As the curtain of the Lunar New Year file gradually fell, Hollywood movies reappeared, and the two new films that were released simultaneously in the world that first landed in theaters happened to be family movies. However, the evaluations they received were very different.
"Tom and Jerry", which debuted on February 26, is a wave of bad reviews, and even with emotional blessings, its professional film critics on the film review website "Rotten Tomatoes" score only 26%; and "Raya and The Last Dragon", which was released today (March 5), after the word-of-mouth ban was lifted on March 2, the professional film critics on "Rotten Tomatoes" scored at a high score of 97%. If Tom and Jerry falls short of your expectations, you may find some solace in Dragon Quest.
Southeast Asian exotic
"Dragon Quest" is produced by Disney Animation Studios, and the screening mode refers to the previous "Journey of the Mind" - in Chinese mainland and other areas where the epidemic eases, it enters the theater line; in North America, the theater line and disney+ platform are launched simultaneously.
The film is not created by IP, but is a purely original story: in a country called "Dragon You State", humans and dragons originally lived in harmony, but when the dark magic attacked, the dragon sacrificed itself to save mankind, and legend has it that only the last dragon Hesu was left. Five hundred years later, in order to compete for the Dragon Crystal, the Dragon You State split into five tribes. In order to eliminate the hatred between the clans, the Patriarch of Ponga, who guards the crystal, invites the leaders of the other four clans to visit Dragon Heart City, but because her daughter Raya credulously trusts Namali, the daughter of the leader of the Dragon's Tooth Valley, causing the crystal to shatter, the Dark Devil once again ravags the world, turning many people, including the Ponga Patriarch, into stone.
The remorseful Raya has since embarked on a journey to find the dragon Shisu, hoping to use her power to bring her father back to life. However, when she called out Shisu for many years, she found that the dragon was actually not so "divine", and only by collecting crystals scattered in the hands of several other tribes could she be able to fight against the Dark Devil. Along the way, they meet Awa, a ten-year-old "shrewd businessman", Xiao Nuo, a young girl who steals for a living, and her "Monkey Tiantuan", a tall and powerful old vine. In order to be able to reunite with their loved ones, they decided to give their trust to Raya and Shisu.
From the above story synopsis, it is not difficult to see that this is another Disney princess monster upgrade story. The reason why we are tired of such a routine is because Disney can always play new tricks on the scenery along the way. This time, for the first time, they set their sights on Southeast Asia, creating a world of remoteness, magic and curiosity.
Stills from The Legend of the Dragon Quest, Raya
The film begins with a shadow puppet show about "Once Upon a Time", which is colorful and beautiful enough to rival the most artistic scenes in Disney animation in the past, such as the church stained glass in Beauty and the Beast. The costumes of the various characters in the film, including Raya, are unique in regional style: the overall style takes into account the drape and coolness of Southeast Asian clothing, reminiscent of the Sabai tops and Sampot pants that are popular in Laos, Cambodia and Thailand; the fabrics of the dresses on different occasions are also refined, such as in the main palace hall, the characters are gorgeous hand-woven silk and brocade, the daily clothes and combat clothes are mostly cotton, linen and leather, and the patterns on the clothes are the shadow of Indonesian batik technology.
The five tribes of the Dragon You State are also unique, in addition to the fantasy element, friends who like to travel in Southeast Asia will certainly be able to find their side of reality. For example, the protagonist Raya's hometown of Longxin City, many buildings are made of large stones, the two banks of the river are connected by long stone bridges, which reminds people of Cambodia's Angkor; the Dragon's Tooth Valley surrounded by water reminds people of southeast Asian islands with clear sand and fine wind and rain; and the entire Dragon's Claw Bay built on the water is not a replica of Thailand's floating market.
Dragon Quest poster
In addition, there are special foods such as Tom Yin Gong soup and seafood porridge that take turns to appear, which makes people think of a movie theater and immediately go straight to the Thai restaurant to feast. And Raya's pet plus mount suddenly, as soon as he hears the name, he knows that it is based on the invincible transportation vehicle in Southeast Asia. Even weapons are no exception, and Raya's sword is widely popular in Southeast Asia, one of the world's three most famous blades, and its unique wave shape is impressive.
