Change Your Image
shermanjones
Reviews
Peter Pan (1953)
Stereotypes abound
I found a VHS tape of Disney's Peter Pan and as had never seen it, and as I'm now in my 70's, and generally a great fan of early Disney animated fairy tales, I thought it would be fun to spend the morning with a Disney classic. I was surprised to find such a large part of the movie devoted to fighting with swords, knives, etc. as well as a bomb explosion. That was not the worst, however. The stereotyped presentation of the Native American tribe complete with the song "What Made the Red Man Red" was so awful, it would have made some of the 1950's "Cowboys and Indians" Westerns seem sensitive and enlightened in comparison. I would not want to show this movie to any children. There was even a glimpse into our fat-shaming present as Tinkerbelle sees a reflection of her legs and hips and tries to make them look more slender. Great animation but consign this film to history.
The Magic Cottage (1949)
stimulated imagination
This was a staple of my childhood. Probably I would find it corny and preachy if I saw the programs today but I remember total immersion in the stories Pat started telling, with drawings, on each program. There was a live audience and my younger sister actually went to a filming. but was very disappointed to find out that only a small part of the audience was selected to sit in the televised area, the rest sat in a larger area. I'm not sure if only the televised children were given Arnold cookies - early product placement. I associate this program with the many public interest messages about safety ("Jenny was only Jaywalking") and racial acceptance ("You get Good Milk From a Brown Cow, the Color of the Cow Doesn't Matter Anyhow") on this network.
What in the World? (1950)
fascinating even to a child
I remember finding this show fascinating. It consisted of museum experts examining an object and trying to identify its origins. Each expert had so many reasons for identifying an object as what he thought it was but they were often wrong. It had talking heads and very little else but I watched it religiously. I learned about art, archaeology, anthropology, peoples and cultures all over the world and I was only nine! One has to wonder who came up with this idea for a TV program and imagine how it would be laughed at today. I also wonder how many of my generation became archaeologists and anthropologists partly inspired by watching this show (I didn't).
Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)
Better than the book
I saw and enjoyed this film when I was 17. Only now, at 64, have I read the book. While it is rare for a film to be as good as a book, in this case the film was much better. While the screenwriter(s) may have erred in choosing names, the command of cinematic drama was unerring. Character additions such as the rival professor's widow who accompanies the Professor and his nephew on the trip and adds romantic interest, the descendant of the Icelandic explorer (whose writings were the foundation for the trip) who provides a villain as well as plot tension, and the wonderful Gertrude the duck whose opening scene is memorable comedy, made this a much more entertaining movie than a straight enactment of the plot of the book would have been. Complications, rivalries, and added subterranean adventures also improve the plot. My children (who have lived in Iceland) and my 5 grandchildren all still enjoy this movie. We have it on video and will purchase a DVD as this is one to enjoy as a family again and again.