Everybody Loves a Mermaid! (Disney for Em! W/O)

In the finest Disney tradition, The Little Mermaid does more than bring Hans Christian Anderson’s original tale to life. The combination of superlative animation, award-winning music, and perfectly matched voice talents infuses Disney’s version of the story with a magic all its own.

The only complaint you’ll hear about The Little Mermaid is that it is an unrealistic story which may give little girls a distorted view of the world. But, of course, that is the very nature of fairy tales, and this is one of the finest examples of that genre.

Originally released in 1989, Disney’s The Little Mermaid was re-released in 1997 as a special edition in VHS format. This edition has been fully restored and re-mastered, including the new music video “Part of Your World”.


The Story

In the beginning of the story, we get the clear impression that Arial, 16-year-old daughter of King Triton (ruler of the undersea world) has other things on her mind than the rest of the young mermaids. Her fascination with human artifacts leads her to explore the numerous shipwrecks instead of tending to her responsibilities. When she misses her musical debut at a special undersea concert, King Triton is furious. He is even more alarmed when he finds out that she has visited the surface, where, heaven forbid, those ‘horrible’ humans could have captured her. He forbids her to visit the surface ever again.

But Ariel’s mischievous spirit gets the better of her and strengthens her curiosity about humans. In one of the most famous songs from the movie, Arial expresses her desire to be “Part of Your World’.

When a storm at sea sinks the vessel of a human prince, Arial rescues him from the raging waters. As he regains consciousness, Ariel slips back into the sea. Delirious, all he remembers is her exquisite voice. He does not know that she is a mermaid, and he vows to find her and marry her.

Arial has been smitten by her desire for the prince as well, and she is determined to have him. In her desperation she turns to Ursula, the sea witch, who gives her legs to walk on the land. But there’s a catch! Ariel must give up her exquisite voice. And she must earn the ‘kiss of true love’ from the prince by sunset on the third day – or her soul will forever be under the spell of the sea witch. Ursula hopes to trade her new prisoner for the soul of King Triton, and assume his position of power in the undersea kingdom.

When the prince nearly kisses the voiceless Ariel on the second day, Ursula decides to sabotage her. Appearing on the land as a seductress - using Ariel’s beautiful voice – Ursula lures the prince away. As the sun begins to set on the third day, the prince and Ursula sail out to sea to be married.

But Ariel’s friends come to her aid to expose the sea witch for who she really is. In a stormy grand finale, Ursula captures and enslaves King Triton. She gains his power and nearly destroys Arial and the prince. But the prince manages to turn upon her and destroy her. King Triton is freed, and Arial realizes her dream of living on the land and marrying the prince.

In a final farewell, King Triton and the mer-people wish her well and return to the sea.


The Moral of the Story

Most of the people I have talked with believe the message of the story is: if you desire something with all your heart, if you are willing to risk everything for it, then you can achieve it.

But there is a second message in the story that is less obvious. In the beginning, humans and mer-people know very little about each other and they mistrust each other greatly. King Triton has forbidden mer-people to go to the surface or to come into contact with those ‘terrible humans’. By the end of the story, the two races have learned to respect each other. Although they return to their separate kingdoms, there has been communication between the two and there is now a basis for friendship. This is definitely a modern-day message that speaks to our increasingly global society. Children watching The Little Mermaid today will be the leaders, executives, and teachers in a world filled with diversity.


The Making of The Little Mermaid

Hans Christian Anderson’s tale was first considered by Walt Disney as the subject of an animated movie in the early 1940’s, nearly 100 years after its publication. Although the movie was not made at that time, Walt’s idea never completely died. In 1985, a preliminary script was written to test the idea, and by 1986 production was underway.

Interestingly enough, The Little Mermaid was destined to be the very last hand-painted full-length feature animation produced by Disney Studios. Subsequent animated movies have made extensive use of computer animation, which has added a whole new dimension to storytelling. Every scene in The Little Mermaid, however, was painted by hand.

Some interesting facts about the production:

· 400 artists and technicians labored nearly three full years to complete the movie.
· 150,000 hand-painted cels were required for the movie.
· Nearly 1,100 hand-painted backgrounds were used.
· There are hundreds of thousands of bubbles in the movie. Every single one was hand-painted and animated.
· More than 1,100 different paint colors were used.
· Over 1 million sketches, drawings, and paintings were developed over the three years of production.
· 7,000 feet of hand-drawn film was used.
· A special paint was developed for the green color of Arial’s fin. It is now called Ariel Green.


Voice Talents

Some musicals are marred by abrupt transitions between the speaking and singing voices of each character. Because the same people perform the speaking and singing voices in The Little Mermaid, the transitions are seamless. This adds to the continuity of the movie and makes the songs seem more a part of the story.

Drawing heavily on accomplished Broadway actors, the voice talents in The Little Mermaid are excellent!

Jodi Benson’s voice (as Ariel) is sweet and captivating, yet it is strong when it needs to be. Part of the mystique of Ariel’s character is her beautiful voice, and Jodi fills the role marvelously.

You will recognize Buddy Hackett’s voice as the seagull Scuttle. Although his role is not a major one, he adds a great deal of humor. My kids laugh and laugh at his character because of the silly antics.

Samuel E. Wright makes us laugh with his excellent portrayal of Sebastian the crab. He entertains us with the Caribbean flavor of the song “You Wanna Kiss the Girl” as Ariel’s friends musically encourage the prince to kiss Ariel.


Part of Your World Music Video

Included in the Special Edition released in 1997 is the new music video “Part of Your World”. Performed by Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel, it is set on a beach with cliffs, and features Jodi in a long white dress. There are no other characters in the music video.


Re-release

In 1997, extensive work was performed on the original film to preserve it and to enhance the quality for future generations. