the death of fairytales in cinema
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 มี.ค. 2024
- Kia ora koutou and welcome! We're looking at traditional Fairytales today, and trying to figure out why they're rarely made into movies... and why those movies rarely succeed.
Thanks for being here (-:
You can find me on Letterboxd and Instagram @rachellydiab
Resources listed here:
writinginmargins.weebly.com/h...
thoughtsonfantasy.com/2016/10...
www.medievalists.net/2022/09/...
.variety.com/2014/film/news/it...
www.mentalfloss.com/article/8...
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As someone who loves fairy tales, thank you for this! I have so dearly missed films like La Belle et la Bete, Ever After, The Company of Wolves, Snow White: A Tale of Terror, etc. that give fairy tales (especially darker tales) the respect they deserve rather than cheapening them to what is considered trendy. I think Gretel & Hansel was the most recent adaptation of a fairy tale that I genuinely loved because it respected the original fairy tale and its morals while still doing something new with it by turning it into a nightmarish coming-of-age story. I'd love to see someone do the same thing for Beauty & the Beast.
*pokes head in* Somebody in search of some Beauty & the Beast re-tellings? I'm here to help! As of last year, there's three horror versions of BATB that I'm aware of:
*Panna a Netvor:* a 1978 Czech film where the Beast is depicted as a demonic bird monster, sort of in a Jim Henson's Creature Shop-gone-wrong type of way, who is not above killing humans in order to feed. However, he only becomes agonizingly aware of this act when the Beauty, Julie, takes up residence in his surreal, dilapidated mansion home. His torment comes in the form of a Gollum-like voice in his head that taunts him for his burgeoning humanity, and there's this eerie yet engaging tension that comes from his and Julie's interactions, especially since it takes pages out of the likes of Eros and Psyche and The Phantom of the Opera by having him (initially) appear to her only in voice. My main critiques are the lovely yet limited score that gets repetitive after a while, and a rather sudden tone shift in its third act, but it's such a unique take on the story that I'm happy to help continue spreading the word about it to other BATB fans (though not for the squeamish), as that it is how I myself found out about it initially. You can find it uploaded to TH-cam with English subtitles. 🥀
*Spike:* A 2008 indie film (and I mean, SUPER indie) that re-tells BATB as a cloaked "teens hunted by a creature in the woods" horror film, turning the fairytale into a meditative, Gothic cautionary tale. It's about a modern-day Beast (born as is, no curse) who has long-since found comfort in the fairytale (and other similar literature) as an assurance that it is possible for him to be loved, and although gentle and poetic by nature, the ways in which he goes about trying to win back the Beauty (who once childhood friends with him) become increasingly selfish and violent. (Such a portrayal also kind of makes him like Erik/the Phantom, in a way. Sensing a theme here? Lol). IMDB will show you this movie is *very* divisive amongst those who've seen it, as it relies quite heavily on whether you get invested in its (nameless) characters, and *does* admittedly seem pretentious on the surface. But I for one have found it so earnest and sincere in its meditations on love and the analyzations of trying to bring fairytale tropes to the real world that I find myself constantly returning to it. It's free to watch on TUBI. 🖤
*Belle:* Not to be confused with the 2021 Japanese anime version. The one I'm talking about is a 2023 Icelandic-made, English-language live-action that I've *finally* got the chance to check out on TUBI recently. The Beast is a man who, while still appearing handsome on the surface, is cursed with cannibalism, and in the meantime, must safe guard a magical rose that can cure any ailment (similar to Tangled in that way). This is how he meets Belle, who comes to his cave in hopes the flower will cure her sick father. Of course, though, she must live with him in exchange, and upon learning of his curse, attempts to help him. I've not finished the whole thing, admittedly, but I'm enjoying it so far. Idk if it's just the Icelandic setting of it all, but the leisure pace and hauntingly drenched atmosphere gives me the feel of a Robert Eggers movie, such as The Witch and The Northman. And given how I've seen it described as "arthouse horror," I suppose that fits the comparison. If that's the kind of thing you go for, then I think you might like it too! 🌹
@@DJtheBlack-RibbonedRose I would also like to add in a couple great dark fantasy/fairy tale-esque films.
*Hansel & Gretel* (from South Korea): It's about a man who's about to be a father when he's on his way to see his first born child. But he gets into a car accident and gets lost in the woods. Along the way, he stumble upon a fairy tale cottage owned by three orphaned children with supernatural powers and the man has to figure out how to be a present parent to them.
*Errementari* (from Spain): Loosely based off a folktale called "The Devil and the Blacksmith". It's about a young girl who grew up in a religious environment where she's told her mother is in hell. So she stumbles upon the abode of the Blacksmith, where he holds captive a Devil, who promises the both of them that he'll find the Blacksmith's wife and the little girl's mother. It has a very Del Toro vibe to it.
Errementari is a treat, I randomly stumbled upon it and decided to watch it, and am glad I did.
@@DJtheBlack-RibbonedRoseThe 1978 Czech film is so good!! I always wondered about the ending though, as it seems too dreamlike and wonder if it’s real.
@@DJtheBlack-RibbonedRose THANK YOU for the recommendations! I loved Panna a Netvor's focus on the Beast as an animal first, but learns humanity through love. I'm definitely checking the others out!
I also feel like fairy tales don't do well with audience because fairy tales are uninterested in logic. When ever I show fairy tale movies to friends, they point out the plot holes. Yet, those leaps in logic or dream logic are part of the atmosphere of a fairy tale.
Exactly! And I feel that, since these stories were originally cautionary tales to children, the unexplained details are what allowed them to be more palatable to a younger person, and for them to internally register it as a different world from our own, so the message will sink in more subtly. A story where a predatory stranger takes advantage of a little girl will have a child terrified and paranoid, whereas a wolf that dresses up in grandmother's clothing...
Do you have any recommendations of fairy tales/'dark' fairy tales that accentuate this dream logic aspect of it? Because the idea of a Lynchian fairy tale movie sounds pretty dope
@@johnernest5843 If you're looking at films I recommend Catherine Breillet's Bluebeard and The Sleeping Beauty. Looking at books I would recommend Emily Carrol's comic collection Through the Woods, Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi, and of course Angela Carter's Bloody Chamber.
This is a good point. In a post TV Tropes/Cinema Sins world, suspension of disbelief for general audiences seems a lot lower than it used to be, with less people willing to allow for leaps in technical logic for the sake of telling a good story, having a good time with a movie, or even just for the vibes.
IMO, yes and no. The magical part of fairy tale can be easily integrated as world building. There are many way magic can be applied.
The important 'logic' part is the characters themselves. There's a need to make good, compelling character that audience can relate while also keep the heart of the fairytale.
I mean, look at anime. Currently, Frieren and Dungeon Meshi are very popular and both are fantasy.
I think fairy tale media still exist, but it's now heavily restricted towards a children's audience.
Adult audiences only accept fairy tales as long as you play them as horror.
very fair point!
if you go original you don't even have to play them as horror. they are. "ruckedi guuu, ruckedi guuu, Blut ist im Schuh." " (rouckedy goohh)pigeon sound, pigeon sound, there's blood in the shoe." is the line from cinderella (Aschenputtel) about the evil sisters getting their toes and heels cut off so their feet fit into the tiny shoes (because the prince is too stupid to recognise the woman he supposedly fell in love with while dancing with her at the ball, supposedly also looking into her face...). that was read to me when I was little. it was printed in books that were meant for children. and I wouldn't have it any other way. maybe modern medea underestimates children. sugarcoating the stories for children too much and then having to play up the horror all the more for the grown ups. have they lost the middle ground?
@@rachellydiabdisney is good at making live action and animated fairy-tale films and they've been doing it non stop since the 1930s.
@@rachellydiabSidney white is a teen rom com adaptation of snow white set in a 200s collage sorority and the prince is a nice jock.
@@karowolkenschaufler7659 Oh yeah. Agreed. You just add real world logic to the fairy tale logic and BOOM! it get's really twisted. Rapunzel is a really good example of that, since both her and the prince suffer a lot during the original tale. And there are so many lesser known stories, that still could be told, like seven ravens or brother and sister. Both fit well into a fantasy setting for adult audiences.
I would argue that Coraline is an excellent example of a fairy tale set in our modern world, elements such as the other mother liking games, and Coraline playing a game for the ghosts and her freedom feel very reminiscent of other fairy tales and myths, which is no surprise since Gaiman loves that stuff lol
So many modern fairytale and fantastical films seem insecure, self-conscious, and just overall afraid to take themselves seriously. If they laugh at themselves first, they defang the mockery and ridicule, but they also defang the story, themes, and emotional resonance they might otherwise have. And by doing so, they discourage people from appreciating them fully, lest we, too, be deemed naïve, childish, and silly.
(Many superhero movies do this, too, making fun of themselves to avoid being seen as sincere and therefore cringe.)
This is why twilight is sooooo iconic
@@nataliereyes6055 Yup! It took itself seriously XD
That's why I really loved the early DCEU movies (Man of Steel, BVS, & Wonder Woman). Or even the Batman & Joker. We need more superhero movies that bring sincerity & take themselves seriously.
This is so true
So True! I think this trend started in 2001 with the success Of Shrek -a movie that mocks all fairy tales-
I think the work of Miyazaki definitely fits your description of fairy tales, and I've heard people criticize them for exactly those qualities. They defy rational logic for the symbolic, emotional rule of the fairy tale, while still taking themselves earnestly.
Stardust is fantastic and sticks with you. Highly recommend it. As someone who isn’t really into the fairytale as a sub genre of fantasy, this film is a pleasure to watch and does stick with you in a lovely way.
I second this, it's genuinely wonderful. And Michelle Pfeiffer is phenomenal in it.
its good, but the book is really, really good
Have u seen the secret of moonacre & inkheart? I’ve seen lots of people recommend if you liked one you’d love the other & I love all 3 so I agree
Before writing the novel Stardust, Gaiman read The Princess Bride, because he wondered if a fairy tale for adults was something he could create. It's a little more mature than Princess Bride, but smartly so.
I SO want a big budget adaptation of the Snow Queen. It could be amazing.
I absolutely love the snow queen!! mark my
words I’m making it if I ever find myself with 10 million in pocket
like the 50' animation????
@@breania_inekora5069 I didn't even know about the '57 version till now! We used to listen to an audiobook of it on tape 😇
@rachellydiab this version both traumatised me (the snow queen looking at them from the window/mirror) and has one of my favourite scenes (any of the balcony scenes) in my entire childhood
The main problem is that every fairy-tale story is now a derivative of Damsel. Some deconstructive tale on the princess discovering herself usually critizing the tropes while pretending to be doing something original when everybody else is doing it.
EXACTLY. and Damsel it's not even good (in my opinion), they just take a trope that people think it's good and try it again. Seriously, where are movies like Legend, Labyrinthy, La Belle et la Bete, Ever After, The Company of Wolves or even old Disney. Where's the true magic?
Countries like The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany make new fairy tale movies every year. They even do co-productions. Sure, while most of those fairy tale movies are usually made for television, they still count. Many of them are actually quite good (Rübezahls Schatz!
Yes! I noticed a few eastern european films pop up when i was editing but unfortunately it was too late to include them - very happy to know that there’s still a hunger for Fairy Tales in europe 💜
Books based on fairy tales are still being released. Maybe we'll see a revival of movies when these get adapted into movies in a few years.
‘The shape of water’ I would say is a fairy tale without marketing itself as one, which seems to make people more comfortable.
