Selected Discussions from ART 270

"Discussion" is actually a misnomer, since very few of the assignments from this art history class required response to other people's posts. Still, the course Women in Art was quite enjoyable, but I wouldn't recommend taking a 22 day college course meant to be spread out over 15 weeks. It suffers from having to focus on nothing else but the material, making it very hard for much of it to sink in and be savored. Thought if nothing else, the course was great for learning more about the long history of exclusion, objectification, and outright abuse of women artists in Western culture, and I don't regret taking it. One of my final projects is on medieval illuminated manuscripts and the other is writing a thesis paper on the movie Brave. I got high marks on many of my discussions, so since art, criticism, and feminism are things I like writing about, well, it seems appropriate to share them!

Fair warning: Long post is long, very heavy with topics of female representation, male gaze, and art terminology. Also, trigger warning for mentions of rape.

So if you're ready, click behind the jump to read about my exciting pedagogy!

I'm not the only one, right?

I rented The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey yesterday, and got to relive all the excited feelings from back in December when I saw it in theaters. The viewing was a bit more haphazard, as I kept waiting for my parents and older brother to come in and watch with me. Plus I had to keep pausing or rewinding to earlier scenes to remind my mother that this movie isn't any of the earlier versions of the movie. Don't ask me why it was a surprise for her to see that all the dwarves look different.

At one point Ben and I were on the computer as neither of us remembered who the actor playing Bard the Bowman will be (who is also for some reason going to be in a couple reboots: Dracula, as well as The Crow), and besides getting lost clicking links and looking at awesome things on The Mary Sue, got into a discussion over watching certain franchise films despite confirmations that they suck. The topic that sparked this (not) new debate was the X-Men film series. I haven't watched any of them as they don't seem particularly well made from a story perspective, and then Ben stated he'd watched all of them despite knowing they weren't well made from a story perspective. The talk then devolved into how great the 90s animated series had been before remembering we were hungry and still needed to finish The Hobbit. The company hadn't even fought with the trolls yet!

Still, I started thinking back onto similar arguments we had on just such an approach to media. I am of the opinion that if something is bad, I will not throw more money at it than I have to. For example, The Chronicles of Narnia films became strangely awful starting with Prince Caspian. Thus, I felt no need to purchases DVD copies of either it, or its sequel, Voyage of the Dawntreader. Especially now when money is tight, and traveling is difficult, if I can acquire the means to view something for free, even if it's just a small preview of a project, I will do so (internet permitting). Then later, I will make efforts to support said project through monetary means if I actually like it. This view probably explains why I'm so into crowd-funding projects, especially Kickstarter.

Ben, on the other hand, will support something even if it is terrible. We have had many a debate just on Star Trek shows and movies, and why he would pour so much money into a franchise he's able to find so many flaws with. I still question why he would pay money to go see the re-released Star Wars films when he is so vocal about the editing changes, such as "Han shot first," not to mention the nefarious Jar Jar Binks.

So really I couldn't decide if this issue is a Ben thing or a male thing. I don't have much empirical evidence to support either conclusion, therefore I have no choice but to keep assuming my brother is full of crazy like the rest of the family (self included).

More Film Review

It seems I've been seeing a lot of movies in the past two months. If anyone recalls the previous entry wherein I discussed going to the movie theater, there was a preview for Rise of the Guardians that made me have low expectations going in. In addition, I watched Brave, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and now Rise of the Guardians. I liked Brave well enough, but that review will be a separate post, if ever. My ultimate opinion of the adaptation of William Joyce's work is that the story may have faired better as a long term serial, such as comic form, than squished into a 90 minute feature film. I can tell without having read any of the books that it suffers from most book adaptations in that it feels rushed and incomplete. I give it a 6.5 on a 10 star scale. Oh, and The Hobbit is definitely a 9, go see it if you haven't yet. There are plenty of good online reviews of it, so I'll leave the Googles to handle it. However, interested parties who want more of an answer on to how Peter Jackson is able to squish the Hobbit into three movies, can read this fine essay on textuality.

Out of the previews I hadn't seen before:

Escape from Planet Earth looks like Harold and Kumar with extraterrestrials.

Parental Guidance is a family comedy attempting to address the generation connect with millenials versus baby boomers. I couldn't stop staring at how fat Billy Crystal has gotten the whole trailer.

Cirque du Soleil is making a feature film with the help of James Cameron. I'm surprised it took this long for the company to produce one. They really couldn't have chosen a better person to help with the project as James Cameron is notorious for his special effects porn.
 
After Earth looks weird, and leaves me wondering how Will Smith feels about being typecast as the hero guy for post-apocalyptic stories.

Monsters University is revisiting Monsters Inc. characters in college. The trailer played out like a college attendance ad. Yay, higher education? The original movie was a 5 on a 10-star scale for me, so unlikely I will think much of this film.

Oblivion started out as a mind fog once Tom Cruise came into view. My mind woke back up when Morgan Freeman came into view.

Star Trek: Into Darkness I will be watching mostly for Benedict Cumberbatch, as I recently finished the Sherlock series to date and have a bit of a crush on him and his 1337 acting skills.

SPOILER ALERT FOR RISE OF THE GUARDIANS

This movie isn't terrible, but I am left wanting more and questioning a lot of the decisions made in the plot. Going in, all I figured I would like is the character designs and some of the humor. It is a touching story about belief and guarding childhood innocence, but I still felt meh afterward. I am much more drawn to the concept art and extra comics on the Dreamworks tumblr and deviantART (rufftoon in particular did some great pre-movie comics of Pitch Black) than I was watching the film. I also really want to read the books, and maybe one day do a video commentary of the film. Until then, pretend this is the commentary track as you watch Rise of the Guardians.

