Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films

This work is a wide-ranging survey of American children's film that provides detailed analysis of the political implications of these films, as well as a discussion of how movies intended for children have come to be so persistently charged with meaning.Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films provides wide-ranging scrutiny of one of the most lucrative American entertainment genres. Beyond entertaining children—and parents—and ringing up merchandise sales, are these films attempting to shape the political views of young viewers? M. Keith Booker examines this question with a close reading of dozens of films from Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, and other studios, debunking some out-there claims—The Ant Bully communist propaganda?—while seriously considering the political content of each film.Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films recaps the entire history of movies for young viewers—from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to this year's Up—then focuses on the extraordinary output of children's films in the last two decades. What Booker finds is that by and large, their lessons are decidedly, comfortably mainstream and any political subtext more often than not is inadvertent. Booker also offers some advice to parents for helping children read films in a more sophisticated way. This work is a wide-ranging survey of American children's film that provides detailed analysis of the political implications of these films, as well as a discussion of how movies intended for children have come to be so persistently charged with meaning. Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films provides wide-ranging scrutiny of one of the most lucrative American entertainment genres. Beyond entertaining childrenand parentsand ringing up merchandise sales, are these films attempting to shape the political views of young viewers? M. Keith Booker examines this question with a close reading of dozens of films from Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, and other studios, debunking some out-there claims The Ant Bully communist propaganda?while seriously considering the political content of each film. Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films recaps the entire history of movies for young viewersfrom Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to this year's Up then focuses on the extraordinary output of children's films in the last two decades. What Booker finds is that by and large, their lessons are decidedly, comfortably mainstream and any political subtext more often than not is inadvertent. Booker also offers some advice to parents for helping children read films in a more sophisticated way. This book scrutinizes one of the most lucrative American entertainment genres. It looks at whether these films go beyond entertaining children and ringing up merchandise sales, and seek to shape the political views of young viewers. The author examines dozens of films from Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, and other studios, debunking some out-there claims{u2014}The Ant Bully communist propaganda?{u2014}while considering the political content of each film. What he finds is that, overall, their lessons are decidedly, comfortably mainstream and any political subtext more often than not is inadvertent. He also offers advice to parents for helping children read films in a more sophisticated way Disney, Pixar, and the Hidden Messages of Children's Films provides wide-ranging scrutiny of one of the most lucrative American entertainment genres. Beyond entertaining children and parents and ringing up merchandise sales, are these films attempting to shape the political views of young viewers? M. Keith Booker examines this question with a close reading of dozens of films from Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, and other studios, debunking some out-there claims. The Ant Bully communist propaganda? while seriously considering the political content of each film Disney Does America: A Political History Of Children's Film -- Disney After Disney: The Fall And Rise And Fall Of Disney's Dominance In Children's Film -- Magic Goes High-tech: Pixar And The Children's Film In The Age Of Digital Reproduction -- The Contemporary Challenge To Disney: Dreamworks And Others -- Conclusion: The Politics Of Children's Film : What Hollywood Is Really Teaching Our Children. M. Keith Booker. Includes Bibliographical References, Filmography, And Index.