Personally in a lot of fairytale cinema I often feel offput, as it often seems to be very… male gaze-ie, probably also as a lot of the original stories are very misogynistic. But I think it’s interesting that fairytales, characters and aesthetics are SUPER popular in literature still and especially with women yet that hasn’t been converted into cinema at all.
Side note: I would recommend more of Neil Gaimans books like ‘neverwhere’ which is so modern fairytale vibes!
'Original story' is kind of a misnomer with most fairy tales since they have no original version by definition. Some of the misogyny is from male collectors responding to complaints (but not necessarily from men).
Neverwhere was a 6 episode TV series originally.
I don’t know why people call it misogynistic as if they had hatred for women. Just say you didn’t like certain norms the characters had to play. Most fairytales don’t appeal to male gaze
I'd argue the opposite. Most fairy tales are directly for girls. The Prince Charming character usually shows up to be the reward for the heroine - we're told Snow White, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Beauty & the Beast, Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks, Thousand Furs and many more, and expected to identify with the girl. If a fairy tale film is made today, 9 times out of 10 it will have a female protagonist.
@@BetterWithBob thank you. Yes the female protagonists are always pretty and filmed the perfect light but so is the male love interest. Fairytale films just like to look good to everyone.
There’s nothing like Tale of Tales out there, so bizarre and brutal just like fairy tales we imagine while reading them. One of my favourite films of all time
I thought it seemed like they were trying to do Catherine Brelliat's Sleeping Beauty/ Bluebeard, have you seen them? If not I recommend Sleeping Beauty as it's really the Snow Queen inside of her dream and has many of those elements even more cohesively done.
I loved this film although i felt it was just a little bit rushed at the end.
The fall (2006 staring Lee Pace) its absolutely fantastic, maybe it fits more in the same category as Pan's Labyrinth cause its two stories at the same time intertwined with "reality", but gives that fairy tale vibes and the visuals are stunning.
Two of my favorite movies are "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya" (2013) and "The Wolf House" (2018). Highly reccomend to anyone that hasn't seen them.
I love The Company of Wolves, I wrote my dissertation on the works of Angela Carter who was prolific in re-telling fairy tales for the post-modern world. The Company of Wolves was based on The Bloody Chamber series of short stories, I highly recommend checking her out if your interested in the dark, the strange and the slightly erotic.
Oh wow, i definitely plan on reading some of her work- it seems right up my alley!
Have you ever seen Jim Henson's The Storyteller? All nine episodes are for free on TH-cam with an AI upscale remaster. Marvelous work!
I love Fairy Tales and I wish more directors or screenwriters would give it a crack. Movies like mirror mirror maybe aren't the most "deep" or well adapted, but there is so much artistic value in the fairytale films I love from a craft perspective
Any fans of Cartoon Saloon here? Their Irish Folklore Trilogy may not be based whole cloth on specific stories, but aspects of many different stories are included, and they DEFINITELY (to me, at least) have a fairytale feel to them. Wolfwalkers is absolutely my favorite, with its still-too-rare focus on female friendship. (I'd love to see some adaptations of those rare fairy tales that focus on sisterhood, such as "Fitcher's Bird," "Biancabella and the Snake," and "Kate Crackernuts.)
I also think that "Jim Henson's Storyteller" doesn't get enough love. Granted, the thirty-minute episodes don't get into the more adult, sexual territory of many of the original stories, but they have the aesthetic down pat, and they can be downright terrifying. Furthermore, at least one of them (The Soldier and Death, coincidentally my favorite) has a rather tragic ending.
Hearing fairytales aren't "concise" or "entertaining" enough inevitably just sounds like "modern audiences are stupid," to me (which is also my opinion and not a criticism of this video). It's disheartening. : (
Too much tiktok rots their brain
A personal favourite of mine is a film called “I am Dragon”.
It’s a Russian fantasy romance where the main character gets kidnapped by a dragon, and the story of how they fell in love. So so good! Highly recommend!!
Do Not Watch Anything russian! Ever!😋😋
Great movie
@user-gw3rr4ju4o, are you sane?
As a fairy-tale enthusiast myself, this was a very entertaining and enlightening video on the age of fairy-tales in film!
I miss the earnestness of fairytale movies too, and that slight creepiness they hold. I've only recently come across your channel and i am so enjoying it! Great to see another verilybitchie fan too, Verity's work is great
Ahh hi! thank u for being here, I’m a big fan of your work ⭐️⭐️
Everytime someone declares 'the death' of something it usually precedes an explosion of that thing becoming popular again. I wish people would stop declaring 'the death' of superhero movies because I am genuinely fed up with those and they just won't go away.
omg.. oh noooo we're withnessing the death of fairtyale films oh nooo i hope theres no explosion of it after this video uhhh oh! ohhh death of romcoms too oh noooo oh no OH death of queer cinema too thats such a shame such a shame too bad theres no revival that will manifest after commenting this what a shame what shame!
So many great points! Especially the one about not knowing how to bring the feeling of fairytales from a childhood perspective to an adult one. It's interesting how less serious something is the more "adult" it seems to be taken as, and the more earnest the more it's "for kids." I feel like this says something about society as a whole since even actual kids aren't that interested in fairytale stories anymore. But fingers crossed they make a comeback! 🤞🏾
Yesss that contrast is fascinating when you lay it out like that!! Kids always find adults cringe so maybe that'll finally have the positive affect of gen Z not being interested in ironic comedy lmao
4:29 thanks for including this Cinderella movie, it's one of those interesting ones from Czechoslovakia. I'd also recomended to you The Little Mermaid (1976), this movie gave me chills when i was kid
As a kid I watched a lot of fairytales on German tv channels on Sunday mornings. (I'm dutch)
And I loved them. A lot of them were stories you don't hear anymore, which is kinda sad.
