Word: disneyism
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...even though the skateboard faithful loathe the mainstream hype, they have grudgingly accepted the event. It is, after all, the only venue where skateboarders, banned from their towns' streets, can watch their heroes sign autographs on ABC's Wide World of Sports (ABC, like ESPN, is owned by Disney). "Now when I tell people I'm a professional skateboarder, they don't say, 'There's no such thing.' Instead they say, 'Oh, are you in the X-Games?'" says Tony Hawk, 30, the world's best skateboarder...
...Disney's animated epic Mulan, which opened last week, has its Chinese heroine donning male military drag, ostensibly to save her disabled father from being conscripted for certain death in a war against invaders. But the movie's point is to show that Mulan is as valuable as any boy. Or as the film goes on to demonstrate, that she can do something her father cannot: bury a horde of enemy Huns under tons of snow. You go, girl! It's the perfect way for Disney to do Joan of Arc without having the heroine burned at the stake...
...also uses her brain," says Coats. "We tried really hard to balance her feminine and masculine side." Mulan is more complex than your average action figure. For example, she isn't afraid to hug the Emperor in a burst of emotion. Still, it's noteworthy that one of Disney's most vigorous heroines literally has to disguise herself as a boy. Says Karlyn: "We're beginning to think about heroism in a female way. But we don't have narratives or genres in which we can comfortably fit strong female protagonists...
...Disney cartoon, with comic relief--a little wheezy at first, in a matchmaker scene that seems to revel in inflicting pain--and yearning romance. It has some star voices, like Eddie Murphy, very funny as the Mushu shrimp, and a fine cast of East Asian and Asian-American actors (Ming-Na Wen, B.D. Wong, Soon-Tek Oh, James Shigeta) playing the main characters. But what's terrific about Mulan is its reaching for emotions that other movies run from: family love and duty, personal honor and group commitment, obedience and ingenuity. Nice notions for kids to think about...
...held in check during the film explodes with a Motownish rave-up, True to Your Heart, that cascades over the closing credits. The song doesn't have much to do with the girl-power theme of this briskly enchanting film, but it's a perky parting gift from the Disney folks. The R.-and-B. group 98[degrees] and Stevie Wonder trade harmonic and harmonica riffs with some sassy horns, and euphoria saturates the multiplex. Cap your soda cup before dancing out of the theater...