Happy Earth Day! Disney has chosen this day for the theatrical release their documentary, Earth, narrated by James Earl Jones. Here's the trailer:
It seems obvious the groundwork for this film was laid by the success of March of the Penguins, as both feature similiar qualities such as a celebrity narrator and an anthropomorphized view of nature (this film follows "families" of animals). Others may instead liken Disney's movie to the BBC series Planet Earth, which is an accurate comparison: 60% of Earth's footage was shot for that other documentary, according to CNN.
Do you think these movies encourage us to have our planet's best interests at heart? Are they actively pushing a liberal agenda? Is this a good family movie that's affordable to shoot, requiring no computer animation? Or is big business trying to capitalize on the popularity of "green"?
Despite Disney's promise to plant trees, because of the reused content and formulaic use of celebrity narration and cuddly animal images over the real challenges within and facing nature, I think this is primarily a commercial venture.
The so-called liberal agenda regarding environmental protection has been supported by the majority of scientists, and the "green" bandwagon has made it difficult for consumers and citizens to make good choices to help protect our ever-degrading planet.