Will definitely watch Tale of Tales! I personally love stardust, I had an obsession with the movie as a child haha✨ also I think there’s also the fact that most retold fairytales from the west, are of course, western fairytales- which usually means we’ve been seeing the ‘same’ European historical settings, fashion, and tone for decades. Maybe many people unconsciously feel ‘exhausted’ seeing this over and over again,
I hope you enjoy it! And great point, I'm sure fatigue plays a part as it is difficult to make western fairytales feel fresh without stripping fairytales of their distinctive factors.
A big portion of the reason fairy tales have never taken off in cinema is because of the sanitation of fairy tales in the Victoria period. The original stories were so whitewashed that they utterly disappeared from cultural literacy.
But I do think the Maleficent films come closer in tone than a lot of other mainstream fantasy movies. The first one is an allegory for SA and finding personal meaning and love after being traumatized and betrayed. If that isn’t a fairy tale theme I don’t know what is.
I will also defend Snow White and the Huntsman (although not the shitty sequel) until I’m in my grave.
Yes Maleficent is so underrated! It may not be perfect, but it’s a unique and interesting version of the story, and you can tell Angelina Jolie is having so much fun with it.
Ironically i like the sequel more than oringal cause I find the snow queen interesting
Fairytale movies will always hold a special place in my heart, whether it be horror, wholesome, or romantic.💖
Ever After is still one of my all time favorites! I love the realistic quality, like this could have happened but still maintained the magic of the overall story. Plus I love that Cinderella is kind but still is very brave and stands up to her stepmother.
tale of tales absolutely captured me when I stumbled across it on telly. it was sheer coincidance and I couldn't stop watching.
but I am german and the children's tv channel I grew up with shows a fairytale film every sunday at 12:00 am. the best ones are always the old ones from the czech republic. they were filmed in the udssr back in the day and got dubbed to german for the gdr (east germany). they are adaptations of more slavic folk lore and can be a bit tripy at goofy. but they are not cinema. they are television. I grew up with a fairytale film per week. so ... I suppose I'm more used to it. and I've even seen one as a grown up that was new and I liked. because the newer ones tend not to get me at all.
I just found your channel. I'm now on a bit of a binge and glad that I am. I'm picking up films I haven't seen yet but that will propably be to my liking.
hi! I just saw another comment about the german/czech fairytale tv movies, i love that that was a thing! I feel like their strange tone is something i seek out so i’m excited to try and find some!
And thank you for watching, hope u find some good new movies ✨
@@rachellydiab I haven't watched the fairytale films on sunday for a while but I think the czech ones still get shown (well.. on german tv). and I think that one cinderella film, you had clips of in your video, I think, the one where cinderella first meets the prince when she throws snow balls at him and is more of a little badass... that one should be czech as well. and it made me remember an adaptation of the little mermaid that is propably czech as well. true to the story. sad end and all. and with beautiful imagery. the merpeole in that are so cool looking. and making fun of humans for thinking that merpeople have fishtales becaus in that film they don't. and some imagery that still haunts me. when the little mermaid walks on the beach, her bare feet leave bloody prints in the sand... because every step is like walking on blades. and in the evening she goes down to the sea to cool her feet in the water and the water is reddened by her blood. and there is one human who knows/guesses (I think a kind jester) and he says "tonight it's not just the sunset that makes the water red". such strong imagery of silent pain and suffering that can easily be seen if you pay attention but that you can also overlook (there is a kind of plausible deniability). and that was and propably still is shown on children's tv in germany. so I wonder if modern medea really just underestimates children. this got rather long. remembering the old films I saw as a child just pulled a plug in my brain and all this bubbled out.
I’m from Germany and we still got a bunch of fairytale movies that are on tv every Sunday and all pretty short. I grew up with them and love them so much but they are catered towards children mostly, still don’t necessarily shy away from the more scary parts of the story!
Seeing as you asked about other cultures in Flanders, Belgium there are a lot of famous Flemish musicals about fairy tales that all recently got reruns. So now you get to see the 3 bigs, snow white and sleeping beauty musicals all over again after 20 years since the original musicals came out!
12:35 will probably be my favourite moment in any video essay for a long time now lol
I remember reading that The Wizard of Oz was often considered the first modern fairy tale, or it might have been just the first American one. And the 1939 film was extremely new and innovative at the time, not just for the special effects, but also because it would have been very odd to a 30s audience. They had to fire the first director after only two weeks because he just didn't have the sense of childish whimsy a "fairy story" needed, as they said, directing Judy Garland to act in an airy fairy way. George Cukor was brought on board for a couple of days while they found a replacement, and he realised that Dorothy had to be transparently sincere, and if she accepted the magic of Oz the way children did in fairy tales, then the audience would too. His direction was "Judy, you must always remember you're a little girl from Kansas"
And I remember someone else talking about Coraline where they said that in the world of a fairy tale, strange things happen in a very matter of fact way. The queen from Snow White just has a magic mirror that tells her who the fairest of them all is, Rapunzel's hair grows long enough to climb a tower with etc. The Disney Renaissance films did a good job of honoring those things while modernising the stories, but the 2000s and 2010s saw the rise of bad faith criticism complaining about 'plot holes' and things that weren't explained in detail, as well as it being very fun to mock anything that "took itself too seriously". Everything had to be subverted, deconstructed or lampshaded, and so the sincerity that a fairy tale requires couldn't be committed to fully
My personal Joke is that the most accurate Hans Christian Andersen adaptation is Ford Francis Copolla's Bram Stoker's The Little Mermaid.
The simple fact is that Fairy Tales are kind of short outside of a few quest based ones that can just be extended and contracted by adding and subtracting episodes. So TV anthology series are often better at handling them than movies are. The best of these are animated ones made in Japan or the USSR.
Anthology and vignette based films like Pulp Fiction aren't exactly common.
Then there's the massive influence of Carl Jung on screenwriting and Fairy Tale analysis that you'd think would overlap more but don't. A lot of writers think their stories are Fairy Tales just by being Jungian because nobody reads academic articles on folklore so they aren't aware of any criticism of Jung and most folklore classes at American universities are taught by Professors from other fields with no training in folklore studies who are just abusing tenure to lecture about their hobby.
