By Samuel Gomora, Staff Writer
The number of live action Disney movies that are being produced have increased in the last several years, especially concerning the conversion of animation to live action.
Keegan Winchester, a junior biochemistry and molecular biology major, discussed how Disney's live action movies are usually boring or bad adaptations.
"I think that Disney is using nostalgia to bring people to watch these movies as we grew up loving the cartoons, and sometimes they are good, but I honestly just want original content,” Winchester said.
Another student, Chance Reneau, a senior and biblical studies major, finds the movies to be either hit or miss.
"I love Disney, but their skills in live action movies pales in comparison to what they can do with animation. I loved “Dumbo” and “The Jungle Book,” but all the other ones have just been disappointing in my opinion," Reneau said.
Some people, like Cory Fairer, a senior ministry major, claims that all the movies are good and bring back his childhood to an extent.
"I have found all the movies to be entertaining and joyful whether or not they chose to copy the original storyline," Fairer said.
The perspective on Disney's expansion into live action movies over the years has generated much discussion, which is no surprise considering that it is such a major aspect of many people's childhood.
"Disney has always had that element of magic throughout its entirety, and that magic has kept my attention since I was a child," Fairer said.
"It is no doubt that I love the goal that Disney pursues when making its movies and I still love the majority of its movies, but the live action movies like “Aladdin” and “The Lion King”seem forceful and obvious attempts for more money," Winchester said.
"I think for me what I have always loved about Disney was its cartoons, and this major push for live action movies are making Disney seem more grown up, but I do not want that. I watch Disney movies for my childlike wonder," Reneau said.
The Disney live action movies that have been adaptations of previous cartoons have differed in terms of whether they have remained completely faithful to the original script or not.
"I think that it is okay if Disney changes the script when making a live action version of a cartoon, but the issue is that the change needs to be as good or even better than what was previously present. This becomes more difficult since so many people cling to the original piece," Winchester said.
"I am perfectly fine with what Disney does with the script as they seem to do awesome regardless of the direction they go in," Fairer said.
"I honestly prefer the original script over any additions or changes they could make. They original scripts are usually fantastic and funny to begin with, so I see no reason to change," Reneau said.
With Disney making up so much of the movie production market, this is also affecting how people feel about the company and their movies.
"I love that Disney is a bigger part of the field than ever before. I never have to worry about whether a movie is going to be good or not with Disney. They always do well with their movies compared with other studios," Fairer said.
"With Disney making such a large amount of the movies today and continuing to eat up the movie industry, it really frustrates me. Disney does good movies, but it is limiting the lack of diversity. I want to watch more in the theaters than a Disney film. They are often times too generic in their plotlines," Reneau said.
"I believe that Disney is going to need to change up their strategy eventually before people become fatigued with them. You can not be on top forever," Winchester said.