aladdin, titled Genie.

From The Hollywood Reporter:
Dan Lin, who was a producer on the Holmes movies for Warner Bros., is producing what Disney touts will be an ambitious and non-traditional take on Aladdin via his Lin Pictures banner.  
John August wrote the script for the live-action version, which sources say will keep many of the musical elements of the original. 
Still to be determined is the approach to the Genie, which to this day remains closely associated to Williams' singular and defining performance. 
Also, part of the non-traditional aspect of the project is the studio's intent to make it non-linear, a move right out of the Ritchie playbook.
Ritchie is also known for Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, which use a similar non-linear approach to narrative, and The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Ritchie's current project is slightly more in the vein of directing a fantasy. He's in post production on Warner's King Arthur.

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

One Upon A Time Opener Adds Refugees from The Land of Untold Stories


"Nothing is more dangerous than an untold story..." 

So begins the 6th season of Once Upon A Time. And we truly hope this is a promise and not just a catch phrase (though it appears it's going to take a few episodes to get to the 'untolds' in question #wevoteCinderellastepfamily).

In this season Storybrooke will be "invaded" by "The Land of Untold Stories", where characters from the series have discovered that "there are more stories and tales out there than we ever dreamed..". (Note: while this was the teaser, the first episode treated inhabitants from this land more like refugees, given blankets after surviving the crashed dirigible.) Our optimistic hearts leapt at the thought that perhaps the producers and writers were finally open to delving into the myriad fairy tales (and myths and legends) from around the world. Where the lands of Storybrooke and other realms of Once Upon A Time had seemed limited and going in circles, it seemed there was finally the possibility of developing and exploring the hundreds and thousands of unexplored tales. Our optimism was abruptly bridled on reading the cast from the series had expressed thoughts that it "seems like we're running out of tales" at ComiCon, even though they hastened to add, "but of course that would never happen". 
It's a strange dichotomy: the series becoming open to "the land of untold stories" and delving into 1001 nights of Scheherazade's stories, while the show seems to be struggling with finding tales to tell. They're also making sure to mention that they're going "back to basics" with this season so the hope is that rather than just watching another version of having the reset button hit, that any first season story lines that are revisited will be explored in greater (and we hope, fairy tale related) depth. We do know Cinderella is set to return (although living in Storybrooke this whole time, we really haven't seen, if nay of her), but this time we'll see more of her stepmother and stepsisters as well. Since Cinderella has already been given her "happily ever after" (she was Emma's first success story, which, in part, led her to stay on in the town) we're curious to see if this will be dismantled and redefined or if indeed the show is taking a serious look at what "happily ever after" really means.
Meanwhile, the season opener on Sunday reported boosted ratings, due to the expectation of Aladdin, Jasmine and flying carpets, further exploration of the Disney version of the Beauty and the Beast story, along with a resurgence of the Wicked Queen persona. It probably helps that the budget seems to have had a boost as well. (Cue full sized dirigible set/prop piece #piratescaribbeanleftovers? and decent 3D animation for its appearance.) Though the special effects continue to be less than stellar from time to time, (#oraclebirdredeye) the production values are better and the sets, props vehicles and costumes seem to have noticeably improved (or the photography of those has improved - either way - things look better overall than they did).

The Belle-Rumpel story line (we left Belle pregnant and in an enchanted sleep at the end of last season) has its usual complications, though, without spoiling too much, it was refreshing to see "dream Belle" resist falling into her old ways with Rumpel. Children give you strength to do the most difficult things, which it seems will be a theme that will be explored in this season. And hers isn't the only baby around. Zelena (the Wicked Witch and sister of Regina/Evil Queen) has a baby too. But we're wishing on stars that isn't the only role these children will fill. With so much fairy and fairy tale lore surrounding births and babies, we sincerely hope the writers will be exploring some of these aspects as well, rather than just having infants complicate a situation (not to mention there is potential for both children to be "magical" given their parentage). Pregnancy, birth, infants and new motherhood in fairy tales is a fairy new area being explored in depth in fairy tale scholarship and, along with related fairy lore, there's so much potential for furthering fairy tales here.

Regarding the plot for the opener, not a lot happened, (other than the set up for which certain moments were included) so there's not much, if anything to truly spoil. Things should begin to develop in the next episode though, so we have eyes-on to see if any of these potential threads are followed.
The preceding hour recap of the series and introduction to season 6 with Kitsis and Horowitz 'answering questions', was much more intriguing. Things often take a long time to happen on the show just due to the enormous amounts of conversations and discussions so extracting the moments of magic and the touchstones for different characters and putting them together for discussion and review is interesting. While we understand the "drama" aspect appeals to many of the viewers, we find it often gets in the way of the storytelling, especially when retelling various fairy tales which tend toward flatness and are spare on unnecessary details. Highlights remind us that there have been many different explorations of tales of the show that are worth attention, and often work to bring different themes and threads into clearer focus as well. 
In the recap, there was a discussion of Easter eggs from the final episode of last season, confirming possible characters and classics that would appear this season. Agrabah folk, which have been the main teasers before the season premiere, Victorian London, which we already saw with Hyde, along with Paul Bunyan and other clues. There were also many mentions of fairy tale motifs and moments that were presented differently, which are interesting to reflect on. The exploration - and promise of exploration - of Snow White's character is something the teasers have pushed during the hiatus but the story that started it all (Snow White and Charming) has been "background soap" for the last few seasons, confirming for us that many writers are a little lost in trying to find "the magic in marriage" and make it "exciting TV". That they're promising to bring it front and center again is interesting (and we could suggest some great  tales for them to use to do that) but without the threat of terrible things (and Stockholm syndrome) as shown in the Belle/Rumpel dynamic, making it the equivalent of a train wreck you can't look away from, Snow and Charming are likely to have to deal with something extreme to bring back the fan-obsession. We have to wonder if part of the problem isn't to do with the lack of Charming's own mythic story. Although he's been given interesting background, matching the level and strength of a Snow White myth is a tough call, and for Snow to be wedded (literally) to a weaker arc, has the result of making her appear weak too. If that turns around to indeed become central again (and hit those' epic fairy tale' heights), it might make all the difference. We choose to cheer them on toward this goal.
A last aside: among the various questions asked of the creators, one random one was: "If Henry is the Author, who is the Illustrator?" We weren't happy with the lack of acknowledgement of the people who create the visuals - including those of the Once Upon A Time book, and the reply that the magic pen gave the Author powers of illustration as well was a blatant cop-out. It was also a missed opportunity for expanding the OUAT mythos. Given this is a visual information age, and that fairy tale illustrations have been key in keeping fairy tales alive in our time, not to mention that illustrations are a unique way of relating fairy tales and stories and a completely different skill set from writing, we felt let down by the lack of understanding here.

On a pro note: we were told very specifically that Dopey, who was turned into a tree some time back and has generally been forgotten about, will make a return appearance and fill in the gaps in relation to that story as well. We haven't had tree-related stories for a while (though the Merlin story line made use of one) and they were a key foundation, with Regina's apple tree in the first few episodes helping set the tone, twists and mythology for the series, and there's so much tree lore in fairy tales, it's a rich mine to pull from. We hope this will be a wonderful addition.
From Jennifer Morrison, who plays Emma, Snow White & Prince Charming's child and the Savior of Storybrooke:
"It's also showing that it's a return to returning to happy endings. The original concept of the storytelling of Once Upon a Time was that we were going to restore the happy endings," Jennifer explained. "So as we look at our characters in more depth and sort of introspectively deal with some of their baggage and all of the things that have happened over the last six years, they're also returning to the identity that they have. As the heroes, they're going to help save these happy endings." (source)

Bonus OUAT Season 6 Opener Drinking game:
(created by our Once Upon A Blog newsroom team)
Do a shot:
- every time you hear the word "story" in episode 1 
- every time you hear refrains from Beauty and the Beast 
- every time you hear the word "Savior" 
- every time Emma does her "anguished" face
Enjoy your OUAT hangover! 
Fairy Tale Bonus of the Day (or at least a OUAT bonus):
In case you haven't been keeping up with the OUAT buzz over the Summer, there are reports that for two episodes and once story arc, Princess Leia (yes, Star Wars Leia), will be, not only making an appearance but add some twists to the twisted family tree of the Once characters. I'll just include extracts as taken from an interview with the creators earlier this year after the jump:

✑  ✑  ✑  ✑  ✑  ♛ (click the "Read more" link below this line) ♛  ✑  ✑  ✑  ✑  ✑