We the Purple?
If anyone ever asks with a Twitter prompt of some kind, that is one of my favorite gags from The Simpsons, period. Not just from a random, one-off character, either. I bring it up today not because I just want to talk all about “Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington.” I use it as an example of what sure seems like an unforced error.
Speaking of unforced errors, what the hell is this?
Last night, I was on Twitter because…well, I’m on Twitter a lot these days/always. And I saw Devindra Hardawar of Engadget and the /Filmcast sharing with ILM employee Todd Vaziri that little nugget of information.
Let’s back up. You may recall that when Disney+ went live, there were a number of head-scratching decisions people noticed amongst the hundreds of titles available to stream. There was, of course, the delightful moment when we all came together to laugh at the utter insanity of “Maclunkey” in Star Wars, because good ol’ George Lucas just couldn’t leave well enough alone for the fiftieth damn time. There was also the choice to present every episode of The Simpsons in a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1, which is only a problem for the first 18-plus seasons’ worth of episodes, which were presented in a fullscreen aspect ratio of 1.33:1.
And now, we have anecdotal evidence that people from Disney thought audiences didn’t want to see standard-definition versions of a show that was originally…presented in standard definition. Todd has, if you look through the thread Devindra was replying to, captured a lot of examples in the last five months of just how many visual jokes get lost when old episodes are presented in the wrong aspect ratio. It’s not just that the show now fills your whole HD screen. It’s that you’re ironically not seeing the whole show anymore.
And someone, or many someones, at Disney thought people didn’t want to access those versions. As Devindra mentioned to me later, FXX — before Disney+ was a thing — had both widescreen and standard versions of the old episodes, and audiences could choose both. So the fact that it will take Disney+ and their technical team somewhere in the neighborhood of six months to get these episodes up correctly is especially annoying (frivolously so, I am well aware) because it shouldn’t have taken more than a few weeks, or even days.
It’s “We the purple” writ large. An unforced error that should’ve been resolved a while ago.
Your Recommendation for Today
Yes, we’re almost done with the big bracket for Disney Animation. (After tomorrow, we’re whittling titles down even further, but I’ll move onto other recommendations by then.) Today’s titles include everything from the best modern Disney animated films to The Rescuers, and also my recommendation in this section of the newsletter.
They’re one and the same today, because oh, how I adore The Princess and the Frog. Somewhere in the middle of the big, brassy opening number, “Down in New Orleans,” I thought to myself upon first seeing the film, “This movie might be great if it keeps this energy up.” By the time the animation swirled into an Art Deco fantasy during the “I Want”-style song “Almost There” performed perfectly by Anika Noni Rose, I was all in.
I don’t know that this is a flawless film — every time I watch the film, I somehow forget about the goofy redneck characters who get roundly beaten up by the amphibian versions of Tiana and Prince Naveen of Maldonia. But this is peak comfort-food Disney, with lushly designed hand-drawn animation, a whip-smart lead character who far transcends genuine Disney princesses in her determination, passion, and tangible desire for a better life, a hilarious and complex male lead, humor, romance, etc., etc., etc.
I have little doubt that something else will eventually take down The Princess and the Frog in our little bracket fun. But I am pulling for this film all the way. Every time I convince one more person to give this movie a shot, I feel just a bit happier. Are you that person? Do I need to convince you? Go to Disney+. Select this film. You’re welcome.