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 | | Friday, 24 August, 2001, 09:49 GMT 10:49 UK Bubble trouble for Disney  The Immune Deficiency Foundation is unhappy By Peter Bowes in Hollywood A new Disney comedy about a boy with no immune system is facing a threatened boycott in the United States. Bubble Boy, which opens on Friday, is about a young man called Jimmy who lives in a plastic bubble in his bedroom. He eventually ventures in to the outside world when he learns that his childhood sweetheart is engaged to be married. But the Immune Deficiency Foundation has said the film makes fun of people with immune deficiencies. Parents of children with the condition have protested that the movie makes light of a serious disorder which isolates its victims and kills most people at a young age. 'No respect' There are also claims that the film mirrors the real-life story of David Vetter from Texas, who was born in 1971 with Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID). David, who died at the age of 12, became known as the Bubble Boy and a symbol for children with SCID. Carol Ann Demaret, David's mother, said she was appalled when she first saw promotions for the film, saying they showed no respect for her late son. "I'm offended by the fact that it was treated with such disregard to his memory. It says to our young adolescents and that is their target audience that it's okay to laugh at those with special needs or handicap."
Trailers have shown the boy being run over by a bus and bounced around like a beach ball at a rock concert. "It treats the disease, a primary immune disease, with little regard by mocking it," added Mrs Demaret. Boycott call "There would have been other ways to handle the disease and to handle David's memory but it was not done in a way that I consider suitable," she said. The film is a new take on the more serious 1976 TV movie, The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, which starred John Travolta. Many critics of the film, including representatives from The Immune Deficiency Foundation, have acknowledged that they called for a boycott of the movie without seeing it first. Their objections were based on the preview trailers running in US cinemas. Marley Shelton plays Chloe, the girl next door, with whom the Bubble Boy falls in love. She said: "It's ironic because one of the themes of the film is things aren't always as they seem. And I just wish that they would see the movie before they judge it." Jake Gyllenhaal, who plays Jimmy, added: "If you go and see it you'll realise that whatever the controversy is surrounding the film so far will be dispelled because it's really empathetic." 'Exploitation' The film has also attracted scathing reviews by US critics. "An hour and a half of exploitation," according to one. The comedy has also been dismissed as "offensive," "moronic" and "embarrassing". Walt Disney executives insist the comedy contains no "malicious intent". The film's producer, Beau Flynn, said: "No-one would have signed on to this picture if we were making fun of a disease. "It's terrible and that's not what this movie is about and we don't want that to get lost in this picture. This is a comedy with tons of heart and fun." | | See also:  Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top Film stories now:  Links to more Film stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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