After reading some synopses of the Guardians of Childhood series, the movie definitely would have faired better with early indications that the legendary figures who become guardians originate from somewhere.  I mean, the introduction is nice, with Jack's birth by moon magic and rising out of the water, however I am left with more questions than answers. I can only hope the disc release will have mini extras not unlike Kung fu Panda's background on the other martial artists of the Furious Five. The childish joy and innate creativity of Jack is present here with the magical ability to fly and create/mold ice, but the price being invisibility and inability to talk to people is rather steep. Plus, his questions of "why am I here" are most forward in my mind as well. Seeing as the Man in the Moon is the driving force for creating these mythological figures to watch over children, I question why he is treated as a god figure and kept out of sight of the audience. THIS BEING NEEDS TO BE SEEN AND HAVE HIS STORY TOLD. 

The introductions to the other characters reveals the innate quality of the guardians as protectors of the wonder and innocence of childhood, rather obvious given the titles of all in the series. Nicholas St. North is a great character, though, as far as Santa Claus renditions go, and not just because of his warrior skills, outlaw look, or great Russian accent. He is also shown to be a creator, in his ice molding of a working railroad and locomotive that turns into a jet. The yetis are a humorous touch, both in appearance and language, and as is later revealed, the actual workers at the North Pole. I'm uncertain what the elves are for, as they mostly seem clumsy and don't contribute much to either decorating or creation of foodstuffs.

The most evil thing the villain can do is cover everything with sparkly black sand. This phenomenon is apparently bad and not just a cheap grab for attention, sending North to sound the alarm and rally the Avengers other Guardians. The North Pole is a great base, and looks not unlike the technological powerhouses of the Batcave or the Q Branch; in this case, it relies on magic and steampunk awesomeness to monitor children's belief and send messages by northern lights.

The thing I couldn't fathom the entire time I anticipated this film was why the Tooth Fairy was part hummingbird. Thank goodness for Wikipedia. The Sandman is a great design, and has really good sand powers, much better than Gaara (sorry, Naruto fans). I mean, going from cloud dispersal unit to giant functional airplane takes some serious skill. I also admire the choice to keep Sandy nonvocal; communicating by sand emote whenever a direct answer is needed is definitely well-suited for animation, although it seems this quality is so he won't wake up anyone, which is silly when no one around him is asleep.

E. Aster Bunnymund, as he is known in the books, is a funny fellow, because of course he travels by tunnel, but I don't understand how he is so affected by the cold, seeing as he has good fur coverage. Then again, being a springtime holiday, he's probably not designed for freezing temperatures (making his anger at the blizzard of '68 a touch more understandable). He also takes his work very seriously, and must be damned talented if he can throw a hissy fit while still expertly painting an egg. I really like the choice of Hugh Jackman for the role, but wonder how much that decision influenced the Australian-warrior look and attitude of the final character, as the book seems to follow a different path. Also, I am now pondering why a symbol of a spring festival of fertility is traditionally male...

After the realization that there is indeed a threat from the Nightmare King, the guardians are tasked with inviting their newest addition, whom we cut to. After a few centuries of practice, it is obvious Jack is quite adept now at both flying and causing chaotic fun. Apparently he's buddies with the wind, but this idea isn't explored further. Also I'm confused as to where Jack's home is, as he refers to it, but never actually goes there. His direct interaction with children is clearly what the rest of the guardians are lacking, as I've yet to see any of the others actually play with the beings they are sworn to protect. There follows a cute snowball fight, the revelation that Jack's talent is Happy Snow®, and a demonstration of how physics is a bitch (but all in good fun, right Dreamworks?). It is also clear that despite multiple references in songs and stories, no one actually believes in Jack Frost, keeping him sad and lonely. However, his innate curiosity allows the plot to move forward from this moment of depression, as well as reveal the villain's plot to steal children's dreams and create nightmares to give himself more power. I am wondering if the Nightmare King's penchant toward divaness is at all the influence of Loki from the Thor movie, or if evil diva has always been a thing and I'm just now noticing.

Considering all I've seen of Jack Frost so far, I'd have to agree with the guy that welcoming him to the Guardians' fold with fanfare, synchronized dancing, and new, overly sparkly shoes is not the way to get him to take the oath. Again establishing that he is a lone wolf and doesn't work well with others, there comes a long sequence with naughty list jokes, more exploration of the workshop, all in order for Santa to have a private conversation with Jack (hey, it's the main challenge of changing from a textual medium to a visual one). North uses the analogy of stackable Russian dolls to explain how one must find the center of one's being (i.e. special talent) to embrace the nature of being a guardian or something. I get the feeling both me and Jack lost track of the conversation somewhere during this monologue. At least he isn't whiny and bitchy like Anakin Skywalker. Now that we have added to Jack's personal quest, it's time for conflict!

Tooth's palace is under attack by nightmares, so off go the guardians. The sequence with the sleigh is rather brilliant, because of course it's awesome, Bunny is afraid of heights, and Sandy gets to be silly. I also would love magic portal orbs. They would be as useful as magic portal drums. I question how Jack is a good driver despite all evidence pointing to him never having driven in his life, much less something like Santa's sleigh. The villain wanted the fairy minions and the teeth, but the why will have to wait until after he's done with his Bond villain spiel. Pitch Black the Nightmare King (Bogeyman) is an understandable villain, as all he wants is to be believed in, although the whole fear and darkness thing is rather cliche. His design reminds me of Hades from the Disney Hercules, but without the fire. I can't imagine it's easy though, having a talent no one appreciates or wants around.

