THE LITTLE MERMAID A film review by Andrew Hicks Copyright 1997 by Andrew Hicks
(1989) ***1/2 (out of four)
Eight years after its release, Disney has decided to re-release THE LITTLE MERMAID theatrically for 17 days (and 17 long nights) only. Coincidentally, it was reintroduced to theaters the same day Fox's animated film ANASTASIA was released. You know Disney, they can't deal with the threat of any other studio getting even a small piece of the crust of the kiddie entertainment pie, so when someone else wants to make a little money, they counter with an old "masterpiece" from their vault and, you know what, I went to see this 1989 cartoon rather than the brand new one from Fox. Let no one say Disney is losing its monopoly on the market. They still have hotels on Boardwalk _and_ Park Place.
Believe it or not, today, November 25, 1997, at 5:05 p.m., I saw THE LITTLE MERMAID for the first time. It took me a few years to get over an aversion to this movie that was caused seven years ago, when I stayed with one of my mom's friends for a couple weeks. They had a young child who listened to the LITTLE MERMAID soundtrack constantly and, over that two week period, I heard every song from the movie probably a hundred times. By the time I got back home, I promised myself I'd never see the movie. But promises are made to be broken, especially when you're looking at a 17-day, limited engagement. Damn those shrewd Disney marketers and their mind games.
THE LITTLE MERMAID is based on a Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, but it's Disney-ized, which means lots of talking animals and bursting into song. It also means the heroine is a total babe who shows off cleavage from a seashell bra at all times. I never wanted so much to be a pair of shells... The heroine, of course, is Ariel (voice of Jodi Benson), a 16-year-old mermaid who is going through that rebellious phase. She skips her concert to explore a wrecked ship and hang out with a seagull that talks like Buddy Hackett, who tries to orient her to the mysterious world of humans.
She's also dealing with feelings she hasn't had before -- which comes when you get scales in places you didn't use to have them -- about a handsome prince (no Disney movie would be complete without one). Her father, King Triton of the merpeople, strictly forbids such lusting after the ways of the "savage" humans, in a condemnation that reads as a not-so-subtle analogy about old- fashioned parents who forbid interracial dating. What's a king to do, though? The girl's in love and even total destruction of her little shrine to the human world doesn't deter her.
Ariel saves the prince's life when a hurricane rises up, and just has to meet him. She makes a deal with Ursula, the sea witch (voice of Pat Carroll). You know she's evil because she has a huge potbelly and one of the worst asses in cartoon history. She also has octopus tentacles for feet (something those Dr. Scholl's corn pads will not fix) and offers to help Ariel out. She'll make her a human for three days if Ariel will give up her pretty voice; Ariel has three days to make that prince kiss her, or else she becomes a slave to the witch FOREVER. And if she pricks her finger on a sewing machine or eats an evil apple, she'll fall asleep FOREVER.
It's a simplistic plot, yes, but THE LITTLE MERMAID was a revolution in the Disney world, coming after such lackluster efforts as THE BLACK CAULDRON and OLIVER AND COMPANY. It ranks as one of the best Disney cartoons, certainly since the '50s. All the elements are there -- memorable songs like "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl," cartoon animals like Sebastian and Flounder, an evil villain who still has characterization and charm, and a fair amount of humor that caters to adults as well as children. THE LITTLE MERMAID is worth a big-screen ticket in 1997, so hurry up, you only have five days left.
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