I know, the election season is over, so politics should probably not be spoken of for a while, especially after all the insufferable social media updates. But politics always finds its way into our lives, whether it’s through music, art or movies.
Animated films have been under attack for their hidden messages and underlying ethical and moral storylines. Here’s a breakdown of some films that have been called into question:
1. ‘The Iron Giant’
“The Iron Giant” was one of the most beloved animated films of the ’90s that didn’t come from Disney. It was a sweet, sentimental story about a young boy befriending a giant, peaceful robot from outer space. Within certain scenes of the film, the protagonist Hogarth Hughes tries to convince the giant robotic friend that killing is wrong and guns are not the answer. The robot turned out to have some defensive capabilities where it would attack with giant guns once threatened, bringing out what was from a conservative’s point of view a strong anti-gun message. You can imagine how much this upset supporters of the Second Amendment.
2. ‘Happy Feet’
“Happy Feet” was very enjoyable until the moment that the story took a strong political turn, and that goes for its sequel too. While the messages within both movies were different, the politics in both films are similar in one way: humans are the downfall of the planet. The first film dealt with human infringement on the wildlife, as the story shifted tones from a penguin who tap dances to the issue of fishermen along the Antarctic depleting the penguins’ food supply and screwing up the ecosystem. The second film tackled a more predictable issue: man-made global warming. There was also speculation that the two krill within the sequel were meant to endorse same-sex marriage.
3. ‘The Lorax’
One of the more recent animated films under attack was last year’s “The Lorax.” Dr. Seuss was indeed a strong environmental enthusiast, and his belief that trees should be protected from greedy corporations wasn’t very subtle in the children’s book the film is based on. The movie wasn’t very subtle with its anti-capitalism and environmental messages either, with its characters singing about letting the trees be and what harm chopping down a few trees could do.
4. ‘Wall-E’
Yes, politics are even present in Disney’s Pixar films, and probably more than you know. From the oil-versus-alternative fuel premise in “Cars 2” to the “animals good, people bad” moments that found their way into “Finding Nemo,” none of these films have been as obviously written with a liberal agenda as “Wall-E.” The very moment that we are introduced to that little robot that lives alone on a polluted Earth, there are signals that we’re in for some environmental messages, namely how consumer spending factors into the destruction of the planet. The movie comes from a studio that’s part of a multimillion-dollar corporation that thrives on capitalism with Pixar-related toys.
5. ‘ Battle for Terra’
This isn’t one of the most memorable animated films, but I only have to say one thing and you will know where I’m going with this: “Pocahontas.” Yes, this is a film that shares a similar message that “Dances with Wolves,” “Pocahontas” and “Avatar” have tried to express. Just like “Avatar,” the movie features a bunch of greedy, selfish humans that try to wipe out peaceful inhabitants of another planet in order to take it for themselves. The antagonist was also portrayed as a Bible-quoting, all-American military general.