Lots of vegans wonder at what age do humans loose their compassion? Most children love animals and it's heartbreaking to see parents show their children films like 'Chicken Run' and then feed their children chicken nuggets right after.
Studies have shown that children prefer films about animals as they can identify with other children and animals more than they can identify with adult characters. Perhaps because, like animals, they feel small and looked down upon. That is why you'll find numerous childrens films with animated animal characters with various animal rights struggles.
It's been done before, I know, but I wanted to make my own version of the disney films with vegan messages. Whether it's anti-zoos or anti-meat, there's a film that covers it. Below, I've composed a list of my favourite disney films and their messages...
Warning: There WILL be spoilers. If you don't want to hear them. Don't read.
1. Dumbo
Officially one of the saddest films Disney has ever made, released way back in 1941, Dumbo, showed a tale of a mother and her son who were separated after an incident in a circus. The mother, who had been trained by the circus had an unusual looking calf, who was cruelly nicknamed 'Dumbo', and after several incidents where Dumbo had been treated unfairly, the mother snapped and had to be taken away.
Despite having a powerful beginning, the middle of the film could only be described as... odd. Dumbo and his mouse friend go on an adventure to find his mother. Along the way, he gets drunk, learns how to fly using his ears and he meets some singing crows. Finally, at the end, Dumbo is reunited with his mother, only she is in a small prison with the signs 'danger' and 'mad elephant' and I cry. I cry every time.
So what is the message? Simple. Don't go to circuses where they use animals as props and as entertainment. I know it's rare for circuses to still use animals such as elephants these days, but there's still thousands of animals in captivity who are treated horribly. I'm thinking of a place that starts with 'sea' and ends in 'world'.
2. Finding Nemo
Finding Nemo is one of my absolute favourite films. I know it's technically not disney, it's pixar, but I'm one of those people who can't really tell the difference, so let's get past this quickly. It's about a clownfish called Marlin, who tries to find his son after he was kidnapped by fishermen. Along the way, he encounters various different swims of life in the ocean, from a surfer-dude turtle, a blue tang with short term memory loss, and my all time favourite, a vegetarian shark called Bruce.
Whilst Marlin and Dory were searching for Nemo, Nemo is trapped in a fish tank in a dentist's office with various other fish. He learns his fate is to be given as a gift to the dentist's niece, Darla, who is by far the most terrifying thing about this film. Forget sharks and deep sea angler fish, meet Darla.
She's a noisy little girl with a tendency of killing her fish. Basically, she's the devil's child.
So what is the message? Again, it's a really simple one. Don't visit aquariums. Don't take what isn't yours. And finally, fish are friends, not food!
3. 101 Dalmatians
I like dogs. A LOT! So this film was one of my all time favourites when I was younger, even though it was first released in 1961 and released again in a non-animated version in 1996. I'm going to be discussing the earlier version here.
The film follows a man called Roger and his Dalmatian, Pongo, who have relationships with Anita and Perdita. The Dalmatians have a litter and are quickly approached by Anita's old school friend, Cruella De Vil, who attempts to purchase the litter, but Roger won't allow it.
Cruella De Vil (Evil McEvil) steals the puppies along with 84 other Dalmatian puppies and plans on using their fur to make a coat. It's a bit dark for a childrens film, but Cruella is such an exaggerated character, she somehow is scarily comical. She's also my favourite disney villain, which is weird for a vegan but I guess that's just the way it is.
What is the message? Obviously, don't wear fur. There's some vegany issues I have with this film, though. For instance, what is with that scene in the middle where the cows let the puppies drink their milk? What species is weird enough to drink the milk from another species? Only the species that made the film, clearly. And another issue is the ending, when Roger and Anita decide to have a Dalmatian plantation with all 101 Dalmatians. I mean, please, that isn't ethical at all. That's way too many dogs for two people to look after. Although, if I lived in a fictional world where everything was fine and villains met their untimely end, then I too, would happily live on a Dalmatian plantation with 101 Dalmatians.
4. Happy Feet
Happy Feet is one of those films that is able to display a message so clearly, it's impossible to ignore. What I like about this film, is the two interconnecting plots. The first, is about a penguin who can dance but not sing and is therefore an outcast in his community. This plot appeals to all audiences, young and old, as it is uncomplicated and light hearted.
The second plot is a lot darker. It starts as a subplot, when Mumble, the protagonist, finds a skuas who had claimed to be abducted by aliens. Throughout the film, Mumble finds characters who hint at these 'aliens' in different ways. For instance, Lovelace, a rockhopper penguin, has a six pack ring around his neck.
Eventually, Mumble is captured and taken to a zoo. It's a rare thing for a disney or pixar film to show a zoo from the animal's perspective, ignoring Madagascar as that film was very watered down compared to this one. It's a sad scene and heartbreaking to watch.
At the zoo, Mumble discovers that the aliens are actually humans and they have been fishing in the Southern Ocean, causing the penguins and other species of the Antarctic to have a difficult time when finding food. It's an usual film because the initial lighthearted story changes drastically as soon as Mumble is taken into captivity.
So what is the messages? Don't go to zoos. And don't eat fish. The message about eating fish is a very complex subject and educates the young viewers in a simple, scientific way. It's not so much about animal rights, it's about the environment too.
