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View Full Version : Predatory animals in kids movies.


Jim H
05-26-2003, 02:36 AM
I always get a little miffed at the way they portray predators in children's movies. They're almost always the bad guy for some reason (yes, there are exceptions - The Lion King being a biggy), and if they're not, we're somehow expected to believe they don't kill anything! Little Nemo was what made me think of this - sharks not eating fish?

They would starve to death if they didn't!

What I find particularly strange is when they'll have a supposedly predatory animal (like Baloo) who never actually hunts, then have an animal that actually does be the evil bad guy (Sher-Kahn).

The wolf is another classic example, which has been bastardized on film and legend many times over, for no real reason.

Most obviously, of course, is Little Red Riding Hood and the Three Little Pigs. I had a few other examples of this one, but they seem to have slipped my mind.

The thing which is strangest about this is that by these standards, our own kind are the most "evil" or "bad" of creatures - since we're the most lethal predator on Earth.

I kind of lost my train of thought. Any of you guys want to add anything here?

Spidey
05-26-2003, 07:13 AM
This maybe a little bit off topic , but I hate it how much (dumb) people are influenced by movies. It's because of 'Jaws' there are hardly any white sharks left in the world , because all of a sudden everybody thought they were mass killers.

travis
05-26-2003, 01:27 PM
little kids dont understand predator/prey, they just understand that killing is bad at that age.

syxxpac
05-26-2003, 03:21 PM
Originally posted by travis
they just understand that killing is bad at that age.

Yeah, killing humans is bad. But everything else is fair game :rolleyes:

SIREN30
05-26-2003, 05:24 PM
Well, I think it's cute. I mean, there's gotta be a 'bad guy' in every movie, right? Why should it always be a man?

I think the idea about the sharks being vegetarian in Little Nemo is classic. Mainly BECAUSE it's so preposterous.

Jim H
05-26-2003, 05:52 PM
It's because of 'Jaws' there are hardly any white sharks left in the world , because all of a sudden everybody thought they were mass killers.

While Jaws certainly hurt white sharks, they were already not doing so good...

Like a lot of fish, humans are wiping them out.

Peter Benchley has said he regrets writing because of how villified they became though.

Well, I think it's cute. I mean, there's gotta be a 'bad guy' in every movie, right? Why should it always be a man?

I think the idea about the sharks being vegetarian in Little Nemo is classic. Mainly BECAUSE it's so preposterous.

I partially agree with you. I just don't like how it always has to be a predator - why not have blue jays be the bad guys in a movie with bird characters? I do think the sharks are kind of amusing (especially the accents) and I expect the movie to be quite good - Pixar is definetly the best thing Disney has going for them now.

SIREN30
05-26-2003, 05:53 PM
Absolutely. Every pixar movie so far has been great...I cant wait to take my 'littlun' to see it this weekend!

Jim H
05-27-2003, 03:16 PM
BTW, I mention blue jays as they are one of the closest things to a "bad guy" in nature. Bullies, even 'murderers'.