Disney's Tangled Trailer Keeps Rapunzel Hidden In Her Tower

It’s interesting to see that the focus here is the male character, played by Zachary Levi; Disney is notoriously shameless about marketing their Princess line, and one would think they’d play up Mandy Moore’s Rapunzel as a new addition to the Disney fairy-tale family. But Rapunzel is an afterthought here; the film, which began production three years ago, originally had her name as the title, but was later replaced by the more generic (and perhaps more boy-friendly) Tangled. For a movie that supposedly revolves around her, she doesn’t seem to be a very important figure or a character Disney believes will be a draw at the box office.

Grady Smith of Entertainment Weekly notes that trailer seems to be marketing a “Disney princess movie for boys,” with an emphasis on humor and action as opposed to romance and a dreamier fairy-tale take on things, perhaps to keep the film competitive at the box office. Of course, one trailer isn’t really enough to know how the characters in the film will play out, but the fact that the prince seems to have taken a Shrek-like role (complete with amusing animal sidekick in the form of his slightly bitchy horse) does present the film as an heir to the now-retired Ogre’s throne, complete with ironic winks and nods to former Disney films thrown in for the benefit of parents, which is a tired trend, really, as it’s often overdone and seems to be used in place of actual storytelling. But again, it’s early: perhaps Tangled will be a pleasant surprise and both the Prince and Rapunzel will prove to be new spins on stale Disney archetypes.

So what say you, commenters? Are you looking forward to this one? Or would you prefer that it stay locked in a tower forever?

“Tangled” Trailer: A Disney Princess Movie For Boys? [EW]