One of the most popular movies I had growing up as a kid was The Little Mermaid. And, if one were to look back at every Disney Animation Studio movie, I'm sure that The Little Mermaid would be ranked quite highly on that list.
I get it. The animation, music, and characters are all top notch. Do you want to know the only thing that I now have a problem with? The story. The idea of a young woman willfully giving up her voice to be with a man is quite troubling to me now as a parent of two.
Thankfully, there are now modern movies with progressive characters like Meilin Lee from Turning Red, and Ruby Gillman, from Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken that I can now show my children, and I have four reasons why this is such a great thing.
Oh, and some small spoilers up ahead.
I'm Glad That My Kids Now Have Girl Characters With Agency
I mentioned in the intro how I'm not a fan of the animated version of The Little Mermaid (I still haven't seen the live-action version of The Little Mermaid, but our very own Corey Chichizola gave it a good review), but this is a pretty recent feeling for me. Sure, I liked it as a kid, and I'm sure my daughter would like it, too. It's a pretty fun movie with some excellent music. However, I don't want my daughter to absorb the movie's message of it being okay to essentially give up who you are just to be with a hot guy.
I mean, it's not like Ariel doesn't have agency, as she does. She definitely does. Ultimately, she's the one who disobeys her father and gives away her voice just so she can have some legs. But, whereas another character, like Moana (which I'd much rather have my daughter watch) also disobeys her father, it's more because his rationale for not wanting anybody to go beyond the reef is backwards due to a traumatic event that happened in his life. It's not because it's been proven that going beyond the reef is dangerous. It's just a hangup that he has. So, Moana is not doing anything wrong by disobeying his order. She's just taking command, and doing what she has to do in order to save her village. Now this is a character that I want my daughter to see! Not Ariel. Ariel kind of sucks.
The same goes for Meilin Lee from Turning Red, which is a film that I think solidifies that Pixar is currently in its golden age. Meilin wants to be a good daughter and support her family, but at the same time, she wants to live her own life. When she rebels against her mother's wishes, it is ultimately because she wants to see some boys (the dreamy 4*Town), but her turning into a giant red panda is actually an allegory for her confusion about her changing body, which is a story that I'm so happy that my daughter gets to see (and one that I will get into later).
The same goes for Ruby Gillman. Like Meilin, Ruby has agency, and makes choices that reflect her growth as a character. Does she make mistakes? Of course. Everybody does. But, Ruby fixes them by HERSELF. She doesn't need daddy or her new boyfriend to come in to save the day like Ariel in The Little Mermaid.
In many ways, Ruby is the complete opposite of Ariel. Ariel wants to disavow her mermaid roots, and ultimately becomes human in the end, whereas Ruby pretends to be a human in the beginning, only to embrace her Kraken-self by the conclusion. That's the kind of female characters that I want my daughter to see - the kind where the message is "be yourself," rather than, "change for a man." That said, I'm also happy that there are male characters that my son can learn from as well.
I'm Also Glad That The Male Characters Are Supportive Of The Female Characters
Parents with sons, we need to do a better job. Yes, there are some great parents out there today who teach their boys to be tolerant, accepting, and kind (and parents who teach their daughters to be leaders, defenders, and brave), but, there are also plenty of parents who are teaching their boys that they are "superior" to women, and that a woman's job is to support "her man," without the idea being reciprocated.
That's BS. Ultimately, if we're ever going to have equality for ALL (which will never happen, but a boy can dream), then we need to be teaching our children that we should be supporting EVERYBODY. Especially the people in our lives.
Thankfully, that message is loud and clear in Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken, which we also gave a decent review. In the movie, all of the male characters are supportive of the female characters, and vice versa. Ruby's mother is a successful real estate agent, and she definitely makes the most income in the family. Her husband supports her completely, and their son is also quite proud of her. It's great to see female characters take the lead, and the men in their life backing them 100%. That's what I want my son to see in his movies, as he already sees it in real life with me.
I'm Happy That My Daughter Now Has Digestible Ways To Understand Puberty
When ranking the non-franchise Pixar movies, I'd probably put Soul at the top of the list (at one point it would have been Inside Out, but not now that it's getting a sequel), but Turning Red wouldn't be too far behind. Besides it just being an overall great movie, I love the fact that it actually has a teenager's period as a plot point!
I mean, Jeez, Pixar. You're making my job as a parent so much easier for me. When my seven-year-old daughter asked me what the mother in Turning Red meant when she hounded Meilin with pads, I had an opening to explain the menstrual cycle to my daughter in a way that was cogent and clear.
The same goes for Teenage Kraken, though in a more subtle manner. Ruby turning into a Kraken (and being uncomfortable with it at first) is an obvious metaphor for Ruby going through puberty, and I'm happy that I could explain both puberty, and extended metaphors to my daughter just through watching this movie. Score one for Dreamworks!
That Said, I Love That The Stories Are Genuinely Good And Not Just Message Movies
Lastly, I'm really happy that these are just genuinely good movies that all of us can enjoy. They're not message movies where my kids are supposed to learn a lesson. They're movies that my kids love, and they absorb the lesson, and this is no small feat.
While my daughter sang 4*Town songs for weeks after we saw Turning Red, the one scene she kept going to over and over again was the one with Meilin's mother when she was a teenager, and how the older woman went through the same thing that Meilin was going through when it came to her own mom.
When we watched Teenage Kraken the other day, my daughter said her favorite part was when Ruby learned that she had to take matters into her own hands and save the day, and I'm so happy that those were the scenes that resonated with her the most. It means that Pixar and Dreamworks succeeded.
Do you love movies like Turning Red and Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken? For more news on all things animation, make sure to swing around here often.
