Sonia Poulton writes an interesting piece in today’s Daily Mail, arguing that Disney ‘hates parents’ and that Disney films very rarely feature a complete family unit with two parents. It’s an interesting argument to make. I, as with most of us I’d imagine, tend to view Disney as a brand that embraces traditional values and the nuclear family. But, as Poulton’s piece explores, the absence of parents does seem to be a motif that runs through a number of Disney movies.

Let’s start with Bambi, a film I’ve only watched once due to sheer trauma. Bambi is abandoned by his father before birth and goes on to experience the hunting and subsequent shooting of his mother. Many people I know still can’t watch it a second time.

Other films have similar stories– in The Lion King, for example, the character of Simba is implicated in the death of his father and runs away from his remaining family to escape further misery. In Finding Nemo, Nemo is the sole survivor of a barracuda attack on his mother and siblings – he also spends much of the story estranged from his father, his sole remaining relative.

Poulton draws upon other Disney movies to further back her argument – and her findings are interesting. Apparently Disney, the most child-friendly of organizations, has a bit of a parent problem. Since its formation in the twenties, Disney’s output has featured what Poulton describes as ‘a steady stream of dysfunctional and broken families.’

Whilst we have to bear in mind that Poulton writes for the Daily Mail, which doesn’t have the best of reputations for quality journalism here in the UK (and also has a bit of a thing about what it terms ‘broken Britain’), I actually think Poulton has a bit of a point here. Just thinking about my favourite Disney films throws up a number of characters missing one or both parents.

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