Wave-shaped sword of Gris
Atypical princesses and unusual dragons
Whether in the East or the West, the story of the nobleman and the dragon has always been a popular theme in various film and television works, but fortunately, "The Legend of the Dragon Hunt" did not fry cold rice this time.
First of all, Raya, unlike the general pampered Disney princess, at the beginning of the movie, she appeared as the guardian warrior of the Dragon Crystal, and after the betrayal, she transformed into the end of the road crazy flower carrying the hatred of the country and the family, and her personality also became a little extreme, and her image further deviated from the princess who was high above, but approached the woman who was happy to take revenge in our martial arts novels. However, her father's teachings and the bondage of affection have always maintained a softness under the hard shell, so she will sympathize with Awa, Xiaonuo and Lao Fuji who have the same experience.
Not only is Raya not like a traditional Disney princess, But Shisu is also very different from the dragon we are familiar with. She is not as abominable as the Western dragons in film and television works such as "Game of Thrones", nor is she as close to the image of animals as the dragons in our Chinese myths and legends. Personally, the dragon in "The Legend of the Dragon" is more like a combination of naga, a dragon who runs the Mekong River (also with horns in the brain gate) and a colorful pony, without the fearsome side of the dragon, but as innocent and cute as a child.
Stills from The Legend of the Dragon Quest
Raya and Shisu, one who has experienced the wind and frost, one who is not familiar with the world, this completely different one person and one god of various contradictions and collisions, bring a lot of points to the film. In addition, the talking Apo, the small sticky of the little devil, the old vine that looks fierce but is thick, and the cute and cute sudden also contribute a lot of laughter. In contrast, As a "villain", Namari can be more three-dimensional. Although it can be seen that the creators did not want to portray her as an evil person, the complexity of this role was not fully demonstrated.
Disney's values
To this day, the big Hollywood companies that operate in the group have one or even two animation companies, but the Disney Group, which sits on Pixar and Disney animation studios, is still unique. Interestingly, in terms of subject matter, the two companies have been going their separate ways in recent years, with Pixar always exploring the inside and Disney constantly going out. In this regard, the changes in the biological child are actually more drastic than those of the "adopted" child.
While the fairytale castles that used to be held up are not deserted, Disney is more about exploring the corners of this world. So, we followed "Dream Quest" to appreciate the undead culture of Mexico that came to life to die, and through "Ocean's Edge", we got a glimpse of polynesia's mysterious tattoo culture. Even if the pursuit of profit is the essence of capital, it is not difficult to see Disney's efforts as an international company to promote diversity.
As for "The Legend of the Dragon Hunt", not only is the picture full of Southeast Asian style, if you pay a little attention to the credits after the end of the film, it is not difficult to find that there are many Asian names on it. First, the voice actors, almost entirely of Asian descent, including many of today's Hollywood hits, such as Kelly Marie Chan (Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker), Ocapina (Don't Tell Her), Vinah of Dragon Tooth Valley (Killing Eve), and Benedict Wang (Doctor Strange) who voiced Old Vine. There are also Asians in important positions such as Ruan Ji and Adele Lin in the screenwriting team, and Helen Chen, one of the art directors.
Screenshot of the Trailer for Dragon Quest
And even though the average audience may not care, Disney is proud to tell the media that the film is led by an all-female team of technical leaders, including technical director Kelsey Hurley, deputy technical director Gabriela Hernandez and Shweta Viswanathan.
While all of this is often interpreted as "political correctness," I prefer to think of them as a result of Disney's practice of the values it espouses. Of course, this value will not only stay in the subject matter and production, but also inevitably penetrate into the ideology of the work, and the general audience will have a more intuitive feeling and rebound.
Judging from the latest "Dragon Quest", under the wonderful and gorgeous picture, it tells the audience in a hidden preaching posture: learn to trust others, including those who have hurt you. Irrespective of the example of Theisu's trust in her by her siblings, she taught Raya to boldly believe in Namari, who separated her from her beloved, a logical fallacy of inequality in objects. To put it more simply, for our Chinese audience, who grew up with the education of "the heart to harm others, the heart to prevent people must not be without", I am afraid that there will be an instinctive denial. Of course, for some Western audiences who believe in unconditionally embracing the vulnerable groups with a heart of truth, goodness and beauty, and can achieve world unity, such a film is undoubtedly a shot in the arm.
Source: The Paper