Embarrassingly in-depth thoughts about Disney movies from two Disney parents/fans. Hosted by us, Jared & Jill Belcher! We grew up on Disney movies and now we’re raising a family of our own and thinking a bit more critically of what our kids watch. Even as adults, we find ourselves not only singing the catchy songs from Disney movies, but talking a lot about the powerful messages, complicated characters, confusing plot points, and connection to real-life events in some of these stories, too. Truth be told, our in-depth Disney discussions annoyed our friends for too long, so now, we simply have these conversations on a podcast! After all, fairytales were traditionally how parents taught kids important life lessons. So we think a little critically about these popular movies to search for a deeper meaning. Like, what does Toy Story 4 say about forgiving your enemies? Does Bruno from Encanto also stand in as a metaphor for people who immigrate to a country where they feel unwanted? What’s the deal with Elsa being “the fifth spirit†in Frozen? What does Aerial see in the dopey Prince Eric, anyway? Why do parents also seem to die in Disney movies? Is a Muppet’s Christmas Carol the best adaptation of Charles Dickens’ novel? (hint: absolutely, yes). Join us as we deconstruct Disney films to find what’s under the surface, one episode at a time!
Welcome to our mini-series on the Toy Story franchise! Today, we're discussing the sequel that almost destroyed Pixar - Toy Story 2. These four episodes on the Toy Story franchise will be a little different, we're starting each one with the "Toy Story story" to share the history of how that film came to be, before we get to breaking down the movie. Surprisingly, Toy Story 2 has a wild history. Did you know that the film was accidentally deleted? And then deleted again on purpose? We also revisit the question, "Who is Andy's Dad?" And we consider a new Pixar theory - that Jessie originally belonged to Andy's Mom. Think we're crazy? Join us as we deconstruct Toy Story 2!
Welcome to our mini-series on the Toy Story franchise! Today, we're starting with the movie that launched both computer animation and a little studio called Pixar - Toy Story 1. These four episodes on the Toy Story franchise will be a little different, we're starting each one with the "Toy Story story" to share the history of how that film came to be, before we get to breaking down the movie. There's a lot of history to cover with Toy Story 1! Plus, we're diving into the biggest question of them all- who is Andy's dad? Let's deconstruct Toy Story!
It's our first live-action movie episode! Jungle Cruise was 2021's summer blockbuster hit, based on the classic ride at Disneyland. It's a fun family adventure film that's enjoyable, but not life changing or mind-blowing. Kind of like the ride! We talk about what we thought worked and what didn't, and Jared surprises Jill with a special new segment. Let's deconstruct The Jungle Cruise!
Turning Red is the newest film just released this week by Pixar Animation Studios on Disney Plus and it's... interesting! The film takes on the subject of puberty with the metaphor of a girl who suddenly turns into a red panda whenever she gets too emotional. At times, it's very clever and charming! At other times, it's cringy and complicated in its messaging. Is it good? Well, depends who you ask! In this episode, we deconstruct Turning Red.
Raya and The Last Dragon might be one of the best, yet underrated, films in recent Disney history. Unlike your standard princess movie, Raya is an action-packed adventure with a complex message about trust. Set in the fictional world of Kumandra, but inspired heavily by Southeast Asia. Our friend Rachel Shrum joins us for this episode as we breakdown what we liked and what we didn't like about Raya. Jill brings a new amazing theory about the dragons' magic. We ask a lot of questions in this episode, like... How might The Parent Trap play into the story? Why didn't the dragons use rain to trap the Drunn? Is the moral of the story (Trust anybody always) a dangerous message for kids? There's a lot to talk about here. Let's deconstruct Raya!
Luca is a different movie for Pixar! On the surface, it's a simple movie about friendship set in a picturesque Italian town. But there's a lot more below the surface! In this episode, we'll dive into some of the deeper messages of Luca. Plus, Jill has an AMAZING theory about the tally marks in Alberto's tower. Grab some pasta and gelato, we're deconstructing Luca!
We don't know about you, but we can't get the music from Encanto out of our heads! In this episode, we talk all about Encanto - from the features that makes the music unique, to the pressing questions like, Does Luisa need to workout? How did Mirabel get down from Bruno's tower? Who gave the Magrigal family this miracle, anyway? We're your Disney fans (and parents) who are about to way overthink Encanto.
Welcome to our podcast, Deconstructing a Fairytale, where we overthink Disney movies. We're two Disney parents (and fans) and we're starting this podcast to breakdown some of our favorite Disney films and waaaay overthink them.
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