Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom is an animated version of the real-life childhood and fictional writings from author Howard Phillips Lovecraft. After watching the film, I enjoyed the Never Ending Story aspect of the movie but felt that some of the content was too dark for children. The main on-screen conflict for me was that the father of Howard Lovecraft is in the Arkham Sanitarium.
What also turns me away from supporting this project is what I found on H.P. Lovecraft Wikipedia page.
Race is the most controversial aspect of Lovecraft’s works, and it comes across through many disparaging remarks against the various non-Anglo-Saxon races and cultures within his work. Lovecraft did not from the start hold all white people in uniform with high regard, but rather he held English people and people of English descent, above all others.
He praised and was positive about non-WASP groups such as Hispanics and Jewish people, his private writings on groups such as Irish Catholics, German immigrants, and African-Americans would be consistently negative. While his racist perspective is undeniable, many critics argue this does not detract from his ability to create compelling philosophical worlds which have inspired many artists and readers.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I have no interest in supporting his hatred. I don’t want to support someone that has a negative influence on humanities culture, race, and religion with the justification of bigotry, racism, ignorance, and small mindedness. Perhaps he was influenced to hate by his peers or surroundings, he is dead and can’t defend himself, so while his work may continuously receive praise, it turned me away from his writings and this children’s flick because I can’t support something that demolishes me.
Please note that racism isn’t a factor in this cartoon, just in the heart of some the author’s writing/life this movie is based on.
Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom debuts on 2-disc Blu-ray + DVD combo pack with VOD (Video on Demand) September 27th, 2016. If you pre-order now you can get an exclusive poster, while supplies last.
