Princesses, Frogs and Boys

I needed to see Disney's new "Princess and The Frog" movie for my work. Lacking my own grandchildren, I invited my friend Bonne and her six-year-old grandson Noah to go. Yeah, I know anything with the word princess in the title is probably a chick flick, but that's part of Disney's genius. They usually manage to please all genders. I figured a boy's reaction would be interesting. When not-yet-princess Tiana started belting like Susan Boyle about her dreams and how she was going to work to make them come true, Noah was pretty fidgety. But once the physical jokes came along, he got into it. Then came the part with the "voodoo" black magic. There was a scary villain and even scarier voodoo heads, a talisman that needed blood to work, and dark shadows with long arms to reach out and "getcha." Frankly, I was a bit creeped out myself. 

Every time the black shadows came slithering across the screen, Bonne leaned over and said to Noah, "You know this is all make-believe, don't you?" He nodded yes. I was glad Bonne took the lead in this, because I think I needed reminding, too.

When the movie was over, I hoped the black magic scenes had not marred him for life. When asked his opinion of the movie, Noah said it was a good movie about "two frogs who fell in love and got married in Bugland." This kid could be the next Ebert. Then he asked for quarters to play the video games in the lobby. I accompanied him. He went directly to the game with the life-size hunting rifle attached. He slid in the quarters, put the rifle on his shoulder and began shooting as if he were in "Deliverance." Realistic screams and groans came from the speakers; heads and other body parts exploded with buckets of blood. Noah racked up a high score. The kid couldn't get enough of it. The moral of this story: when it comes to boys who ultimately turn into men and not frogs, they still do the voodoo that they do so well.

P.S.
To make sure I work in this town again, I want to say that The Princess and The Frog is a wonderful flick. It's a delight to see hand-drawn animation again. The re-creation of New Orleans is charming and the music is so dancy-dancy, you long for more of it. My mouse ears especially go off to Disney for their emphasis on the theme that wishing on a star is not enough--you have to work to make dreams come true. Although the film technique is retro, that message is very today.