Over the span of several generations, the Disney corporation has provided us with a plethora of memorable and quality entertainment, with many able to recall a certain Disney movie somewhere in their childhood. Whether it be a fantastical film about mermaids, or a simple story revolving around a portly little bear, Disney has been known to consistently produce quality entertainment.
However, the same cannot be said today; with every new release, it seems as though Disney is continually losing its ingenuity.
The decrease in quality is glaringly obvious when it comes to a crucial element of every Disney film: the characters. Such a decline was seen in Disney’s newest release of “Wish”, where it was clear that the process behind its creation was rushed, with the primary characters having incredibly weak development and questionable motives. This was seen most prominently in Asha, the main character, whose entire personality was based off of “quirky” little habits and had little to no character growth by the end of the film, staying stagnantly the same until the end.
While supporters of modern Disney movies may chastise such assertions, claiming that Asha was “adorable” and that she had shown significant growth, an underlying problem is badly dismissed. The problem is that Disney recycles its characters; Asha is far too similar to her predecessors of the modern Disney age. When looking back on Rapunzel, Anna, and even Moana, it is clear that they are all “quirky” in some way, and have a demeanor similar to that of a child, much like Asha. The fact that Disney reuses such character traits with every new movie they release only verifies their apparent laziness, that they can’t make money without reusing the same personality.
Another critical point to make about Disney’s decline is their recent style of animation. When comparing one of their newest releases, such as “Luca”, to their older films, a stark contrast in quality is clearly identifiable. It seems as though the corporation has adopted the style of what some call the “bean mouth” style, namely a large, circular mouth resembling that of a bean, resulting in characters that look exactly the same while being obnoxiously cartoonish.
While some may argue that it is silly to call an animation cartoonish, seeing as they are all digitally rendered, the point that there is no individuality in such characters must be made. One of the attributes of good animation is uniqueness, or easily identifiable characters. Such characters should have distinct traits that distinguish them from the others, resulting in a more entertaining viewing of an animated film. However, the characters recently released by Disney all resemble one another closely, with every character having a head larger than their bodies, and an outlandishly huge mouth, leading to a boring viewing experience.
It is clear that Disney is no longer the company it once was. A corporation once famed for producing touching, charming stories, it has now become a former shadow of itself, with characters and plotlines relegated to cliches and predictable outcomes. It is clear that if Disney wishes to retain their audience, they must go back to producing unique filmography, lest they become subject to a slow but steady entertainment death.
