Disney Channel played a big role to the person that I was as a child. One of the movies that I watched in 2009 was Princess Protection Program. In this film, Rosalinda is a soon-to-be queen in her country of Costa Luna. When her country in under attack, she must temporarily flee, to avoid any sort of danger. She is taken by the Princess Protection Program (P.P.P.) to live with one of the majors and his daughter, Carter, in Louisiana. With Carter’s help, Rosalinda must learn to fit in with the other kids at school. Because she is coming from an unfamiliar place, Rosalinda would be considered the “Other” as she learns the culture within America. Though she is in America, she stands as a subaltern in this small Louisiana town for the safety of herself.
Carter Mason is the daughter of the major that rescued Rosalinda. Carter is shy and has a hard time expressing any other emotions besides embarrassment. When Rosalinda becomes part of her world, they are on a bumpy path because Carter does not welcome Rosalinda with open arms. Because Rosalinda is used to a life filled with royalty and class, moving to a town of the complete opposite, makes it easier to see that she is the “Other.” Unlike Carter, Rosalinda holds confidence and is not afraid to be herself among others that she in unfamiliar with. However, this behavior could give away hints that she is not an average girl that grew up in Louisiana. This is when Carter would be the “One” teaching the “Other” how to fit in to a place that she is foreign to.
Lake Monroe, Louisiana is a good hiding place for Rosalinda because it is a rural area that one would not expect to find a princess in. For many, living in this town was something of choice, but for Rosalinda, this is something for protection and safety as she was the subaltern. Though Costa Luna is a fictional place, it would still stand as something of a third world country. For Rosalinda, she is a subaltern because she belongs to a third world country. She has no choice but to escape, leaving her and her family separated. Regardless of the power her royal family holds, because they have been invaded, Rosalinda is forced to go to another place that makes her the “Other” as she tries to fit in to American culture.
Allison Liddi-Brown, the creator of this film, wants children to be aware of the differences of cultures all over the world. The relationship shown serves as a lesson showing children to be accepting of all people no matter where they come from. Liddi-Brown inspires identity because she never changes Rosalinda’s initial confident/caring character; power showing people working together to become forceful against the enemy; and injustice because of the way Rosalinda was first treated by Carter. This film had underlying lessons that children will be able to take with them for their years to come.
Citation:
Princess protection program [Motion picture]. (n.d.). Walt Disney.