15 May 2013

how my girly night mutated

I succeeded in my quest to not do anything for madam t-shirt wise last night :) I actually had an evening of doing silly me things that I enjoy. Which is how come I ended up chatting on twitter whilst watching the Goonies and eating M&S caramel pretzel clusters!
 
 
 
 
I watched the Goonies with madam the other day, but as usual was doing twenty seven other things at the same time and therefore didn't get to enjoy this absolute 80s classic. I remember us getting this out the video shop for a birthday treat on many, many occasions.
 
I'd forgotten/not noticed how scary it is in places. But I still giggled at my favourite bits, though perhaps with a slightly more knowing adult sense of humour than before! The bit where "Mouth" is translating for the housekeeper is actually really rude, but I guess I had no concept of a sex dungeon as a youth...
 
How did my parents let that slide, they were always so strict? And I'd totally forgotten the bit at the beginning where one of the Fratelli's pretends to hang himself. Also, realised where that band name came from!
 
It got me thinking about all those favourite films we had from childhood. What made them so good? Are there really no films like that now? Where is this generations Goonies? What are they supposed to look up to?
 
I remember playing at being the Goonies on a treasure hunt over the Westwood. Or just plain being pirates. Cowboys and Indians (sorry, native americans), Cops and Robbers. The whole jumpers for goalposts thing. We were up trees, falling off things, in things. We used to make mud slides (sorry mum) and come home covered in god knows what.
 
And my mother would make us strip off at the back door and go and have a bath. I remember being shouted at. But I also remember we had the clothes to do it in. Playing out stuff, that was meant to get dirty.
 
Now, I got annoyed yesterday as madam came home from nursery with her nice mousie t-shirt covered in clay. I wasn't mad that she'd got it dirty, but that the nursery hadn't made her wear an apron! I'm pretty sure no 4 year old can keep clean near clay, so why were her clothes not protected. I know the nursery has aprons.
 
*sighs* I just hope it comes out in the wash! But if I thought she'd been going to clay herself I wouldn't have sent her in that t-shirt. I would have put her in one that was either already ruined in some way or that was maybe a bit on the small side and I didn't care about so much.
 
I know that madam had told the teacher that I had made the t-shirt for her.
 
But my question remains. Are there any films out there aimed at the kids who actually want to play. Or is it all cartoons for kids? I have no problem with Disney/DreamWorks/Pixar et al but they seem to just make princesses for girls... Though Merida from Brave was at least a tomboy. And Rapunzel sort of saved herself. (She still fell for the handsome thief though).
 
I want girls that get dirty and don't scream all the time. What is with all the screaming? And that have ambitions and hopes. Not to be famous. What is that? How is famous suddenly an acceptable choice? Why is it not famous for...?
 
Where are the kids films where the girls (or boys) are actually vaguely intelligent. And not portrayed as geeks/nerds for being so. Talk about making intelligence a bad thing...
 
I remember loving Labyrinth because the girl in it solved the puzzles that she was pitted against. I liked the Neverending Story because it was essentially about how reading can transport you to new worlds. I loved the Goonies because it was a proper adventure. I remember watching Home Alone for the first time and just being amazed at all the ways that kid found to get one over the adults.
 
These are good things for kids to know! How do they learn their potential if everything is given to them on a plate. If the main aim for a girl seems to be a princess or some form of celebrity.
 
I think Pink and her Stupid Girls song got it frighteningly right...
 
 
 
 
 
 

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