Anyhow, now the audience is allowed to know (unless you read the books) that children's teeth contain their memories. Thus the next goal in Jack's quest for identity is revealed, as it is also explained that each of the guardians were human (special animal?) before “ascending.” However before that, the heroes have to race against time to continue the tooth fairy work and maintain children's belief to keep Tooth alive until they can recover the stolen fairies and teeth from Pitch. Silly montage is silly, as is the fact that Tooth has an entire diverse army all over the world tasked with collecting teeth and leaving gifts behind (mice in the European division!). Of course, the other guardians being boys, the job quickly turns into a competition, and halfway through the night realize they forgot about leaving gifts, which I think was just an excuse to have the visual joke of getting coins from a laundromat. Besides, later the competition starts up again with each guardian leaving elaborate gifts, which again, seems just an excuse for jokes such as to have North start leaving decorated Christmas trees in children's rooms.

Then comes a visit to Jamie, a child Jack had played with earlier, and the hilarious consequence of the kid waking up while the guardians bicker and squabble over his tooth. Hilarious squabbling continues as the guardians attempt to keep the kid calm while they figure out how to put the kid to sleep. Oh wait, that's Sandy's job. Jamie's pet greyhound is in the room, though, and starts a glowering contest with Bunnymund, which Jack thinks would be much more exciting as an actual fight. Apparently being seven feet tall and an accomplished fighter doesn't stop instinctual fear of one's enemies. Jack's prank backfires, and three of the guardians are put to sleep in addition to Jamie and the dog.

Of course, the villain is hardly idle, and it is apparent his next target is Sandy. Jack and Sandman chase the obvious trap of the nightmares, which in addition to showing that Sandy is a badass ninja, also reveals that dreams can play with each other. The cutaway reveals the problematic wandering of Sophie, Jamie's baby sister, who gets a hold of one of Santa's magic portal orbs and heads off to Bunny's realm which manages to wake up Santa who must have grabbed the other two sleeping guardians and ran off in search of Jack and Sandy, as they manage to make it into the next scene. Back to the battle with the nightmares, Jack shows off his power, albeit inadvertently, Sandy is devoured, and the guardians are forced to flee and recoup their losses. Easter is the next day, so the heroes must scramble to pull off the egg hunt in time to keep Bunny's powers going, despite the still very dangerous threat of Pitch.

In the warren, it is again brought to the audience's attention that the other guardians have not actually played with children in a very long time. As North says, "We are so busy creating wonders for children! We have no time for children!" Jack has to teach them basic social skills, which is beyond ironic. The following montage of preparing the eggs for Easter is both bizarre and endearing (walking eggs, wow), but I did love the rivers of sparkly paint.

Back on the surface, Jack clearly did not go to hero training, and does not realize that hearing a familiar voice after three hundred years is an obvious trap. It would be a thing for the Nightmare King to live underground, even if it wasn't established in the books. Pitch once again shows off his manipulative ass Bond villain impression, and offers Jack the thing he wants most in exchange for staying out of the fight with the guardians. I will note I was rather distracted by the frost detail on Jack's clothes during this sequence.

Upon Jack's return to the surface, it is revealed the eggs were assaulted by nightmares and destroyed before reaching the surface. With no eggs, the children stop believing in Bunny, so now he must deal with being invisible to mortal eyes. Now follows the obligatory internal party conflict and turning upon the rookie, who has developed a terribly timed stutter to prevent his explanation of Pitch's trickery. So of course Jack would run to Antarctica in an emo fit of 'woe is me.'

By now one would think that Jack learned his lesson that Pitch isn't trustworthy, but at least he ultimately rejects Pitch's offer of alliance to create fear and darkness. Pitch now performs a totally dick move and holds Baby Tooth fairy hostage for Jack's stick (which isn't the source of his power, wtf). After beating the crap out of Jack, Pitch heads off to continue his evil Bond villain deeds, or something. The rescued Baby Tooth helps to revive Jack and opens his memories for him, revealing the obligatory sad family past (and resulting death that lead to his ascension). Jack gains new confidence now that he knows his center (special talent = happy snow, remember?) which is apparently being chaotic fun in the face of danger. Jack also mysteriously gains the power to mend wood.

Cut away to North's base being attacked, and Pitch triumphantly stamping out the remaining belief on the globe model, except for one stubborn little light, which happens to be Jamie, the child from earlier. He is talking to his stuffed animal to grant him a sign he isn't crazy and the guardians are real. He obviously has serious mental issues if talking to his toys is his best support for confirming reality, but hey, children have great imaginations. Jack, being a clever lad, uses his ice molding talents to get Jamie to believe in the Easter Bunny. Now that we're done with the obligatory heart-touching moment, Santa shows up with the gang to protect the last child on earth who still believes in them. Apparently belief is the magic that powers sled driving ability and one's size, as both have severely gone down in quality since these characters were last seen. Cute little Bunny is cute, pffft. Pitch attacks with his nightmares, which now resemble a tidal wave, and the heroes must rally. After some fighting and the obligatory team effort speech, everyone realizes fun is Pitch's kryptonite.

Sledding around on some convenient large woks, the heroes gather Jamie's friends using Jack's Happy Snow ability and reawaken their belief in the legendary guardians, which prompts the obligatory heroic stand of the children. In case you've been missing it, our overarching message in this movie is that of children = future. Weather safety is obviously not on many of their minds, though, as many of the children lack proper coats and footwear. Oh well, the plan works, as Sandy returns and we have gratuitous yeti fights. Also egg tiki warrior statues and a life-size brontosaurus of sand!

With all the fun weakening Pitch's fear effect, it only takes a good hit from Sandy to put the Nightmare King to sleep and allow the guardians to finish off the rest of the nightmares. Jack is given a cute Russian doll by Santa upon the battle's end, and the snow party continues. After a few more visual and spoken jokes, Pitch revives, only to slink off into the woods. The party chases after him, back to the pond of Jack's birth. It should be noted that for a bird, Tooth has a wicked punch. Pitch still attempts to remain a returning villain with his blah blah blah fear is me blah blah, only for everyone to quickly realize that all the nightmares surrounding them is from Pitch's fear. Being dragged off to be destroyed by his own creations/allies feels a lot like the ending to We're Back: A Dinosaur Story, the Disney Hercules, the Disney Princess and the Frog, and probably many more movies.

