New York Times says Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ lacks ‘kink’
“Joy, fun, mystery, risk, flavor, kink — they’re missing.”
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“Joy, fun, mystery, risk, flavor, kink — they’re missing.”
Did The New York Times say the quiet part out loud? This is a question that many were left wondering on social media on Saturday after the paper published a movie review for Disney's live-action remake of The Little Mermaid which criticized the children's movie for lacking "kinky" content.
"Disney's live-action remake of 'The Little Mermaid,' with Halle Bailey starring as Ariel and a diverse cast, 'reeks of obligation and noble intentions,'" the New York Times wrote on Twitter, sharing an article written by movie critic Wesley Morris. "Joy, fun, mystery, risk, flavor, kink — they’re missing."
The article published in the paper titled, "The Little Mermaid Review: The Renovations Are Only Skin Deep", which was written by New York Times movie critic Wesley Morris, claimed that the Disney movie "missed the mark" because the producers were too busy focusing on "approval" from the audience after making the bold decision to cast a black actress as Ariel. As a result, Wesley said that the children's movie lacked "joy, fun, mystery, risk, flavor, and kink."
"The movie is saying, 'We tried!'" Wesley writes. "Tried not to offend, appall, challenge, imagine."
The live-action remake of The Little Mermaid was released in theaters on Friday and has been at the height of the culture war in America since Disney race swapped the main character and revealed that Halle Bailey, a black actress and singer, was cast to be Ariel, a stark contrast from the original main character who was a white red-headed mermaid.
While The Little Mermaid has already been in a controversial spotlight after announcing the cast, and with Disney making frequent national headlines accusing the group of "grooming" behaviors towards children, The New York Times' review had people across social media believing that the negative notions surrounding Disney are correct.
"Why does the NYT want more “kink” in a Disney movie?" Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) questioned on Twitter.
"Saying the quiet part out loud, eh?" conservative social media influencer Ian Miles Choeng said on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/stillgray/status/1662547237912690688?s=20
"When did Disney movies become kinky?" another Twitter user asked.
https://twitter.com/PilotswifePA/status/1662627836497215496?s=20
"So it's not grooming enough? That's your complaint?" asked another.
https://twitter.com/GChristiemd/status/1662614098398392321?s=20
While hundreds of individuals commented their distaste for The New York Times movie review, the paper has not yet released a statement on the matter nor have they pulled the article from their website.
The Post Millennial reached out to Wesley Morris for comment.
This is a developing story.
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