Medieval History
Russell Peck recently reviewed Tison Pugh and Susan Aronstein, eds. The Disney Middle Ages: A Fairy Tale and Fantasy Past. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012:
This collection of fourteen essays provides a balanced and often quite witty assessment of Disney?s films, TV shows, marketing strategies, theme parks, personal philosophies, pedagogy, social and political practices of Walt Disney and his Corporate Legacy. My remarks on the volume are descriptive. My goal is to give readers a detailed sense of the book?s contents, particularly ideas they might wish to pick up on to develop ideas of their own. Although the essays are sometimes marked by familiar criticism pertaining to Disney?s conservative rightwing politics, inherent racism, and gender biases, the authors do make considerable effort to appreciate the artistry and technical skills of Disney?s work, with thoughtful allowances for the integrity of the nostalgic vision of Disney fantasies and their imperialistic global messages. The collection speaks well to a scholarly audience, while, at the same time, addressing intelligently a broader audience that includes virtually anyone who has ever seen a Disney movie or TV program or been to a theme park ? that is, about everyone who has grown up in America or elsewhere. The bibliography is excellent. READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE.
- Is Snow White Real? A Look Back Into The Life Story Of Countess Margarete Von Waldeck
With the premiere of Rupert Sanders' "Snow White and the Huntsman," which hit theaters on Friday starring Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron, many are wondering if the folk tale popularized by the Brothers Grimm and Walt Disney of...
- Medievally Speaking Reviews: Montoya, Medievalist Enlightenment; Nagel, Medieval Modern; And Stromberg, Maleficent
Please find the following new reviews on Medievally Speaking (http://medievallyspeaking.blogspot.com/): Alicia C. Montoya. Medievalist Enlightenment: From Charles Perrault to Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 2013. 256pp. Reviewed by...
- Pavlinich Reviews: Frozen
Frozen. Dir. Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck. Disney, 2013. Currently in theaters. 108 mins. Reviewed by: Elan Justice Pavlinich ([email protected]) Frozen has been under revision since 1943. Proposed, abandoned, revived, and defunded, for decades...
- Medieval Afterlives In Popular Culture
Medieval Afterlives in Popular Culture, expertly edited by Gail Ashton and Daniel T. Kline, has now been published in Palgrave's The New Middle Ages Series. Drawing from an eclectic mix of scholars from the US, UK, and Australia, Medieval...
- Queer Movie Medievalism
About to be published with Ashgate: Kathleen Coyne Kennedy and Tison Pugh, eds., Queer Movie Medievalism. Here is the publisher's description: How is history even possible, since it involves recapturing a past already lost? It is through this urge...
Medieval History
Russell Peck Reviews Pugh/Aronstein, The Disney Middle Ages
This collection of fourteen essays provides a balanced and often quite witty assessment of Disney?s films, TV shows, marketing strategies, theme parks, personal philosophies, pedagogy, social and political practices of Walt Disney and his Corporate Legacy. My remarks on the volume are descriptive. My goal is to give readers a detailed sense of the book?s contents, particularly ideas they might wish to pick up on to develop ideas of their own. Although the essays are sometimes marked by familiar criticism pertaining to Disney?s conservative rightwing politics, inherent racism, and gender biases, the authors do make considerable effort to appreciate the artistry and technical skills of Disney?s work, with thoughtful allowances for the integrity of the nostalgic vision of Disney fantasies and their imperialistic global messages. The collection speaks well to a scholarly audience, while, at the same time, addressing intelligently a broader audience that includes virtually anyone who has ever seen a Disney movie or TV program or been to a theme park ? that is, about everyone who has grown up in America or elsewhere. The bibliography is excellent. READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE.
- Is Snow White Real? A Look Back Into The Life Story Of Countess Margarete Von Waldeck
With the premiere of Rupert Sanders' "Snow White and the Huntsman," which hit theaters on Friday starring Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron, many are wondering if the folk tale popularized by the Brothers Grimm and Walt Disney of...
- Medievally Speaking Reviews: Montoya, Medievalist Enlightenment; Nagel, Medieval Modern; And Stromberg, Maleficent
Please find the following new reviews on Medievally Speaking (http://medievallyspeaking.blogspot.com/): Alicia C. Montoya. Medievalist Enlightenment: From Charles Perrault to Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 2013. 256pp. Reviewed by...
- Pavlinich Reviews: Frozen
Frozen. Dir. Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck. Disney, 2013. Currently in theaters. 108 mins. Reviewed by: Elan Justice Pavlinich ([email protected]) Frozen has been under revision since 1943. Proposed, abandoned, revived, and defunded, for decades...
- Medieval Afterlives In Popular Culture
Medieval Afterlives in Popular Culture, expertly edited by Gail Ashton and Daniel T. Kline, has now been published in Palgrave's The New Middle Ages Series. Drawing from an eclectic mix of scholars from the US, UK, and Australia, Medieval...
- Queer Movie Medievalism
About to be published with Ashgate: Kathleen Coyne Kennedy and Tison Pugh, eds., Queer Movie Medievalism. Here is the publisher's description: How is history even possible, since it involves recapturing a past already lost? It is through this urge...