Jack is sworn in as a guardian, commencing the cheering and celebrating of all the characters and guardian minions. As the obligatory older sibling-wisdom-bonding moment occurs, I am left wondering why the children are allowed on this twice-stated dangerous pond in the middle of winter weather, with Sandy's dream sand raining down clearly meant to put the children to sleep and left outside so the guardians can slip away. Riding out into the night, Jack's moral of this adventure is that if the moon tells you something, you should believe it. Which must be why driving on full moon nights is so dangerous, as everyone is listening to moon speak rather than paying attention to the road. Luckily the credits show the children being returned to their homes with the help of the guardian minions, along getting teeth brushed, tucked in and all. I did like the final note of the film with Phil the yeti signing Jamie's monster book on the Sasquatch page.

As I said earlier, the film is about 6.5/10. Entertaining, but felt lacking enough to not warrant a second viewing.

Gender Issues in Children's Films

First off, let's all give a grand cheer that I finished my six-week internship at the hospital without major incident, "Hurrah!"

Secondly, the inspiration for this blog came from watching the Colbert Report and hearing how Pixar's latest movie, Brave, might possibly be about a lesbian princess. Go ahead and try a web search, apparently it's all over news magazines and entertainment blogs because a few authors speculated a strong, independent female who wants to fight like one of the boys can't be anything other than gay. Without actually wading into that fray myself, I, along with my coworker, instead went to the Disney filmography, including Pixar's films, and went through each major theatrical release that we've seen to analyze that movie for strong female characters. I lucked out with memories of the movies, as I have a five-year-old girl living with me who watches them constantly. Granting a point for each film with a strong female character, we came up with about 17 points for over 70 years worth of Disney movies, including the live action ones. Not very encouraging.

One of my biggest criticisms in recent years when it comes to Pixar, is their seeming inability to break away from the "let's be buddies" plot line, a la Toy Story, wherein they also seem to have difficulty portraying a female character as anything other than a motherly nurturer or sexual enticement to the male characters. Disney is hardly much better as females tend to be damsels in distress or sexy femme fatales. So if Brave is in fact, breaking the pattern by having a strong female lead wherein romantic interest isn't the entire point of her existence nor is it awkwardly placed (Ratatouille I'm looking at you) then by all means, I will withhold my usual cynicism. (I am actually quite fond of many Disney/Pixar works, so this article is by no means flames and hatred, save that for the summer barbeques).

For brevity's sake, I stuck to those full-length feature films that were either entirely or partly animated for this blog entry, going into a bit more detail now that I had better access to Wikipedia and Google. However, before we wade into such an endeavor, it might help to define what I'm looking for. The feminine identity is a complicated beast, and what girls look for in a story is often quite different than what a boy would want, and Mr. Neil Gaiman talks about gendered stories quite nicely in this essay. What I tend to see in Female-oriented stories are an emphasis on relationships, whether with a lover, family, or friends; whereas male-oriented tales have a specific goal the character wants to achieve, whether it's treasure, acknowledgement, or a love interest. What is often valued in classic folk lore in many cultures are women operating in the spheres of hearth and nursery, thus exalting traits that would make a woman an ideal wife and mother. It is important to point out though, that much of Disney's volume of work (and subsequently, DreamWorks, Pixar, and so forth) are based on these folk tales, and as such, follow those cultural and historical patterns that many critics of today see: that of sexism, racism, and so forth, especially from early cultural works. Joseph Campbell was helpful enough to undertake a study of the breadth of existing mythological sources for patterns that he summarized using the example of the hero's narrative and then utilized Jungian psychology to point out character archetypes that can be used for most any work of literature. Also helpful for this scholar was finding that many internet bloggers already talk about Campbell's archetypes and thus make handy quick references, including one on adapting the mythic frame to stories about female heroes.

There are a wide range, often narrowed down to eight, roles that characters, whether male or female, can occupy in any given story. I made extensive use of this blog's descriptions, although feel free to wander around tvtropes.com or elsewhere on the internet if you want even more detail. For the role of heroines, we have the BOSS (leadership role), the SEDUCTRESS (sexy girl), the SPUNKY KID (attitude), the FREE SPIRIT (hippie or oddball), the WAIF (damsel in distress), the LIBRARIAN (clean-cut intellectual), the CRUSADER (warrior woman), and the NURTURER (mommy or caretaker). In order to give a Disney/Pixar film a point for strong female characters, it had to meet certain criteria:
1) Female characters, or characters that have feminine traits.
2) Being of an archetype other than SEDUCTRESS, WAIF, or NURTURER, since those are the most common according to many critics.
3) If occupying SEDUCTRESS, WAIF or NURTURER, at least have other characteristics to give her an independent identity, instead of exhibiting just passivity or sexual appeal as in classic literature, e.g. the sexy lamp test.
4) If occupying SPUNKY KID, must be more than an adorable mascot, since that also appears to be common.

This entry took on way more detail than my original debate went, by the way.
ONWARD!
1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: If you want an iconic example of the WAIF, Snow White is it. I mean, not only is her theme song "Someday My Prince Will Come," but in reaction to her stepmother wanting to kill her for being younger and prettier, she runs away and keeps house for seven bachelors, along with her cute little animal friends. Plus, the interactions between Snow White and the dwarves scream NURTURER. The wicked stepmother is more of a BOSS archetype, seeing as how she wants her own way, even if she has to kill to get it.

