Song of the South

[Alex_Toto_Disneyland]

I want to see the movie

[linklewtt]

Originally Posted by TopCat8

As most of you know, the movie "The Song of the South" has been banned in america for quite some time. Somehow, my dad got a copy of it, and I watched it for the first time, with high expectations. It was nothing like I had imagined it would be. I thought that the whole thing was going to be a cartoon, with Uncle Remus in the cartoon land like in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. It wasn't.

The only thing that I could base my assumptions on was Splash Mountain. I was looking forward to seeing all of those cool scenes from the ride, but none of them were there. I have to admit, I was disappointed. I don't understand where all this controversy came from. Why is there controversy? Because there is a black man speaking incorrectly? Ummm...That's not really a reason to ban a movie from ever being shown here again.

On the plus side, I thought that the animation was some of the best that I had ever seen. It looked computer generated at times, and I was really thrilled. It was funny too. I thought that Brer Rabbit was hilarious. All in all, I liked the movie ok...It just wasn't what I expected.

I saw the movie cuz my cousin downloaded it with limewire or something. I didn't watch the whole thing (i too thought it would be ALL cartoon), but i did watch the cartoon sequences. The story is more of a tale about the boy in the movie, and Uncle Remus uses the tales of Brer Rabbit as lessons for the boy to apply in his own life.

The reason why it's banned is because it is thought to inaccurately display slave life. Most African-Americans as well as others thought that Uncle Remus was too happy for a slave. He seemed to actually like slave life, and the PC people did not like that way of thinking at all. Of course Disney was just trying to make the film friendly, but ya, some peeps did not like the PC incorrectness.

Anyways, from the cartoon sequences i noticed some differences from the movie and the ride. For one thing, Chickapin Hill is no hill at all, but rather a large tree stump thing (it looks like the tree on the top of Chickapin Hill). But really it's more of a small hillock that the tree rests on. Also, Brer Fox uses a tar baby to trap Brer Rabbit, not honey.

But some similarities do occur as well. The scene in the ride where Brer Bear is caught in the rope trap and is dangling over the water happens in the movie also. And Brer Bear is tricked by Brer Rabbit into looking in a bee's tree for Brer Rabbit's laughing place. So some scenes they did take from the movie.

[ShrunkenNed]

I've said it once and I'll say it again: Nobody in this movie was a slave! Slavery was abolished after the civil war. People originally protesting the movie did not get this, and obviously people now don't either. UNCLE REMUS WAS NOT A SLAVE, nor was anyone else in the movie. They were free. The contreversy comes from the black stereotypes that were portrayed, including African -Americans working on a plantation. But they were portrayed as willing workers not, slaves.

[PeoplemoverMatt]

I guess humanity is far less mature than I thought. How difficult would it be to have the movie out there & at the same time acknowledge that in the past we used to discriminate based on race. It was a stupid thing to do, it still is a stupid thing to do, just like stereotyping is. If little Timmy watches this movie, just give it to him in the context of the times. If we have to always live in fear of history, how in the world can we ever learn from it?

-- Peoplemover "Wait...you actually mean a movie inaccurately portrays a stereotype?! *gasp* " Matt

[Piglet]

Originally Posted by PeoplemoverMatt

I guess humanity is far less mature than I thought. How difficult would it be to have the movie out there & at the same time acknowledge that in the past we used to discriminate based on race. It was a stupid thing to do, it still is a stupid thing to do, just like stereotyping is. If little Timmy watches this movie, just give it to him in the context of the times. If we have to always live in fear of history, how in the world can we ever learn from it?

-- Peoplemover "Wait...you actually mean a movie inaccurately portrays a stereotype?! *gasp* " Matt

Matt, you always have a very profound and awesome way of getting things in perspective. Your post is right on!

[Where'sYourLaughinPlace?]

Originally Posted by ShrunkenNed

I've said it once and I'll say it again: Nobody in this movie was a slave! Slavery was abolished after the civil war. People originally protesting the movie did not get this, and obviously people now don't either. UNCLE REMUS WAS NOT A SLAVE, nor was anyone else in the movie. They were free. The contreversy comes from the black stereotypes that were portrayed, including African -Americans working on a plantation. But they were portrayed as willing workers not, slaves.

I know that he wasn't a slave. I am just repeating what the NAACP said about the movie when it was released! They said it was an 'idyllic slave-master relationship', which is why they condemned the film. The problem is that people do not do any research on the subject. They look at the movie and say, oh look, he is a slave. They have no knowledge about the setting of the Uncle Remus stories. I am just going to leave it at that.

[Ezra]

The NAACP protests came about partly through the mistunderstandings about slavery, and concern about black people being portrayed as happy with their new lot after the Reconstruction, which they weren't. These were legitimate concerns but they were overblown. The portrayals in Song of The South are very dignified and sympathetic in comparison to other movies at that time. Just rent Birth of a Nation, Gone With the Wind, Pinky or The Oxbow Incident.

But Song of The South was vehemently protested in LA, not just due to those concerns but for personal reasons also. Walt Disney was concerned about how black people should be portrayed in his film, so the studio hired Clarence Edouard Muse as a consultant. Muse was an actor and a lawyer for the NAACP. Hoping to land the role of Uncle Remus himself, Muse resigned when James Baskett was hired instead.

Even though he knew that Disney was trying to get it right (after all they hired him didn't they), Clarence Muse began an NAACP campaign against the picture. He leaked a script to the editors of several black publications, an early script by southern author Dalton Reymond that was riddled with derogatory stereotypes. When he left Disney that script had already been doctored by a leftist screenwriter named Maurice Rapf at Muse's suggestion. Walter White, who headed the NAACP issued a release to the press denouncing the film, which he had never seen, based on the early Dalton Reymond script.

Muse organized the picketing of the premiere by the NAACP in Los Angeles. There's been more than a little speculation that he did all this as a personal vendetta, to punish Disney for hiring Baskett instead of himself. Maurice Rapf so much as said so himself. And James Baskett is quoted as saying: ?I believe that certain groups are doing my race more harm in seeking to create dissension than can ever possibly come out of the Song of the South.?

Walt Disney is not completely innocent in this, either. The Hays Office suggested the addition of a title marking the year as clearly after the Civil War, a suggestion he ignored. Disney rutinely bristled at these Production Code reviews, feeling that he really didn't need them. After all, he knew how to make a family picture! He didn't need anybody telling him how. This particular suggestion would have saved alot of confusion on the slavery issue. Also portraying post civil war blacks as hard-working (true) and happy about it (no so much) was certainly an error in judgement that could have been avoided with the right input from the NAACP's "Hollywood Bureau".

[disneyguy]

Amazon.com I believe has a link were you can purchuse a copy (VHS or DVD).

[DutoPuck]

^^is it in english or some other language? i know it's sold in like france, but i want an authentic english copy.

[RankoAnime]

Originally Posted by DutoPuck

^^is it in english or some other language? i know it's sold in like france, but i want an authentic english copy.

I've found it difficult to find anything considered "authentic." There are several people on eBay selling copies that they burned on DVD-R. I refuse to buy from them because I think what they're doing is wrong. I've read that they stopped selling Song of the South in Europe in 2001, so that could be another reason why it's difficult to find a legitimate copy of the movie.

[disneyguy]

In english

[Where'sYourLaughinPlace?]

Just wait till November of '06. There is no legitamite U.S. copy. You can but a British copy, but it would be in PAL. So try to find a PAL vcr or DVD.(For those of you who don't know, the format for US VCR's and DVD's is NTSC, whereas the format for European DVD's and VHS is PAL)