The Revisionist World of Disney: Mary Poppins, Walt Disney and Saving Mr. Banks

"but i want to redistribute the wealth, father" made me lol

“How I learned to stop worrying and love the mouse”

My mom’s first husband worked for Walt. She and her husband had dinner with him once. I asked Mom what Walt was like. Her response was interesting. She looked thoughtful for a minute and replied, “He was...pleasant, but I wouldn’t want to work for him.” Speaks volumes.

So in the end, they realized both their dads was named Martha ; 3

"cultural appropiation and historical revisionism are kinda integral to the disney brand" while in a gigantic sombrero. I was dirnking water and I choked.

I’m firmly convinced this video was just an excuse to claim a trip to Disney Land as a business expense.

I died of laughter when she does the squeaky voiced "The people will seize the means of production!!! Feed the birds!!!"

Wait, an analysis of Walt Disney's character that actually has nuance and recognizes that people are complicated? This is so refreshing.

"sincerity is for giiirls" hahahahah so perfect

It's easy to see her demands and lack of flexibility as annoying or unreasonable, but don't forget that she specifically didn't want her movie Disney-fied and refused their offers to adapt it for 20 years. Disney only managed to seal the deal by promising her creative control and that they wouldn't change much, that there wouldn't be cartoon sections, that there wouldn't be singing, etc. Then he went back on all of that and pressured her to allow these changes or completely ignored her wishes.

"Her beloved creation...was not hers and never would be again."How true. What I have grown to resent more and more about Disney is that they are presenting stories as theirs, while the original stories are sometimes distorted beyond recognition. Too many people know Disney's stories and never read, let alone learn about the true stories. In many cases,Disney's versions are considered the true versions by those who should no better.

"Roger Meyers Sr., the gentle genius behind Itchy and Scratchy, loved and cared about almost all the peoples of the world. And he, in return, was beloved by the world, except in 1938 when he was criticized for his controversial cartoon 'Nazi Supermen Are Our Superiors.'”

“When you point out some of the parts people consider nostalgia as being unethical, people tend to take this as an assault on their childhood”. We have this thing called Black Pete in The Netherlands.... yeah, that comment hits that discussion spot on.. well done Lindsay

The funny thing is that I never saw Mary Poppins as a happy-go-lucky, positive, "Disney-fied" character. Yes, singing and dancing and smiling are a part of her character, but there was always this dark, mysterious undertone about her (think Gene Wilder's Willy Wonka). Mary Poppins was strict, no-nonsense, and always, ALWAYS in control of her situation. Magic was just everyday business to her. She never looked surprised or happy or even proud when she did magical things; all those reactions come from the other characters. She was the only woman who stood up to Mr. Banks and he was so in awe of her that HE NEVER QUESTIONED HER. Even when he interrogates her about her methods during "The Life I Lead (Reprise)," she flips the script and Jedi mind-tricks him into taking his kids to the bank. But the most poignant example of this for me is her last scene with the children. Jane asks her if she loves them, to which Mary Poppins replies, "And what would happen to me, may I ask, if I loved all the children I said goodbye to?" Ouch. To be fair, I don't know how much of this character is Travers or Disney or Julie Andrews, but I do think that this dark side is what got Andrews her Academy Award for this movie and why this character has held up so well over the past several decades.

You aggressively whispering "check your sources" into the microphone is a constant mood tbh

I learned a long time ago to treat any movie that is "based on a true story" as fiction.

Me- feels smart Lindsay- "It reads like propagandistic corporate apologia for giving up ones intellectual property for the greater good of commoditfication of mass consumption which - you know - it is." Me- frantically grabs dictionary while sobbing

Mmm! This is the kind of level-headed Disney talk I love to bits! I love Disney history and Walt's life has always fascinated me, but there's so many rumors out there that have people thinking he was all good or all bad instead of just seeing as a person. I love Saving Mr. Banks, even when I knew it was taking a few liberties with the actual historical context, and I think you articulated exactly what makes it so great. Fantastic video! :D

One thing that everyone misses: Royalty ALWAYS got married to "someone they just met". It's only been since the 20th Century that this has changed.

The problem is that we want to make mere humans an absolute. We do not accept the notion that people have nuances, and we are not perfect. Awful persons can have a bright side, and bright persons can have awful flaws.