Song of The South

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Years ago there was some disscusion about releasing SoS on a limited basis with a lot of the disclaimers mentioned in this thread. It was for an anniversay of SoS, maybe the 60th. The comment was the film was never restored. The condition of the movie doesn't meet todays standards for either streaming or DVD/BluRay release. Absolutely no way Disney would spend the $$$s necessary to restore the movie. That fact ended any shot of a limited release.
 
They could release it today as is and make money off it. But they have done the simple math and know how that would go. The know the lay of the land with the mainsteam media and how the publicity would go. The same media that says nothing about today's movies that are full of gun violence and misogamy and other vile imagery.

It's nothing but pandering and virtual signaling. SotS is a Sunday school lesson compared to 99% of what is widely distributed today.
 
They could release it today as is and make money off it. But they have done the simple math and know how that would go. The know the lay of the land with the mainsteam media and how the publicity would go. The same media that says nothing about today's movies that are full of gun violence and misogamy and other vile imagery.

It's nothing but pandering and virtual signaling. SotS is a Sunday school lesson compared to 99% of what is widely distributed today.
What I've read releasing it as is is not an option. The quality of the available film isn't close to standards required for commercial release. Disney can't really release a commercial product with bootleg quality.

Disney doesn't want the publicity of spending $$$ restoring a move many people consider to be racist.
 
Because people have bullied them into hiding it. Yet many of the same people have no problem with the vile, disgusting songs and movies that are released today.

Mob justice, and the mob isn't really that big to begin with. The lines at Splash Mountain prove that.
Is that what’s happening or does Disney realize that it’s a problematic film based on a fictionalized version of the reconstruction south with multiple racist caricatures? There’s a reason they didn’t call Splash Mountain “Uncle Remus’s boat ride”.

It was made in a different era when the views it espoused were more mainstream and that’s fine. We now realize the issues with that and that’s why it isn’t being distributed anymore. No one is holding SOTS burning parties or anything of the sort. It isn’t being wiped from the history books, it’s just not being promoted.
 


Which can be done without this film being available to the general public. This wasn’t some smashing success of a film either. I have never seen it. I am curious sure but I really could care less if they release it or not. I don’t understand why some people want it so bad.

The movie itself isn't spectacular in my opinion and I'm not especially attached to the story or characters so it's not nostalgia. I fundamentally disagree with Disney's approach towards it. For Disney to do take this approach, they should think that 1. the movie is racist and 2. this amount of racism is so severe that people should not view it. I don't think think that the movie is as racist as many try to make it out to be and even if it was, I don't think the movie should be buried. If anything, I feel that it's a landmark movie in the fight against racism at the time given the awards to the actors and the main plot.

If people must be taught to be offended by every little thing and then such things must be censored, racism increases its power over society only in a different form. I would like to see more people learn to appreciate what the film does well and learn to forgive for the parts that could be done better. I don't want to see people who would never try to intentionally offend anyone fear being labelled as racists because society is overly critical of anything even potentially racially insensitive.

Apart from if/when Disney releases the movie on Disney+, I think it's good for people to form their own opinions about it and know it's OK to like many of Disney's products but still dislike things they do as a company.
 
Because people have bullied them into hiding it. Yet many of the same people have no problem with the vile, disgusting songs and movies that are released today.

Mob justice, and the mob isn't really that big to begin with. The lines at Splash Mountain prove that.
Wait, so you’re saying the lines at Splash (not clarifying if you mean the ride or the store) are due to the popularity of a movie that hasn’t been aired or sold anywhere in probably 35-40 years?? Not because the ride has one of the largest drops of any log flume in the country? Or if you’re speaking of the store, not because people know merchandise from a changed ride will net them money online from collectors who just want to remember a ride from their childhood? Weak argument on your part.
 
Is that what’s happening or does Disney realize that it’s a problematic film based on a fictionalized version of the reconstruction south with multiple racist caricatures? There’s a reason they didn’t call Splash Mountain “Uncle Remus’s boat ride”.

Yet they still had all the characters and sold the merchandise. Don't buy that excuse.

