March 2011
1 post
Frogs are People Too →
Just in time for Mardi Gras, I “dissect” Disney’s The Princess and the Frog in search of its hidden (and, frankly, not-so-hidden) mythic content. And guess what? The “real” story is NOT what you think! So hop over to Jim Hill Media…and laissez les bon temps rouler!
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October 2010
1 post
How to Explain Your Dragon →
DreamWorks Animation’s summer hit How to Train Your Dragon arrived in stores on Blu-Ray and DVD earlier this month. Which got me thinking about how dragons have occupied such a persistant and pervasive place in the popular imagination. And that leads us to my latest “Mything in Action” article on Jim Hill Media:
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August 2010
1 post
The Mouse is Mad...and He's Got an Axe! →
Jim Hill Media has just published my latest Mything in Action article: The Mouse is Mad…and He’s Got an Axe! in which I hack away at the mythic content in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. No, not the new live action feature that came out last month but rather the animated sequence from Walt Disney’s 1940 classic Fantasia. Have a look and see what you think.
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July 2010
2 posts
Harry Potter Must Die!
Oh no! What did young Mr. Potter do to deserve such a fate? Click over to my latest “Mything in Action” article on Jim Hill Media to find out:
http://jimhillmedia.com/guest_writers1/b/adam_berger/archive/2010/07/08/mything-in-action-potter-passes.aspx
And thank you for looking at my previous “Mything in Action” articles. Every click counts, since each pageview my articles...
Shock of Recognition
Once you’re tuned in to the role of mythic storytelling in the world around us, you begin to notice its presence seemingly everywhere you look. Yet it still comes as a bit of a shock when you suddenly recognize the presence of mythic content “hidden in plain sight” in familiar and unexpected places. This was especially true for me during a recent visit to the Museum of Modern Art in New York...
June 2010
3 posts
More "Mything in Action"! →
With the long awaited movie Toy Story 3 debuting in theaters this week, my second “Mything in Action” article has just gone live on Jim Hill Media. This one is called “Mania Happy Returns” and it follows my quest to find the hidden “mythic source code” in Walt Disney World’s Toy Story Mania! ride. Check it out!
Check out my new column: "Mything in Action" →
Jim Hill Media is now hosting my new column. It’s called “Mything in Action” and my inaugural article, “Down the Rabbit Hole: How Tim Burton and Disney Found the Mythic Heart of Alice in Wonderland” is now live. Check it out!
What's is this "Hero's Journey" Adam keeps talking... →
Is the idea of the mythic Hero’s Journey new to you? No problem! Just take a look at the four “Hidden in Plain Sight” articles I’ve posted here, and you’ll be up to speed in no time.
May 2010
7 posts
The Hero with a Dozen Faces
The Many Masks of ABC’s Lost
It’s now been a whole week since ABC broadcast the epic series finale of Lost. Some fans found the wrap-up satisfying, others felt frustrated or disappointed, and many felt a curious combination of all these emotions. Numerous articles and blog posts have already appeared all over the ‘net, intended to unravel the “real” meaning of the finale. And now it’s my turn. But...
Still Going at Full Force
Maybe I’m hypersensitive, or perhaps it’s just coincidence, but it seems to me as though the Star Wars saga has been in the zeitgeist a lot more than usual lately. Of course, it could have something to do with the fact that I live in Orlando, and recently this town has become a magnet for Star Wars-related events. Check it out:
First, there’s the exhibit “Out of this World: Extraordinary Costumes...
A Tale of 2 Trailers - Disney’s TRON: LEGACY and...
One complaint that’s often heard about the Hero’s Journey is that its use can lead to formulaic stories—especially when it comes to movies and television shows. In my opinion, it’s a legitimate beef. The Hero’s journey, when consulted as a general guide and a loose framework, offers the latitude to create an endless variety of highly original stories that powerfully resonate with audiences. Yet...
April 2010
1 post
It's Everywhere!
Once you find out about the mythic Hero’s Journey and learn how to recognize its stages and character archetypes, you can’t help but notice it everywhere you look. It’s almost freaky, in a sort of paranoid way. You just have to keep reminding yourself that it’s only natural that the Hero’s Journey should be so ubiquitous. After all, its themes are metaphorical...