1940 Pinocchio: The only female character in this movie is the Blue Fairy, who really isn't much other than NURTURER, she just appears sometimes and gives the title character life/advice/scolding.

1940 Fantasia: Hard to classify what is essentially an arts film, but after careful thinking, "The Pastoral Symphony" and "Dance of the Hours" are the only parts with both plot AND female characters. Both of these performances are deeply entrenched in sexual tension. There are probably scholars out there screaming about the centaur scenes.

1941 Dumbo: Dumbo's mom, who is a textbook NURTURER, is still one fierce mama who is willing to crush anyone hurting her baby. Which is easy, being a ginormous elephant. +1 for tossing hay and spanking troublemakers. Also my family would knock some heads if anyone badmouths "Baby Mine."

1942 Bambi: Bambi's mom, NURTURER. Also Faline, Bambi's eventual mate, also a NURTURER, although she might also be somewhat WAIF.

1943-46 Saludos Amigos/The Three Caballeros: What women do appear in these anthologies of short films are often pretty girls that get chased around by the males, which is really weird when the males are cartoon birds.

1949 The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad: What few females appear are either initially SEDUCTRESS or NURTURER.

1950 Cinderella: Another iconic WAIF, although I give Cinderella credit for having the guts to defy her stepmother and go to the ball anyway (with a little help). The stepmother, by the way, makes for a good CRUSADER/BOSS, since she is dedicated to pushing her own daughter's goals over Cinderella's. The stepsisters don't offer much to the story other than to illustrate how annoying and miserable Cinderella's life is, although the sequels kind of expand on one of the sister's personalities. +1 for being sort of different

1951 Alice in Wonderland: Alice is a SPUNKY KID, filled with moxie and wanting things her own way until she wanders into a world that gives her exactly what she wants. After realizing that insanity is best served in small doses, she returns to reality and her NURTURER sister. However, Alice is not a very active role in her story, merely following along from place to place and getting very confused by everything. The Queen of Hearts is a BOSS, as characterized by punishing those who defy her with beheading. +1 to the Queen lest she decides to off more heads.

1952 Peter Pan: The whole reason for bringing Wendy to Neverland is to be mother to the Lost Boys, which is keeping house, therefore, NURTURER. Tinker Bell is very much a SEDUCTRESS/SPUNKY KID, and when Peter ignores her in favor of Wendy, she responds by trying to get the Lost Boys to kill Wendy, and when that failed, bargaining with Captain Hook, which almost kills Peter. Tiger Lily and the Mermaids, while brief, are part of the lure of Neverland as a haven for boys with low impulse control, plus can be considered to be somewhat sexual in their presentation. +1 for Tinker Bell.

1955 Lady and the Tramp: I would argue Lady was something of a FREE SPIRIT until the baby arrived, and that conflict drove her to meet Tramp, wherein she becomes more WAIF-like.

1959 Sleeping Beauty: By now, Disney has firmly developed princesses who have cute animal minions, sing perfect sopranos, and are willing to wait for their prince to sweep them off their feet. WAIF Aurora is balanced by the wicked Sorceress, a CRUSADER, who nearly wins the day and turns into a dragon. The three fairies are NURTURERS, although they could be argued to be FREE SPIRITS as well. +1 for awesome dragon ladies!

1961 One Hundred and One Dalmatians: Mama Dalmatian Perdita and human wife Anita both occupy the NURTURER role. Cruella De Vil is very much a CRUSADER in her pursuit of being fashionable, however she is only a side character and a villain to boot. +1 for fashion, dahling.

1963 The Sword in the Stone: The only significant female is the witch Merlin fights with, I'll place her under evil FREE SPIRIT. Although powerful, she is made to appear ugly and loses to poor hygiene and immune development, plus there was that weird sexual tension moment. +1 perhaps?

1964 Mary Poppins: NURTURER, although an argument can be made for Mary Poppins occupying the FREE SPIRIT archetype as well. Jane Banks, while something of a SPUNKY KID, comes off as being little more than the de facto female child to the duo of children in the story. Being of British origin, the other women in the film are servants, housewives, or strangers on the street.

1967 The Jungle Book: The only females of significance in this movie are the female wolf in the beginning that raises Mowgli, a NURTURER, and the human girl that serves as the lure for Mowgli leaving the jungle and joining civilization. The girl sings a song of domesticity as she fetches water and flutters her eyelashes, so clearly this is a SEDUCTRESS, if anything.

1970 The Aristocats: Duchess is a NURTURER, although she takes on aspects of WAIF and SEDUCTRESS when interacting with O'Malley. Madame Adelaide is a NURTURER, her role in the story is amusing as the crazy old cat-lady, but still not very uncommon.

1971 Bedknobs and Broomsticks: Miss Price is a FREE SPIRIT, and it's rather awesome she uses her magic to help out the war effort during WWII. Carrie Rawlins doesn't have much point other than to be a girl amongst the boys that I can see. +1 for summoning magical walking armor!

1973 Robin Hood: Maid Marian may be a WAIF and a silly romantic, but she does make some effort during the festival fight to help out. Her nursemaid, Lady Kluck, though, is much more of a badass CRUSADER/NURTURER combo. The other females in the film are firmly in NURTURER mode. +1 for side characters being more awesome than the mains.

1977 The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: The only female in the entire Winnie the Pooh series is Kanga, who is definitely a NURTURER.

1977 The Rescuers: Miss Bianca is a very competent agent, but she is still more of a NURTURER than anything else, what with guiding a bumbling Bernard on their mission. Penny is something of a WAIF/SPUNKY KID, but I feel the WAIF tendencies are more likely due to age. Madame Medusa is a BOSS, seeing how she is very controlling with her minions. +1 for alligator skiing.

