(no subject)

[conuly]

Some Things About Disney’s “Moana” That Real Polynesians Want You To Know

Interesting. Judging from the piece itself, a representative group of Polynesians is not so fond of Lilo and Stitch and doesn't expect this to be a particularly shocking statement. Judging from the comments, non-Polynesians love Lilo and Stitch and are quite shocked that anybody doesn't.

Can confirm: Not Polynesian, love Lilo and Stitch.

I'll also say that while I get that a lot of people saw the character of Maui as "fat" and why this is problematic, the character didn't seem fat to me at all. Hefty in a muscled way, yes. Fat, no. That doesn't mean the character isn't problematic in other ways that have been specifically mentioned in other articles, just I'm not seeing this particular one.

Comments

[adrian_turtle]

I suspect part of the perception of Maui as fat comes from something Disney marketed before the movie even came out--dress as Maui for Halloween! In a padded suit printed with tattoos! The suit looked like a fat suit, and actors often wear fat suits in a context of making fun of fat people, so people were sort of primed to think of the character as fat rather than muscular.

[conuly]

Maybe. Gosh, what a ridiculous idea from marketing.

[mme-n-b.livejournal.com]

I also saw Maui as "sexy and muscled" more than "fat", however, that should not matter. So let's assume he's fat. Is that so bad? If he was a fat fighting woman Internet would be full of people praising Disney for being so body-positive. Why not see Maui as a positive model that would encourage fat boys and (one can hope) make them less of a target for others?

[conuly]

Apparently, heavily overweight is a real stereotype of Polynesians. And in that light, that's a seriously problematic thing. (And enough people saw the character as overweight that I feel we should pay attention to that, even if I don't see it even a little.)