...cute, romantic, well-animated, well paced, and filled with more good music than Disney had produced in quite some time.
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Credit 1989's "The Little Mermaid" with putting the Disney studios back into the business of full-length, traditional animation. It became the first in a string of successful Disney cartoons that didn't run out of steam until a decade later, after the advent of 3-D computer graphics. I have to admit that I have not always been one of "The Little Mermaid's" biggest fans, finding its story line and characters a little too coincidentally reminiscent of their affiliate studio's live-action "Splash" from a few years earlier; but I cannot deny there is still great charm in the old Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, much beauty in the animation, and plenty of good music and songs. I have to welcome the movie's reappearance on DVD, this time in a Platinum Edition two-disc set, with not only a host of new extras but with improved picture and sound, too.
The setting for the tale, never specified, is probably close to storyteller Andersen's day, the early 1800s, partly under the sea, partly above it. The principal character, Ariel (Jodi Benson), is the mischievous, sixteen-year-old mermaid daughter of King Triton (Kenneth Mars), a demigod of the sea. Triton forbids her to go near the surface of the water or mingle with humans, whom he calls "spineless, savage, harpooning fish eaters." Naturally, Ariel can't help herself, being the curious type, and wants to know what's up there. In the course of her explorations, she finds and rescues a young, handsome, drowning prince, Eric (Christopher Daniel Barnes), and falls in love with him. But what's she do, she's a mermaid after all. That's where the evil sea witch Ursula (Pat Carroll) enters the picture. She's half human, half octopus, and all bad. She's looking for revenge after being exiled from Triton's court, and she makes a deal with Ariel: She'll turn Ariel into a human being in exchange for her voice (and, unknown to Ariel, the Prince).
Among the film's other colorful characters are Sebastian (Samuel E. Wright), Triton's court composer crab, whom the King assigns to watch over Ariel; Scuttle (Buddy Hackett), Ariel's goofy seagull friend, the funniest personality in the story thanks to Hackett's funny, goofy voice; Flounder (Jason Marin), Ariel's shy, fishy little friend; Louis (Rene Auberjonois), the Prince's chef, who has a penchant for cooking fish; Flotsam and Jetsam (Paddi Edwards), Ursula's two slinky eel flunkies; and Grimsby (Ben Wright), the Prince's valet.
Co-writers and co-directors Ron Clements and John Musker, who were also responsible for "The Great Mouse Detective," "Aladdin," "Hercules," and "Treasure Planet," keep the action and the romance moving at a healthy enough clip not to bore children or adults. It's a sweet story, if a tad juvenile. Yet, like all good fairly tales, a grown-up can easily enjoy it. Speaking of which, one cannot help noticing that Ariel is perhaps the sexiest-looking animated character the Disney artists have ever drawn. But how does a mermaid wash her hair without getting soap in her eyes?
For me, the best parts of the movie were the art work and the songs. The picture's appearance is quite lovely, a welcome return to the beautifully detailed animation style that Disney seemed to abandon for many years in the sixties and seventies. The Disney artists boldly portray each of the characters, and they vividly imbue the backgrounds with an abundance of light and shadow to individualize each scene.
The songs by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken are also a return to form for Disney. Things begin with "Fathoms Below," describing the undersea domain of the mer people. Next is "Part of Your World," in which Ariel longs to share in the human world. Then comes the highlight of the show, the song for which "The Little Mermaid" is probably best known, "Under the Sea," with Sebastian trying to convince Ariel of the virtues of remaining below water. This one may be worth the price of the whole set, especially in its newly remastered audio home-theater mix. Ursula has the next number, "Poor Unfortunate Souls," which shows her treachery; chef Louis sings the darkly humorous "La Poisson," about the joys of cooking fish, much to the horror of onlooker Sebastian; and, lastly, Sebastian encourages the romance between Ariel and Prince Eric in "Kiss the Girl."
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[release]18847[/release]