1977 Pete's Dragon: Nora is a NURTURER, taking care of Pete and her father. Lena Gogan doesn't have much screen time, but she would be the antagonistic version of NURTURER.

1981 The Fox and the Hound: We have Big Mama owl, a NURTURER, Widow Tweed, also a NURTURER, and finally Vixey, something of a WAIF/SEDUCTRESS.

1983 The Black Cauldron: Princess Eilonwy is a SPUNKY KID, as she not only has magic and cleverness, but is willing to use it to fight. Technically there is also Hen Wen, who would be more of a FREE SPIRIT with the attitude she displays towards Taran. Additional females include the fairies and the witches, who operate as comic-relief FREE SPIRITs and means to move the plot onward. +1 for magical princesses.

1986 The Great Mouse Detective: Olivia Flaversham is a textbook SPUNKY KID, actively searching for someone to help her find her father, and taking part in the rescue efforts as well. We also have the mouse version of Queen Victoria, who is always a BOSS woman with attitude. Felicia, Ratigan's pet cat, is an awesome punishment mechanism, for all that she doesn't have much of a speaking role. +1 for queens and cats.

1988 Oliver & Company: This version of Oliver Twist has Rita the Saluki, a NURTURER, who helps to look after Oliver; Jenny Foxworth, the kind young rich girl who ends up adopting him, is most fitting under WAIF, although she does go out to rescue Oliver on her own; and finally Georgette the spoiled poodle, who best fits the SEDUCTRESS archetype.

1989 The Little Mermaid: Ariel, for all she is a spoiled teenager, is more a FREE SPIRIT than a WAIF, as she is willing to go after her man even with certain obstacles like biological differences in the way. Ursula is a BOSS who was denied what she feels she was entitled to, thus the trickery and vengeance. The servant women, while having their own parts in the movie, still only fill the role of a means of moving the plot forward and providing comedy relief. Still, the head maid is someone I wouldn't want to cross, as Chef Louie thoroughly knows. +1 for trying something new.

1990 DuckTales: Treasure of the Lost Lamp: The entire run of DuckTales the main females are Mrs. Beakley, the NURTURER housekeeper, and Webby, her granddaughter, the female SPUNKY KID. The movie doesn't even have one of the few female villains.

1990 The Rescuers: Down Under: Miss Bianca is back as the competent agent NURTURER, although this time Bernard's clumsiness is due to love, instead of inexperience. The whole movie is a long running gag of interruptions to Bernard's marriage proposal. Also female in this movie is the goanna who works for the villain McLeach, the nurse mice in Australia, and the driving plot element: the mother golden eagle Marahute, who defaults as NURTURER, protecting her eggs and by extension Cody. There are other female animals in the movie, but they don't have much of a role.

1991 Beauty and the Beast: Belle is a fierce dreamer, and a FREE SPIRIT when compared to the others in her village. She is willing to take an active role in finding her father and then finding love, but the Stockholm Syndrome going on makes me cringe when I think about it too much. Mrs. Potts is the NURTURER element Disney needs to have around, and there is also the SEDUCTRESS in the form of the head maid. The Enchantress, while brief, could also be a NURTURER, albeit of the tough love sort. +1 for liking libraries.

1992 Aladdin: Jasmine is the first Disney princess to have CRUSADER tendencies, as not only does she go her own way, but will even back down and find someone who can help her get what she wants through diplomatic means. Even when faced with the prospect that her beloved is executed, she goes to the sultan to deal with Jafar, knowing she doesn't yet have the power to take him down. I also love how in the third movie she is right in the fray punching the men who have disrupted her wedding. The other mentionable females in this movie are the village girls, who are usually in SEDUCTRESS mode, and their mothers, who are usually in mama bear NURTURER mode. Not bad for a misrepresentation of Middle Eastern Muslim culture. +1 for being kickass with a pet tiger.

1994 The Lion King: Main female is Nala, a CRUSADER/SPUNKY KID who as a child is Simba's equal, and as an adult, is one of the few in the lion kingdom to still hold hope for Simba being alive, supports Simba's return, and ends up as queen of the lions, a much more significant role than king of the lions (thank you Animal Planet). Also we have the other lionesses, all CRUSADER/NURTURERS, and Shenzi the hyena, definitely a BOSS who thought Scar was a partner if not an equal. +1 for dominant female hunters, "She-Is-Fiercer."

1995 A Goofy Movie: The only significant female is Roxanne, Max's love interest. Not really a WAIF or SEDUCTRESS, I'd argue she's more of a NURTURER considering the way she interacts with her friends. The only other female character with vocals is Roxanne's friend with the braces and that large gutsy lady in the Powerline concert scene. Something that bothered me growing up about this movie, based as it is on the Disney tv series Goof Troop, is whatever happened to Pete's wife? Also, nothing is ever really mentioned about what happened to Max's mom, I always assumed she had died when Max was younger.

1995 Pocahontas: The daughter of Chief Powhatan is a FREE SPIRIT who wants to run around with nature, unwilling to settle for Kocoum, a warrior she feels is too serious. She ultimately ends up stopping a violent conflict with the English settlers by bodily protecting John Smith, something of a male love interest in the film. Also female is Grandmother Willow, a sage NURTURER, and Pocahontas' best friend Nakoma, more of a WAIF. The film may be a gross caricature of Native Americans and the violent early history of English settlement, but it's a decent attempt considering Disney (how far we have come since Songs of the South). +1 for trying and still failing.

1995 Toy Story: The quintessential buddy movie. We have Bo Peep, a NURTURER among the toys, Andy's mom, obviously a NURTURER as well, Hannah Phillips, who is something of a WAIF under her brother's sociopathic tendencies, and Andy's baby sister, who is there to be cute.