If you included Jungian analysis based screenplays as modern fairy tales you'd have a lot more examples of 'modern' fairy tales. The whole 'Manic Pixie Dream Girl' concept is closely related to the Jungian anima which is how most princesses are interpreted in Jungian fairy tale analysis.
Though I really disagree that Princess Bride is a fairy tale film in any sense I think that's just a film you like that you've put in the video for the late medieval setting.
Tigers are not afraid is such an underrated movie i’m glad to see it here
ooooh! this is so up my alley! I was in my full fairytale era earlier this year. It had been creeping up in December and January but it was my personality in February. I read a Hans Christian Andersen collection, Brothers Grimm stories, and East of the Sun & West of the Moon. I rewatched Donkey Skin, Three Wishes For Cinderella, and The Red Shoes. (I didn't get to rewatching Cocteau's La Belle et la Bete.). And for first time watches: The Slipper and The Rose, Perinbaba (The Feather Fairy), How To Wake A Princess, The Prince and the Evening Star, The Snow Queen (1957), and both the Russian and Czech 1976 films of The Little Mermaid. And others. The Czech version is one of my new favorite movies
All through this video I was wondering if you would touch on The Shape of Water. I can see someone else has mentioned it in the comments too. It’s automatically where my mind goes when I hear the term Modern Day Fairytale. Such a beautifully done film. I also think a lot of modern day fairytales have transition back to the horror genre, which is quite apt really when you think about it as that’s where they mostly originated. As you say, most fairytales were warnings way back when. Could you call something like The Babadook a modern day fairytale? Then there’s films like The Hole in the Ground or Unwelcome.
Seeing A Cure For Wellness in the wild is wild. What is wilder is for it to be considered as a fairytale. I really wasn’t expecting it but I 100% see it now. Great vid btw!
I absolutely adore fairy tales, always have, and it was just a wonderful bonus to see you mention and talk about “Tale of Tales,” which hit such a perfect spot for me when I first watched it and makes me sooo happy. 🖤 So many new recommendations from this video too! I very much agree that it's an utterly tragic idea that fairytales will continue to fall "out of fashion" and by the wayside. The idea of these kinds of stories being too simple or too outdated for modern audiences saddens me greatly, but I can only hope that such things are just cyclical. Perhaps there will be a revival and people will fall back in love with them again!
Glad you enjoyed!! fingers crossed for a fairytale future 🤞🏻
Please for the love of reason WATCH STARDUST. IT'S A NOVEL. BY NEIL GAIMAN. IT'S VERY GOOD. (And reasonably goofy and unserious as needed but the basic fairytale elements are there).
Sadly Like fairytales themselves they have been pushed to the side by modern audiences for being too "sexist", Xenophobic, Scary or sexual for audiences. The tale of tales which actually came from a book of Italian fairy tales would not be done today same with labyrinth, dark crystal and others I mean i love labyrinth but being it deals with a older man who' is actually 350 years( old but portrayed by David bowie who was 35-40 at the time)
chasing a girl who is 15 around in ballet tights and who also took baby the movie just would never get made today. But for some reason twilight is still ok despite being its a 114 year old man dating a 17 year old girl and there relationship has many Toxic elements to it? but anyway its sadly becse we live in a culture of fools who can not see the value of fairy tales Fairy tales originally were stories that relayed moral messages and delt with societal issues and religious questions and put them into miniature. Little red riding hood for example is not just a story about do not talk to strangers but if you look at original versions and look very closely you will see its actually a story warning young girls against predatory men . but just a example.
I love those 80/90/00 fantasy-fairytale movies and miniseries: Company of wolves, LadyHawke, 10th kingdom, Snow white Tale of terror, Fantahiro, Leyend, Ever After, la Belle et la Bete, the Fairy Tale Theater----- the StoryTeller is a masterpiece and I wish they'd made at least 10 more seasons. 7/
The problem is when they try to justify or change a fairytale; the more "logical explanations" or "modern thinking/sensitivities" crap you try to sell, the less magical it would seem. I think the abuse of CGI is also a problem - the special effects are better when you mix different types of tecniques like in Pan's Labyrinth.
I think a collective reckoning where producers of note take on a mantra of “Fuck them kids” might be the only thing that can bring bizarre but heartfelt, compelling, and entrancing fairytale movies back. “We” decided around 15 years ago that fairytale movies were just for kids and so started creating fairytale media that was totally sanitized of a few major fairytale themes, namely sex. Sex, depending on the circumstances and the perspectives at play, is exactly like you described fairytales to be, “simple and dreadful”. I’m sorry, but if you get rid of any and all story elements involving or relating to sex, you’re removing a central reason as to why these tales have stuck around for so long in the first place.
I've always loved fairy tales. As a child I exhausted all of the fairy tale books in my local library, I remember hunting down fairy tales from all over the world to get my fix.
I would only read the original stories (I hated what Disney did by removing macabre and dark elements).
I loved these films, especially Tale of Tales. It's sad that the genre is so overlooked. Often we perceive it to be a children's genre which isn't necessarily the case.
I think we don't really know what to do with the genre, I think Disney has changed our perception of fairy tales and watered it down alot. Hopefully film makers can still see the potential to explore the genre more. Would love another Tale of Tales.
P.S: There is a difference between fairy tales and fantasy (although there is alot of overlap). Hoping that we don't continue to drown fairy tales in too many fantasy tropes to make it more "appealing" for adults.
