Live action Disney remakes were first introduced in 1994 when they created the live action version of Jungle Book. This change evoked mixed opinions from audiences. As new live action Disney films approach such as; Mufasa: The Lion King, Moana and Lilo & Stitch, students on campus have gained opinions. Many students have expressed how both formats have impacted their viewing experiences. From the nostalgia the animated classics bring, to the excitement the realism in live-action creates, these experiences shape students’ opinions. Through their conversations, they give their voice on whether they prefer live-action or animated movies or even both. Junior, Valentina Castruita shares her favorite live action movie.
“My favorite movie that was turned into live action has to be either Cinderella or Aladdin. I think those were really well written and the casts look very similar to how they were portrayed in the animation. The storylines were really similar or automatically the same, which is what I love to see, because the [stories of the] animated movies are already perfect, [they do not need to be changed],” Castruita said.
Castruita considers herself a ‘big film buff’ and prefers the nostalgia animated Disney movies bring, especially during a cozy night in. While Castruita leans more on animated movies, she still respects the efforts put into live-action films. Castruita admires disney’s efforts to remake the classics but wishes the live action to be parallel to the animation.
“In certain aspects, the quality of live action movies is better, because it is new and the technology is more advanced. A lot of live action movies focus on making it look realistic and while I appreciate that, I think the magic of animation is the fairytale aspect,” Castruita said. “I do not love how live action movies focus on making it look real and accurate to real life just because it sucks the magic [out].”
Castruita believes a touch of fairytale magic would make the live action films much more enjoyable. While some students admire how closely live-actions follow the original animated films, they also emphasize how crucial it is for these movies to maintain their same touch. Sophomore Alexa Hernandez shares her perspective on recreations that succeeded in staying true to the original stories.
“My favorite movie that was turned into live action was either Beauty and the Beast or Aladdin, because I felt like they recreated the movie really well. I felt like it resembled the [original] movie a lot, so it was very similar,” Hernandez said.
However, not all live-action recreations are put on a pedestal. Hernandez pointed out how changes regarding the characters often leave audiences feeling disconnected from the live action Disney movies.
“The one that I did not like most as live action was Mulan, just because they did not include some of the characters in there [from the original movie]. I thought that the characters added a lot to the movie in the animated version. The fact that they did not include it in the live action was kind of throwing me off a little bit,” Hernandez said.
While some students weighed the consequences of the decisions made in live action films, others took a broader view and chose to stay neutral. Junior Viviana Blanco explained how animated and live-action films serve different purposes for different audiences.
“It depends because sometimes I like animated movies and sometimes I like live action,” Blanco said. “I like the live action movies because they are more technological and more innovative. I feel like it is a cool way to recreate them and have them reintroduced. I like the animated ones too because I feel like they’re more [like] the ones me and my sister grew up with and I just do not watch the new ones as much.”
For other students, the style choices in live-action films play a significant role in how they are perceived. In this case, senior Dani Fincher shares her thoughts on what makes Disney’s live-action films disappointing as opposed to their animated ones.
“I really did not like the live action Lion King movie. I thought that it [had] a huge lack of energy and color. [I feel the same about] The Little Mermaid. I thought the acting was great, but the color choices and the actual [CGI] was weak, and I would rather [have the movie] be animated,” Fincher said.
Fincher went on to further explain how animation provides creators with the freedom to be more expressive and imaginative, which is often limited by the constraints of live-action filmmaking. As an artist herself, Fincher believes animation allows artists to demonstrate emotions in ways live action films cannot.
“It can be so emotional and impactful because artists have the ability to demonstrate emotions that are hard to do in live action. Even if it’s dumbed down to a children’s movie, I think that it’s a very underrated form of media. [Many] people [just] see it as cartoons, but if you look at a lot of well done professional animations, it can be really impactful,” Fincher said.