1996 James and the Giant Peach: There are the evil aunts, both BOSSES, the Ladybug, a NURTURER, the Spider, a SEDUCTRESS/NURTURER, and the Glowworm, a daft old lady for comedy relief.

1996 The Hunchback of Notre Dame: The only significant female is Esmeralda, definitely a FREE SPIRIT, and a fierce protector of anyone she cares about. Also, was anyone else expecting her to romantically love Quasimodo instead of Phoebus? +1 for God Help the Outcasts.

1997 Hercules: Megara is equal parts SEDUCTRESS/SPUNKY KID, she is not afraid to fight for what she wants, but disguises a lot of hurt and insecurity with a sharp sarcastic wit. I would even argue for Meg being somewhat LIBRARIAN, as she clearly has some intellect to use in helping Hades with his conniving, but she holds herself as prim, proper, and untouchable because of a past betrayal. Also in this movie we have the amazing Gospel diva Muses who are FREE SPIRITS, Hera and Alcmene, both NURTURERS in the mother role, and the Fates, who are mostly BOSS, considering they already know how things will turn out, yet try to get their way anyhow. +1 for being fun despite horribly depicting Greek myths.

1998 Mulan: Our heroine starts out as a SPUNKY KID/FREE SPIRIT, but when the health of her father is threatened by the emperor's draft, she boldly takes off in true CRUSADER fashion to join the army in her father's place, becoming one of the best warriors. She also manages to save China from a Hun invasion. We also have Mulan's mother and grandmother, both in NURTURER roles, although grandmother does so in more crazy old lady fashion. +1 for warrior women.

1998 A Bug's Life: There is Princess Atta, a BOSS in training, seeing how she is constantly stressed about doing things properly. Then there is the current Queen, something of a BOSS/NURTURER, and Dot, the SPUNKY KID mascot for the movie. In the circus troupe, we have Rosie, a NURTURER black widow, and Gypsy, a NURTURER gypsy moth. +1 for flying queens.

1999 Tarzan: Jane is every inch a proper Victorian lady, and I'm still amazed she is willing to tolerate the jungle in those outfits. Very much a LIBRARIAN/WAIF, as she continually needs saving from the dangers of the jungle, yet has an amazing intellect that is actually appreciated! Her attitude and spunkiness is much better developed in the tv series. She even saves a city of mystical jaguar people. Then we have Kala, Tarzan's adopted mother, typical NURTURER, and Terk, a sarcastic SPUNKY KID sidekick. +1 for smart ladies who don't know how to dress for jungle expeditions.

1999 Toy Story 2: Besides Bo Peep and the previous female characters, we are introduced to Jesse, the SPUNKY KID reminder of what happens to toys after kids grow up. Is it bad of me I consider her angst better indication of character than her enthusiastic personality? Also there is Mrs. Potato Head, a NURTURER figure, and the Barbies, definite SEDUCTRESSES. +1 for When She Loved Me.

2000 Fantasia 2000: "Rhapsody in Blue" has a spoiled rich female, my best guess would be BOSS. "Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Major" has the ballerina, something of a SEDUCTRESS, as she occupies the romantic pursuit of both the Steadfast Tin Soldier and the evil Jack-in-the-Box. "Pomp and Circumstance" has Daisy Duck, in something of a WAIF role, seeing as both Donald and Daisy go through a period of depression when they think the other drowned in the flood. As finale, we get "Firebird Suite" with the spring sprite, a SPUNKY KID who accidentally awakens a destructive Firebird and nearly destroys everything, but is encouraged by her elk friend to bring back Spring. +1
for that finale, wow.

2000 The Emperor's New Groove: There are only three females in this entire movie -- Yzma, the villainous emperor's advisor, a BOSS denied her rightful place as a leader, Chicha, another textbook NURTURER wife and mother, albeit with a sarcastic wit, and finally Chaca, Pacha's little daughter, and obligatory SPUNKY KID. +1 for the wrong lever.

2001 Atlantis: The Lost Empire: Kida is a proper warrior princess, thoroughly a CRUSADER fighting to save her people from extinction. We also have Lt. Helga, the femme fatale SEDUCTRESS of the group, Audrey Ramirez, the SPUNKY KID mechanic, and Packard, a cynical FREE SPIRIT used for comedy relief mostly. +1 for warrior princess who also may be goddesses.

2001 Monsters Inc.: There is Celia, a BOSS of the administrative world, and Mike's love interest, Roz, the raspy BOSS/NURTURER of the clerical department (and other things) always after Mike to do the paperwork properly and Boo, the SPUNKY KID toddler who is the catalyst for the movie's plot. There is also the exasperated monster trainer at the beginning, but she is only there for the setup of the world.

2002 Lilo & Stitch: The character of Lilo wouldn't work if she wasn't a girl, as it is expected for young boys to have odd habits. One of the sassiest SPUNKY KID/FREE SPIRITs in Disney, she is joined by her struggling NURTURER/CRUSADER Nani, a fierce woman willing to fight off aliens to protect her sister. The Grand Council head is also female (I think), and very much a BOSS archetype. Pleakley can count for being female, even though Disney was clearly making trans jokes with the character. Pleakley would best fit under a LIBRARIAN type, as he/she is the "expert" on Earth life, struggles to remain neat and proper in the face of chaos, but wants to break out of tradition by wearing pretty wigs and dresses. +1 for diverse sisters and feminine aliens!

2002 Treasure Planet: Characters who are female include Jim Hawkin's mom, NURTURER, and Captain Amelia, a very capable BOSS. Not bad for a remake of a boys' adventure story . +1 for badass ship captains

2003 Finding Nemo: There's Dory, the ditziest NURTURER so far, and Deb, another somewhat loose screw NURTURER. Other background characters and maybe some of the children at the reef are girls, but it's hard to tell.