16:09 that just triggered such a deep response in me like a sleeper agent, I haven't heard anyone say click click slide in 15 years probably
You must watch the fall 2006 !! It’s amazing , the costume and the fantastical nature behind it is so beautiful 😍 watched it along with tale of tales and I love both . ❤ and yes! a cute for wellness is so good ! I enjoy watching how weird and stage yet captivating it is
Agree and i love Willow too its my top 5 favorite movie of all time
If you're a fairytale fan you'll love it
omg i love the fall!!! Now that you’ve mentioned it I can’t believe i forgot it when writing the script - obviously its not a ‘traditional fairytale’ but I think it totally counts 💜💜 it’s films like these that make me feel like cinema is really worth something
I've realized in recent years that fairy tales really are my favorite kind of stories. Both my favorite book and favorite show are deeply rooted in love for old fairy tales and classic stories in literature and ballet and telling something entirely new with them. When I watch movies from the 90s or 2000s like Penelope or Ella Enchanted or Stardust or even the first Barbie films or stuff like Aquamarine or Coraline I feel such love and connection to those films I don't get with other stories. I miss stories not set in modern times, I miss stories that are simpler in execution but because of that their main goal shines so brightly. Lots of fairy tales and fairy tale inspired stories work I think because they don't focus on a bunch of concepts nor only one genre, they focus on telling a specific story about one message and don't worry about it being only a romance or only action or only thriller and that really elevates them for me. Idk I could write an essay about my love for fairy tales but I definitely am painfully sad that fairy tale film has all but died in the last 10 years. Fairy tale literature is very much alive so maybe like others have said it will resurface in film when those novels start getting adapted but for now I will always go back to my favorites from the 2000s lmao
(Also as for my favorite fairy tale show and book:
Princess Tutu is an anime about fairy tales coming to life in a German town, and a duck who becomes a girl to save a prince, all while taking place mostly at the towns Ballet academy. It's beautiful and poignant and a love letter to fairy tales and famous ballets and really tackles free will vs fate in a extremely meaningful and relatable way.
Monstrous by MarcyKate Connolly is a middle grade fairy tale novel that was originally written as a ya, and I say this just so people know it is 100% something anyone of any age can enjoy. I read it as a 13 yr old and loved it and I read it 5 times in the last year as a 22 year old and loved it. It's a love letter to fairy tales and especially Frankenstein, about a girl who's resurrected with monster parts with the sole goal of saving a kingdom haunted by a wizard, who makes the young girls of the kingdom sick and whisks them away. She's tasked with saving those girls, all while wishing to kill the wizard who commits these crimes-and killed her former self. Its a story that grapples with nature vs nurture, with identity, with redemption... it's beautiful and simple and full of love.
I highly recommend both. But other novels I've read in the last year that are super fairy tale vibes imo:::
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo (a classic but I had to include it bc it is a great lil hidden gem about a mouse who wants to be a human princess' knight)
The Forest of Stars by Heather Kassner (middle grade but imo gorgeous and so good, about a girl who can float searching for her father at a circus full of other people with interesting magical abilities, not pure fairy tale but very in line with fairy tale like stories imo)
The Hanging City by Charlie N. Holmberg (also not a pure fairy tale but a fantasy romance that I think has many fairy tale elements in its execution albeit a more modern vibe to it))
your level of journalistic/essayist integrity and thorough research is really flawless! i also luv how you film your essays: i feel like i'm just hanging out with you in your flat and listening to you tell me your views on films... you're really good at this, DON"T QUIT!
Cinderella is the only cinematic Disney Remake! It looks magical, and the story and characters are well-adapted!
Tim burtons alice in wonderland too!! The costumes were soo pretty
I love your video. I miss fairytales so much. For me, real fairytales are not afraid to touch the darkness within humanity. It sublimes it and makes it beautiful, helping us accept that we are made both of light and shadows and that's what makes us human.
So glad to see some more positivity towards A Cure For Wellness! I absolutely loved that movie, it was gorgeous and eerie and it blows my mind how many people hated it.
I hadn't heard of tale of tales until I began this video, so I paused this and just watched it and oh my gosh. A stunning film!!
how good!! glad i could introduce you 👑
@@rachellydiab I didn't understand why as a huge fairy tale fan as a kid I stopped watching modern fairytales and assumed I "grew out of it"
But you really broke down why
I watched fairytales because there was consequences good and bad , everyone involved was deeply affected by the tragic events
Now as you said they keep forcing comic tropes that take you out of the very dark or tragic scenes that's cheap and doesn't make you feel the scenes
I watch fairytales because i eant to learn, be moved be made uncomfortable and uneasy and of course a happy ending that's earned through all of it
Each of your videos is like.... exactly what I want to listen to someone talk about 😌💝 Thank u!!!
this is so sweeeeet 🥹 thank u
real
I watched stardust all the time as a kid and it still holds up today. Such a unique story, it's one of my all-time favourites and just so much fun! BTW I stumbled across your channel the other day and absolutely love your content. Such awesome stuff, I look forward to seeing more!!
This is an amazing topic - so interesting!! Thanks for covering :) can’t wait to see what you do in the future
Thank YOU for watching 💜💜
I just had to comment that i’ve been binging your content and i love it. i enjoy your tone when talking about things, i enjoy your genuine interest/appreciation for these films and how well you articulate your words. you’ve peaked my interest in a few films i’ve never even heard of. it’s hard to find creators into such niche subjects, yet you fell right into my recommended. love your videos!! looking forward to watching everything you come out with!!!! :)
Hi!! that’s such a lovely thing to say!!! thank u for watching x
Giambattista Baslie and as well as other storytellers of obscure fairytales and dark fairytales which haven’t been adapted into film or television yet or not often enough would be excellent for abstract visual storytelling in this century, think “Donkey Skin” 2015, “Tale of Tales” 2015 “Bearskin” 1986, “The Company of Wolves” 1986, “Frau Holle” 1963, “The Feather Fairy” 1985, “Snow White and Rose Red” 1979 and “Bluebeard” 2009.
I'm obsessed with this video as someone who had a huge hyperfixation on fairytales especially fairytale movies !!
