The Techvolution of Disney

Main Street circa 1976

We are all familiar with Disney live action remakes such as Alice In Wonderland, Cinderella, Maleficent, and we've all heard of the upcoming ones Beauty And The Beast, The Jungle Book, Sword In The Stone.  And of course, there are the alleged ones in the works (which could just be speculation) Dumbo, Mulan, Pinocchio, and The Little Mermaid.

With each new Disney Live Action flick that comes out, I find myself so excited , only to leave the theater feeling a bit empty.  I end up usually going home to watch the animated classic it was based on.  I get that technology evolves, and we need to find modern ways to entertain our children in a word where everything is instant gratification, action packed and sound bite driven.  But, are we cheating them from the classic nostalgic experiences, and the amazing creative and innovative artistry, created by humans totally unassisted by technology, that we grew up on that Disney represents?  Maybe it’s just time for me to finally accept that Disney itself has evolved far beyond what was ever imagineered by Walt himself, and well beyond its original animated roots. 

The evolution of Disney has me a bit torn.  While technology has always played a major role since its inception, so has vintage Americana.  I find myself questioning if Disney is evolving so fast technologically that enough emphasis on the preservation of all things classic has gone by the wayside.  When was the last time you stopped to smell the Main Street roses?  My last few visits, it saddened me to see families just high-tail it past Main Street to get to 'the lands'. While the Company has grown infinitely (see what I did there?) even in its tech savvy inception, a huge part of its charm was its timeless feel which I feel many of us are no longer appreciating and more importantly, preserving.  It’s up to us folks.  That which is not appreciated, eventually, goes away. 

Of course, this is just my perspective.  We would like to hear how our EarVenturers feel about the TechVolution of Disney.  Do you feel live action movies, and technological advances helps diminish a generational gap or are our kids cheated in some way from that classic experience we so enjoyed? Does Disney Americana give you the feels, or are you more about D-tech? Is this much ado about nothing and am I just old - hey - that's definitely a possiblity!

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