Dumbo Meets Bambi

Due to the fact that I've been slacking on my new years resolution (and honestly, who doesn't slack on theirs?) this post will cover the next two Disney movies on my list. Not that this is a bad thing or anything since the next movies to watch are Dumbo and Bambi and I don't have much to say on either one.

So, here's my thoughts on Dumbo:

This movie is way short and could actually stand to be shorter. There are parts of this movie that are beyond pointless to the plot...I'm talking about that whole Pink Elephants on Parade bit. Not only is it creepy but the style it's drawn in is completely different from the style of the rest of the film so it makes for an uncomfortable juxtaposition  Also, I don't know for sure since I've never had an alcoholic beverage in my life, but I'm pretty sure drunkenness does not cause hallucinations.

Once again Disney, I know you were friends with Dali, but it's really not the best idea to always take the opinions of a surrealist to heart.

Also Dumbo seems to have some major issues with proportion/scale consistency in its characters. Those elephants change size all the time and Timothy, Dumbo's little mouse friend, goes from being mouse sized to the size of a crow by the end of the movie. I don't know about you but I never want to encounter a rodent that transforms sizes so quickly.

I do love the story book style this movie was drawn in though. I love it so much I'd rather sit down and read the story than watch it.

One thing that Dumbo utilizes in an absolutely fabulous way is silhouettes. They are just brilliant!

Finally, a few miscellaneous thoughts on this film: I'm sure people who are all about animal rights go crazy over this movie. Being unkind to anyone, but ESPECIALLY a child is absolutely wicked. And does anyone else ever wonder if, when Dumbo grows up, he grows into his ears or will his ears grow with him so that they're always disproportionately huge?

And here are my thoughts on Bambi:

Bambi has two things in common with a landscape painting; it's very pretty and very boring.

I do love the song from the opening sequence though.

Happy Valentine's Day

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way

I love Valentine's Day. I've never had a boyfriend, a date, or for that matter plans on Valentine's Day. Nevertheless I still profess that Valentine's Day is my most favorite holiday of all time. I feel like there's a lot of people out there who have turned the day that celebrates love into a day that celebrates romance and being in a relationship. I don't know how this holiday evolved into a "couples only" event (I blame Hallmark) but I find it a little sad that Valentine's Day has become Single Awareness Day. There's actually already a holiday that celebrates being single; it's called St Catherine's Day and it falls on November 25th. So why not celebrate a holiday that venerates love instead of berating your apparently unfortunate fate of being single? I know we all have plenty of people in our lives that we care about, be it friends or family.

I think another reason there's so much angst surrounding this holiday is the fact that it comes right during that time when everyone's really starting to hate winter. At this point we've suffered 3 months of cold and snow and we're having a hard time recalling what the sun looks like. Add on top of that a holiday where we're supposed to be full of love and happiness and I can see why people hate Valentine's Day. Take a moment and visualize what it would be like if this holiday took place in May instead of February. I bet it'd fair a lot better than it does with the critics. Honestly, sometimes it feels like Valentine haters are as bad as an atheist during Christmas.

Of course, the sluggishly cold weather is just another reason why I feel like it's important to celebrate Valentine's Day with happiness and enthusiasm. What better way to push away the winter blues than by spreading love and joy on February 14th? I mean, it's not like celebrating a bunch of dead Americans on President's Day is going to do that.

I know that elementary school children are the best when it comes to celebrating Valentine's Day. In fact, just earlier today as I was walking down the hallway at school a woman with 5 kids with her was walking down the hallway in the opposite direction I was going. As our paths crossed one of her little girls walked up to me, handed me a cookie, and said "Happy Valentine's Day!" It made my day. I said thank you to her and then gave her a Little Mermaid Valentine (because I'm classy and keep Valentine cards with me on this most special of days). You see to little children Valentine's Day isn't about having a significant other. It's about cards and candy and decorating a box to put all their cards and candy in.

 For me Valentine's Day is about showing affection to those I care about and making someone smile by giving them a card.

It also helps that there's an almost obscene amount of red and pink everywhere as I am in love with those two colors.

In any case, I wish you all a very happy Valentine's Day. I hope you've all had a wonderful day!