I generally try to avoid the whole "war on Christmas." Just a big waste of time and energy during a holiday that can already be kind of nuts without it.
Today though, I heard about people going on about Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and issues related to bullying. Since Rudolph is one of my all-time favourite Christmas movies, and bullying seems to be a recurring topic on this blog, I thought that, just this once, I'd throw in my opinion.
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer is being accused by some of depicting bullying. Donner wanting to hide his son's red nose, Hermey the Elf being picked on for wanting to be a dentist, even the idea of misfit toys! These are all points of contention.
I'm sure some of this is being said in a tongue-in-cheek manner as a response to the controversy with the song "Baby It's Cold Outside", but I'll bet it's more serious than not.
To anyone accusing this movie of depicting bullying, all I can say is "DUH!!".
That's the whole point of the story! How these characters overcome bullying and their feelings of being outcasts and misfits to finally fitting in and contributing to Christmas and life at The North Pole. You can't show characters overcoming bullying without first showing it. And, if these people actually watched the movie until the end they'd see that Donner, the head elf, and even Santa himself admit to acting like major dicks and apologize to those they've hurt or neglected.
All these movies and carols and songs are old now, and pretty dated. It can be tough experiencing them through a modern lens. But, in the case of Rudolph, the message of someone being bullied for being different, then being accepted after finding a good use for his differences is one that should be more important now than ever before.
Also, it's a movie with talking animals, a maimed yeti, and a cowboy riding an ostrich. Are we really going to create a debate over that?
Cheers!
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