5. Lady and the Tramp
Lady and the Tramp is another old, Disney classic, first released in 1955, that shows the tale of two dogs, Lady and Tramp. The animal rights message in this film is very subtle but when you've seen it, you remember it. In fact, the very scene made me hate this film when I was younger. I'd watch it, then switch it off when I knew it was coming.
The premise involves a well groomed house dog called Lady, who is soon forgotten about when her owners, Jim Dear and Darling, have a baby. Then, Aunt Sarah comes to stay to look after Lady and her two nightmare cats treat her almost as badly as Aunt Sarah does.
So Lady is rescued by Tramp, who teaches her about the streets and shows her how to avoid getting taken by the pound. This is where the story gets quite dark.
The pound is a horrible place and I remember the scene when the dogs were crying and then the man takes the dog behind the door and everyone knows something horrible just happened.
So what is the message? It's not as clear as some of the other films on this list, but I believe the message is, adopt, don't shop. Also, it should be taught exactly what happened to the dog who went behind the door. Euthanising pets just because they're unwanted, elderly or ugly, is not a good enough reason and it happens daily all over the world, just because people prefer designer breeds and puppies from pet shops.
6. Madagascar
Madagascar is a film about four friends who escaped from Central Park Zoo and managed to find themselves in Madagascar. Marty, the zebra, had dreamed of escaping the zoo, whereas Alex, the lion, enjoyed his time at the zoo and struggles to adjust to the wild.
This film is very popular, especially with younger children, as it's a colourful, lighthearted film that doesn't show how rough the zoo is but Marty's and the penguins' ambition to escape are enough to suggest it.
7. Fox and the Hound
Before deciding to review some Disney films for this project, I hadn't actually seen some of the most popular Disney films with vegan messages. And that includes this one. Unfortunately, this means I can't talk about it from the point of view of an adult who has seen it as a child, but I don't think that matters much.
The Fox and the Hound is a ray of light that came out of Disney's dark age, first released in 1981 is a story about Todd, a fox and Copper, the hound, who are unlikely friends until the world takes it out of them. Todd had been brought up by a kind dairy farmer (I know, right?) after his mother was killed by hunters. Copper was raised by a hunter and his dog, Chief.
Throughout the film, Copper is taught to hunt and kill Todd. It is only at the end when Todd saves Copper from a bear, that Copper returns the favour by standing in front of him when Amos, the hunter, is about to shoot him.
This iconic scene is the most heartbreaking in the film. Especially when, after Amos puts down the gun, Copper walks away and only pauses briefly to smile at Todd. He knows they can't be friends as Copper was born to hunt.
The message? Don't go hunting.
8. Fun and Fancy Free (Bongo)
Bongo is a short film featured in Fun and Fancy Free, released in 1947, and for some unknown reason, I have an irrational hatred towards it. I rewatched it recently and all of those feelings of hate towards this film were still there. Maybe I died whilst watching it in a past life. I don't know.
Despite my weird reasons for disliking it, reasons I can't put my fingers on, it has a very strong anti-circus message, very similar to Dumbo. Bongo is the star of the circus, but he's treated horribly by those who works there. He dreams of escaping and in a strange, hallucinogenic scene, he breaks out of the train and rides on his unicycle to the wild. There he meets Lulubelle and has to deal with her jealous fiance. There's not much else to it. For me, the only interesting part was at the beginning when Bongo was attempting to escape from the circus. The rest of it was dragged out with minutes and minutes of meh love scenes that didn't really make any sense.
The message is a simple one. Don't support circuses.
9. Bambi
Bambi is another film I hadn't seen before deciding to review Disney films. I think my mum knew how I'd react if I ever saw it and decided to keep me sheltered. Good thinking. Obviously, I had been warned about Bambi's mother dying, but nobody told me about the massacre at the end.
Like The Fox and the Hound, Bambi has is about hunting, but in Bambi the 'men' are completely dehumanised (funny word, humanised, as humane means to be ethical, but one of the least ethical things is to be a human). They aren't even seen. All of their actions are completely evil, no questions asked. Whereas in The Fox and the Hound, Amos is a fully formed character with desires and emotions. He even loves his dog. I think in this respect, I much preferred Bambi. I like hunters to be considered evil, heartless and I don't like to consider them to have feelings of their own as that's how they see animals.
The message again is clear: Don't go hunting. Don't support hunting. Animals have feelings too and they're not your 'trophies'.
10. Tarzan
Tarzan is another film I somehow managed to avoid until I was 21. I was so angry with myself because Tarzan's amazing! There's a gazillion versions of Tarzan but the one I'm going to talk about is the 1999 Disney version.
The plot follows a feral boy who was raised by gorillas, Tarzan. One day, he meets a lady called Jane who is exploring with her dad and a guide named Clayton. Tarzan and Jane quickly fall in love and Tarzan helps her find some gorillas before she has to leave to go back to England.
However, Clayton wants to find the gorillas to capture them and sell them to zoos back in England. The message is quite clear: Poaching is wrong and so is capturing animals from the wild.
And that concludes this list of 10 vegan messages in Disney films. I hope you enjoyed it. I definitely enjoyed making the list and rewatching all of the films. If you have any more ideas, please leave them in the comments. I know there's some films I must have missed!
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