Loved the video. It's such a shame that these sorts of movies aren't made so frequently as they are definitely my favourites. You mentioned half the movies on my "guilty pleasures" list. The most recent film I've seen that might fit the bill of a semi-modern fairytale is Lisa Frankenstein. Similarly to the others, it's "flopped" and gotten mediocre reviews, and I can't find anything bad about it at all.
thank u for watching! I didn’t bother with Lisa Frankenstein bc of the reviews sadly but maybe i should!
Lisa Frankenstein was pure eye candy omg im obsessed with it. Gorgeous set design
Ever After was my favorite movie growing up! Rewatching it now, it is visually stunning and sets the perfect tone for the story.
It really holds up right! I got so emotional rewatching it hahaha
I feel black mirror needed a place in this conversation
I wish we had more traditional fairytale films! Great video and you're amazing queen ❤
It's interesting to think about Cure for Wellness as a fairy tale because I always saw it as such a great gothic horror, or even really original take on vampires. But I suppose that gothic themes and fairy tales have a lot of similarities so it makes sense. I always said that Gore Verbinski caught a bullet for all of us to make such a gorgeous film :DD It reminds me of the way how Crimson Peak was received, but probably worse.
When I noticed that you added some clips from the Czech Cinderella, I think that you could really like The Third Prince. It stars the same actors as Cinderella and has such an incredible dark fairy tale atmosphere. And it's quite easy to find it with subtitles. I feel like most people know about Cinderella or Panna a netvor but not this one.
thank u for the recommendation!!
As a fairytale enthusiast, there is a lot to unpack here. First of all love a cure for wellness glad you included it. However I think it’s important to note that there are some moments of humor in this movie as well as some of the other films you enjoyed the difference is that they are dry. And well Americans can struggle with connecting with a dry sense of humor. American storytelling in general has a sarcastic tone to it however that does not mean it is not to be taken seriously like you assume. On the contrary, movies like shrek initially became popular because American adults took it seriously because of its sense of humor. Although it might seem difficult to see that now because of all of the memes and the um interesting sequels. Overall I think this is just a problem of cultural differences 😅.
Secondly, I don’t think fairy tales are gone just being resold in a different packaging. Captain America is essentially Cinderella and practically every celebrity sells themselves as a Cinderella figure, ie someone who comes from tragedy but with a little luck meets the right person at the right time and becomes an ideal successful version of themselves. I mean the American Dream is a Cinderella story. Also Pans Labyrinth, Coraline, the wizard of oz (yes the movie) and the Sandman comics(and I assume show) are all very popular fairytale stories structurally. They utilize power of 3 which can be very important in a fairytale story (ie 3 tasks, 3 objects, 3 baba yagas, etc). The number 3 pops up a lot in fairytales. A fairytale is also very traumatic in nature if there is a the happy ending, it is the reward for overcoming the psychological journey. It is different than fantasy(which I would argue some of the examples you showed are fantasy with a fairytale aesthetic) in that fantasy is more character driven, whereas fairytales are more plot driven.
Also I think your judgement of red riding hood is clouded by the rotten tomatoes score. It is important to note that that movie came out in the 2010s where femininity tended to be demonized and masculinity tended to be romanticized. It is very much a female perspective film. The love interests are not simply attractive men but are personifications of her struggles. One being her inner desires, while the other being societal expectations. There is a reason she ends up on the outskirts of the town once she rejects the expectations of her mother and society. Also it makes sense a female demographic would be drawn to the who done it aspect of the film, given how popular crime podcasts are amongst them. 😆. There is so much to analyze but I simply don’t have the space.
Also the brothers Grimm is very much an American fairytale based around European imagery. Once again the humor can be a bit sarcastic but once again that does not mean it is not to be taken seriously. Seems a bit off I know but we Americans can get confused or view something as poor taste when it does not have that sarcastic sensibility. Also the love triangle makes sense here because both of the brothers represent the male ideas of womanhood. Jacob romanticizes women and Wilhelm sexualizes women. It is important to note that the camera does not do this to Angelika just the men who’s character arch is to learn to humanize her and thus women. Monica bellucci is a reflection of how the men can idealized or objectified women. She is only defeated when their previous perceptions crumble and they humanize her. There is a reason the one man who refuses to change his viewpoint on women is still a bad guy. I can go into better detail but simply do not have the time or space.
Overall, fairytales are very psychological and should never be taken at face value. Different cultures will have different values in their storytelling and will highlight things differently. Context always matters. And just because it has Snow White in the title does not mean it follows a fairytale structurally.
I recently watched November with my husband, and it was probabaly one of the weirdest and charming fairytale/folk horror movies I have seen in awhile.
It’s a collection of Estonian folk stories (from a book I believe) and is filmed in black and white. I don’t really know if either of us truly knew what was going on, but it was a fun and charming watch.
This touched me deeply.
What a lovely video!! I actually wanted to see A Cure For Wellness when it came out, but never did because of the poor reviews+ a friend didn’t like it. Will definitely give it a chance when I’ve got the time.
As for fairytales in cinema- I agree that big budgets tend to be needed to pull off the otherworldliness of the settings and so they’re not green lit as often, but I think they’re seen as an especially big gamble for the same reason adult animation is; their association with Disney/being “for kids” turns off general audiences. When I show someone a show like Arcane, they are always surprised by how much they like it because the general audience’s idea of animation is either Bluey or Family Guy, with no real push from studios to correct that.
thank u for watching! Definitely check out cure for wellness if you are into dark and whimsical fare ✨
And great point- i know i stayed away from cartoons for a long time because i assumed they’d be childish… I’m sure many people would make the same association!
A few years ago, Germany made a tv series called Sechs auf einen Streich. It's an anthology of various fairy tales, not just the Grimm's. It's mainly aimed at young children, but the quality is very good. Each tale has it's own aesthetic, with interesting costuming and setting. I found a version translated in French. I am not sure if an English version exists but I would recommend it.
Oh I'm absolutely going to try find this!!!!