It was made in a different era when the views it espoused were more mainstream and that’s fine. We now realize the issues with that and that’s why it isn’t being distributed anymore.

What views? Have you even seen it? The reality is that people want anything related to the old south to be portray racism and slavery, and if it doesn't, it is somehow condoning racism and slavery. That's absurd. The reality is it a kids movie with a very uplifting message that doesn't portray the injustices of the time. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, especially considering the absolute garbage that society is willing to accept as main stream today.

No one is holding SOTS burning parties or anything of the sort. It isn’t being wiped from the history books, it’s just not being promoted.

Please can't even buy a copy of it to burn. Not being promoted isn't correct. The film as a whole been erased unless you want to go bootleg. Beyond absurd. People dying every day from gun violence, yet people can't wait to see the latest, most violent film at the movies. I won't even go into all the exploitation of women that is allowed and people want no part of hiding that.

But you can't buy a copy of SotS. It would be laughable if it weren't true. Bizarro World.
 


Wait, so you’re saying the lines at Splash (not clarifying if you mean the ride or the store) are due to the popularity of a movie that hasn’t been aired or sold anywhere in probably 35-40 years?? Not because the ride has one of the largest drops of any log flume in the country? Or if you’re speaking of the store, not because people know merchandise from a changed ride will net them money online from collectors who just want to remember a ride from their childhood? Weak argument on your part.

I'm saying that if it were really racist, people wouldn't wait in line for hours to ride it. And people wouldn't be buying the merchandise. People are so obsessed with race that if you can't tie anything even remotely to anything that could be considered racist by anybody they can't wait to squash it. Mostly just pandering and virtual signaling. Look how wonderful I am because I'm standing up to the evil of SotS.
 
Please can't even buy a copy of it to burn. Not being promoted isn't correct. The film as a whole been erased unless you want to go bootleg. Beyond absurd. People dying every day from gun violence, yet people can't wait to see the latest, most violent film at the movies. I won't even go into all the exploitation of women that is allowed and people want no part of hiding that.

But you can't buy a copy of SotS. It would be laughable if it weren't true. Bizarro World.
And this is why the discourse about the film has become one-sided, and thus, is becoming more apparent with recent events. Most have already formed opinions based on one-sided anecdotes without even seeing the film, and that's not helped matters, yet if there were clarifications added to the film, and the film was unvaulted, then at least better discussions could be had of SOTS, and assumptions wouldn't be made.

SOTS is very misunderstood. As much as it was a product of its time, it was still a pioneering film for Hollywood inclusion as James Baskett was the first African-American man to win an Oscar for his performance in the film.
 
The movie itself isn't spectacular in my opinion and I'm not especially attached to the story or characters so it's not nostalgia. I fundamentally disagree with Disney's approach towards it. For Disney to do take this approach, they should think that 1. the movie is racist and 2. this amount of racism is so severe that people should not view it. I don't think think that the movie is as racist as many try to make it out to be and even if it was, I don't think the movie should be buried. If anything, I feel that it's a landmark movie in the fight against racism at the time given the awards to the actors and the main plot.

If people must be taught to be offended by every little thing and then such things must be censored, racism increases its power over society only in a different form. I would like to see more people learn to appreciate what the film does well and learn to forgive for the parts that could be done better. I don't want to see people who would never try to intentionally offend anyone fear being labelled as racists because society is overly critical of anything even potentially racially insensitive.

Apart from if/when Disney releases the movie on Disney+, I think it's good for people to form their own opinions about it and know it's OK to like many of Disney's products but still dislike things they do as a company.

You and I must have watched vastly different movies. Uncle Remus and Aunt Tempy were based on racial stereotypes and Uncle Remus was completely infantilized by the white female main characters in the movie. James Baskett was given an "honorary" Oscar which was a bronze replica of the gold statuette given to other winners of the award. He was not considered for the competitive award.
 