2004 The Incredibles: We have Elastigirl, who is NURTURER/CRUSADER, perfect for a superhero turned mom, and her daughter Violet, a shy girl who is WAIF/NURTURER, at least until she gains more confidence in using her powers, then she is just as CRUSADER as her mom. As side characters we have Mirage, SEDUCTRESS, and Kari, a ditzy babysitter NURTURER. Also there is Edna Mode, one of the most badass FREE SPIRIT ladies I've seen. +1 for female superheroes being heroes.

2005 Chicken Little: Abby Mallard plays Chicken Little's best friend and love interest, mostly in a NURTURER role in the movie. There is also Foxy Loxy with her friend Goosey Loosey as the school bullies, somewhat CRUSADER in approach, but at the end Foxy is mind altered to a Southern Belle singer who partners with Runt, becoming more FREE SPIRIT in demeanor as well, though that's played as something horrible to happen to her.

2006 Cars: Sally plays the spunky lawyer girl turned hotel manager who is one of the key characters helping Lightning McQueen see how the pursuit of fame and wealth isn't all it's cracked up to be. In that sense, she is very much in a NURTURER role. Other females in the movie include Flo, the owner of the gas station/diner, and Lizzie, widow of the founder of Radiator Springs. Both would also fit best under a NURTURER archetype.

2007 Ratatouille: Besides the woman whose house at the beginning that provides the backdrop and springboard for the main character to move to Paris, the only other female in this movie is Colette, the only female chef working in the once prestigious restaurant of Gusteau, Remy's cooking idol. Colette is a fierce chef, in NURTURER/CRUSADER mode as she tutors Alfredo Linguini. However, the means in which she is shoved into a romantic relationship with Remy's human puppet Alfredo Linguini was so awkward, I can't help but think it was a last minute addition to the plot.

2007 Enchanted: Giselle starts out as a traditional WAIF, but the whole point of the movie was to turn classic Disney on it's head. She exerts more independence and CRUSADER characteristics as the movie goes on. Then we have Nancy, Robert's then fiancee, who from her brief screen time I would place as a BOSS, and the ending definitely suggests she will be a powerful force in the kingdom of Andalasia. Narissa is a typical evil queen, a BOSS who doesn't want to relinquish power. Robert's little girl, Morgan, is a classic SPUNKY GIRL. +1 for being a different kind of princess.

2008 WALL-E: The two main robots WALL-E and EVE display characteristics of both genders, but only EVE becomes definitively female once the plant (something alive) was taken into her "womb" cavity. EVE is a CRUSADER in her violent tendencies and adherence to her directives, but becomes more of a NURTURER as she tries to help WALL-E after he was damaged by the Axiom's autopilot. The only other significant female is Mary, a human woken out of the video screen trance of the Axiom, and is definitely a NURTURER in that she also wakes up John, and then goes out of her way to save some of the infants on board the Axiom. +1 for feminine robots being warriors.

2008 Bolt: I can't see Penny as anything other than WAIF, seeing as how the driving force of the plot is Bolt's need to protect her. Mittens is something of a NURTURER, as she is constantly trying to convince Bolt that he doesn't actually have superpowers, and her fervent desire to be cared for is an important aspect of her character.

2009 Up: The only females in this movie are Ellie Fredericksen, a NURTURER even after she dies, and Kevin, the prehistoric bird that is the prized goal of the movie's villain. The fact that Kevin is a mama bird seems rather tacked on as extra incentive to protect the animal.

2009 The Princess and the Frog: Tiana is the most recent Disney princess, and doesn't disappoint. She has a dream of running her own business, and in fact, her key flaw is how single-minded she can be, ignoring the things that would enrich her life such as stronger relationships to family and friends. I would argue for her being LIBRARIAN if not SPUNKY KID, until she has to drag around Prince Naveen so he doesn't accidentally get eaten, and so her NURTURER tendencies come out. Charlotte "Lottie" La Bouff, while annoying, is still a sweet girl, and probably best fits the SPUNKY GIRL archetype. Then there's Mama Odie, definitely a BOSS and queen of her domain. +1 for that jazz track.

2010 Toy Story 3: In addition to return characters Jesse, SPUNKY GIRL cowgirl, and Mrs. Potato Head, sassy NURTURER, we also have Barbie added to the Andy's toys gang, something of a ditzy SEDUCTRESS, but she shows a cleverness that adds depth to her Blonde-girl persona. In addition, there is Bonnie, something of a SPUNKY GIRL/FREE SPIRIT, whose toys also include the female triceratops Trixie, the rag doll Dolly, and I think two of the peas in the "Peas-in-a-Pod" are girls. +1 for female toys getting things done.

2010 Tangled: Rapunzel is SPUNKY GIRL and can also be somewhat WAIF, as even though she proves to be very effective in a fight, she still needed the rogue Eugene "Flynn Rider" to guide her out in the world. I do blame her WAIF characteristics on her naivete from being raised in isolation with Mother Gothel, though, who is a very well done evil BOSS/NURTURER. +1 for frying pan weapons.

If there aren't any movies in the list, it's because I didn't see them. I ended up with 30 points by my count (which is probably wrong, I'm terrible with numbers), and may only result because I grew lax with my standards enough to reward points for villains and side characters who have more to their personality than the heroines at times. This decision was because after a while, I had to refer to Wikipedia and IMDB.com entries just to remember who was actually a female character in some of these films. Seeing their pattern for female involvement in a story really doesn't paint Disney or Pixar in a very positive light, considering the contrast to heroines in works by such entities as Studio Ghibli. Yet I'm hoping Brave and future projects will be more willing to show that Disney and Pixar are more embracing of modern sentiments of gender identity, and can be successful. However it's going to take a lot to overcome the past few thousand years of ingrained human behavior and Western social expectations.