The hosts have their fair share of laughing fits while discussing the new Starkid musical Twisted, a retelling of Disney’s Aladdin… among other tales. With elements from Wicked, One Thousand and One Nights, and some real life Disney/Pixar happenings, this was the perfect story for Team Starkid to tell and might just be our favorite musical yet.
The hosts think that even ‘loosely adapted’ is being a little too generous with Frozen, Disney’s version of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen. But they are able to find a few elements of similarity as well as a multitude of reasons to love the film, including the sister-driven plot, the love story red herring and of course, the reindeer duet.
Remember a couple weeks ago when I posted that I – like every other Once Upon a Time fan out there – couldn’t wait for season 2 to start? Well, after today’s news update, that goes double!
So, let’s get down to business… Continue reading
Following in the ‘grand’ tradition of two similarly themed films coming out around the same time, 2013 is set to bring us two more treks into the the world of Oz created by L. Frank Baum. One is animated and follows the novel Dorothy of Oz by Baum’s great grandson Roger S. Baum. The other is the live action Oz: The Great and Powerful that we got a first look at this week with the release of its first poster.
Oz is meant to be a prequel to the 1939 film that explains how the wizard became the wizard. Directed by Sam Raimi, the cast will include James Franco as the young wizard from Kansas and Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz as the witches Theodora, Glinda and Evanora respectively. Disney, as well as the producers of Alice in Wonderland are behind this film, and I think the poster shows it.
Written by Mitchell Kapner and David Lindsay-Abaire, it will interesting to see how the team approaches this classic story and the land that has become so iconic. I’m personally a fan of the casting, especially Michelle Williams as Glinda, as she definitely has a ethereal quality that I think is perfect. As for the poster, I like the direction that they seem to be taking with the feel of it, but that’s not to say I’m all in on this concept.
Oz exists in a purely 1939, advent of technicolor, Judy Garland-inhabited place for me and going back seems a little like messing with something sacred.
How do you feel about the poster and a journey back to Oz? Leave you thoughts in the comments!
I’m in withdrawal.
Fairy tale withdrawal.
Since the season finale of Once Upon a Time on May 13, it pains me to have another Sunday go by without getting my OUAT fix. And with that ending – the curse broken, Snow White reunited with her Prince Charming, Regina’s comeuppance, magic’s return to Storybrooke – how in the world are we all supposed to wait until the fall for season 2 to start?
There’s only one thing that helps me get through this long period of waiting: those tantalizing tidbits of info telling us what to expect from the next season. And no news could be quite so magical as the OUAT exclusive released earlier this week, which announced that Emilie de Ravin has been updated to series regular for season 2.
Along with a press release announcing the beginning of production on the 2014 film, Disney also gave fans the first look at Angelina Jolie (Wanted) donning the iconic Maleficent headdress. The film will focus on the origin of this famous Disney baddie and explain what pushed her to the point of cursing the princess in an attempt to hurt her family and the kingdom.
The character is a Disney invention from their version of the Grimm Brothers original story where the thirteenth fairy curses the princess and then proceeds to never be heard from again. In their 1959 adaptation of the tale, Disney expanded the character to a level of determined resentment that certainly merits explanation considering that, as far as we know, all King Stephan did was not invite her to a party.
Based on Hans Christen Andersen’s The Snow Queen, Disney began working on its version of the tale back in 2010, but put it on hold because of ‘story issues.’ Production is now surging forward with a release date set for November 2013 and cast announcements that include Kristen Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and Idina Menzel (Wicked). In its official press release, Disney gave this synopsis:
In “Frozen,” a prophecy traps a kingdom in eternal winter, so Anna (voice of Bell) must team up with Kristoff, a daring mountain man, on the grandest of journeys to find the Snow Queen (voice of Menzel) and put an end to the icy spell. Encountering Everest-like extremes, mystical creatures and magic at every turn, Anna and Kristoff battle the elements in a race to save the kingdom from destruction.
Adaptation Podcast 