You and I must have watched vastly different movies. Uncle Remus and Aunt Tempy were based on racial stereotypes and Uncle Remus was completely infantilized by the white female main characters in the movie. James Baskett was given an "honorary" Oscar which was a bronze replica of the gold statuette given to other winners of the award. He was not considered for the competitive award.
That's because of segregationist rules at the time, which Walt was opposed to. Walt fought hard for Baskett to be nominated, but he couldn't beat the system, so Baskett had to settle for honorary instead. Eventually, the rules were changed, particularly in the face of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-1960s.
 
Yet they still had all the characters and sold the merchandise. Don't buy that excuse.



What views? Have you even seen it? The reality is that people want anything related to the old south to be portray racism and slavery, and if it doesn't, it is somehow condoning racism and slavery. That's absurd. The reality is it a kids movie with a very uplifting message that doesn't portray the injustices of the time. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, especially considering the absolute garbage that society is willing to accept as main stream today.



Please can't even buy a copy of it to burn. Not being promoted isn't correct. The film as a whole been erased unless you want to go bootleg. Beyond absurd. People dying every day from gun violence, yet people can't wait to see the latest, most violent film at the movies. I won't even go into all the exploitation of women that is allowed and people want no part of hiding that.

But you can't buy a copy of SotS. It would be laughable if it weren't true. Bizarro World.

The whole message of the movie is that former slaves should stay on the plantation that is their "home" or "where they belong". That is what the briar patch represents. The pain that you know is better than the evils that may exist outside the "briar patch". That whole sentiment is even in the lyrics in the spiritual the former slaves sing as they go into the fields to work in the movie.

I agree that there is a lot of garbage in contemporary movies, but that isn't an excuse for what Disney created with SoTS. It's a white man's fantasy of what the post-Civil War era should look like where freed Black men and women continue to "know their place" and be content with it.
 
Which can be done without this film being available to the general public. This wasn’t some smashing success of a film either. I have never seen it. I am curious sure but I really could care less if they release it or not. I don’t understand why some people want it so bad.
What's interesting to me is that if Disney hadn't made such a point to bury it, I doubt anyone would care about it at all. It would be just another old movie on the shelf. It reminds me of when people talk about kids wanting attention even if it's negative attention, or the saying, bad publicity is still good publicity.
 
That's because of segregationist rules at the time, which Walt was opposed to. Walt fought hard for Baskett to be nominated, but he couldn't beat the system, so Baskett had to settle for honorary instead. Eventually, the rules were changed, particularly in the face of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-1960s.

Hattie McDaniel won a competitive Oscar in 1940 for her role in Gone With the Wind, eight years before Baskett got the honorary award. There were no rules in place in the 1940's prohibiting the nomination of Blacks for Academy Awards.
 
Hattie McDaniel won a competitive Oscar in 1940 for her role in Gone With the Wind, eight years before Baskett got the honorary award. There were no rules in place in the 1940's prohibiting the nomination of Blacks for Academy Awards.

I think it was because SofS didn't fit into any of the specific categories they had at the time. The Academy Awards were very different back then.
 
Hattie McDaniel won a competitive Oscar in 1940 for her role in Gone With the Wind, eight years before Baskett got the honorary award. There were no rules in place in the 1940's prohibiting the nomination of Blacks for Academy Awards.
There was still a lot of discrimination at the time. After Hattie won the award, she was barred from an after party because of a 'no blacks' rule, and the posters also deliberately reduced the prominence of black characters. Walt, on the other hand, treated James Baskett better, yet SOTS was still dogged by the film premiering in a racially-segregated area, along with the obvious controversies the film itself had.
 
What I've read releasing it as is is not an option. The quality of the available film isn't close to standards required for commercial release. Disney can't really release a commercial product with bootleg quality.

Disney doesn't want the publicity of spending $$$ restoring a move many people consider to be racist.
I have a harder view of them not trying preserve SOTS then not allowing for distribution. Who becomes the arbitrator of what needs to be saved from the past? Present? Future? More of philosophic question.

I believe that they have preserved and archived SOTS to best of their ability. Presentable to todays video and audio standards is not likely. Commercially viable by some means of distribution to some extent because people still clamor for SOTS to be released.
 
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