Ok you NEED to watch Stardust! It was actually a really beautiful movie and a wonderful story.
Can’t believe u didn’t mention the never ending story! Been my favorite fairytale movie since I was a kid :)
I love the cure for wellness! I watched it with my sister when I was in middle school and we really liked it. I always thought it to be a sci-fi psychological thriller, but now I understand how it could be a modern fairytale. I didn’t know it was not well received! Might give it a rewatch as it’s been so long since i’ve seen it. great video 💕
I was surprised you didn’t mention the HUGE amount of “fairy tale re-tellings” that have been soooo popular, where everything about fairytales is called ridiculous and “deconstructed”
Stardust is worth a watch. I think it has the new/classic feel and balances well the entertaining/funny bits with some of the dark warnings of the past. Feels old and new at the same time the way that EverAfter did for me.
And I wanted to like red riding hood, too! It's too bad it was poorly executed from the story perspective. Not dark enough to be a fairy tale and not fun enough to be a modern hit 😅
Can we consider some of the Studio Ghibli films as Fairytales? I think of Spirited Away, Howls Moving Castle, and The Cat Returns as quintessential animated fairytales. Even Totoro, A Whisper From The Heart, and Kiki’s Delivery Service can involve similar themes while still staying pretty grounded in slice of life.
Definitely
Gretel and Hazel is amazing!! 💜💜💜💜💜🧚
Good points all around! The fantasy stories that aren't loaded with irony typically opt for a very grounded and realistic presentation
The Company of Wolves is my favorite film of all time for so many reasons.
Thank you for talking about a cure for wellness, I remember being so excited about that movie when it came out. I haven’t seen it since but I really should! ❤
let's do a deal - I'll watch stardust and you watch cure for wellness! x
@@rachellydiab Deal!
As the only person in my friend group who enjoyed The Green Knight, I'd say that one is a fairytale.
Finally I see a TH-camr describing the real nature and essence of fairy tales!
After watching a couple reviews on Disney films ,I was kinda surprised that most people nowadays can't really process how oral traditions and cultural symbolisms worked a d we end up with "how pathetic ,she got saved by a man!" type of criticism and activist.
Suspiria (1977) is also a "modern fairytale" in my opinion
if you haven't read the short story "snow, glass, apples" by Neil Gaiman I highly recommend it. it's a re-telling of snow white but made gritty and dark without being crass or shocking. i read it in high school and its haunted me ever since. also i think part of the death of fairytales is both societal and internalized misogyny but that's a whole other kettle of fish. loved this video
sick, thank u for the rec!! and thank u for watching 💜
The Last Unicorn is my favorite film of all time. I've craved a movie that makes me feel the same way that The Last Unicorn does, but with the film industry being what it is now I don't think I'll ever see a piece of art that speaks to me like that again. When I was little I used to hope for a live action adaptation, but now I hope no one ever touches it again. (Maybe Guillermo Del Toro.....)
Tale of Tales is WILD. I love it. I stumbled onto it and thought it was a period drama at first and then was gradually like...wtf.
I think my issue with Cure for Wellness was that it hinted at the supernatural, but then the “monster” ended up being non-supernatural in nature, so some of the apparitions seen in the movie don’t really make sense in the end. However, I finally watched it after falling down a rabbit hole of international bathing and sauna traditions and it was cool to see those being referenced!!
I'd never heard of Green Snake but was able to rent it through interlibrary loan (only one copy in the entire state). Wow. I have rarely seen such a purely fantastical film. Few films go all out on fantasy like this one does, creating a place where anything can and does happen, and this one, to its advantage, doesn't bother trying to ground itself in reality or subvert any tropes. Some would call the effects bad or cheesy, but I thought they worked perfectly with the film's tone and world. Great recommendation.
And now we've got Damsel on netflix... Which really reminded me of Tales Of Tales, great potential but terrible script and costuming...
The Brothers’ Grimm is one of my FAVORITE movies. Been obsessed since I was in middle school 16 years ago.
The bar for the cinematic fairy tale was set by Jean Renoir's La Belle et La Bete, in the 1940s. I also enjoy the darker version Panna et Netvor, from the Czech Repubic, and I Am Dragon, from Russia. The Company of Wolves is fantastic.
FINALLY cure for wellness is such a wonderful beautifully eerie movie and nobody seems to appreciate it!!
Great film, wish it'd get a 4K bells and whistles release, but I think it'll be a long wait.
Some modern fairytale films that I think were excellent are Judy and Punch (2019) dir:Mirrah Foulkes has a real fairy tale darkness. I was also thinking about George Miller’s Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022) and La Llorona (2019) dir:Jayro Bustamante, a Guatemalan horror/fairytale film that is also fantastic.
I dont know if it counts but You Wont Be Alone really blew me away, even though it seems to lean aesthetically into horror and less so into fairytale, it sort of explores the classic human and inhuman dynamic in the uneasey curious way you find in fairy tales. So i comsider it so, it gives me the vibes in its blend, and i highly recommend it.
The Soviet Union had some brilliant fairy tale adaptations during the time of its existence. Some of the really good ones were Morozko, Maria the Wonderful Weaver, Golden Antlers, Ilya Murometz (although that film can be easily called epic fantasy due to its high quality), Sadko (which was promoted in America as Sinbad for some weird unknown reason) and Kingdom of the Crooked Mirrors.
What a line to end on!
6:45 made me realize Black Mirror is narratively very in line with fairy tales
The horse scene of Brothers Grimm has left a lingering fear of horses in me to this day. I need to face my fears and watch it again lol
honestly it's still terrifying hahaha
As a Disney fan (who apprecoates their original content as well), I'd love more fairy tale-related films to be made, whether musicals or "edgy" darker versions (with good writing).
I always thought that Darren Aronofsky movies have some fairlytale vibe. Also watch "the fall" with Lee pace, great film with fairytale in it.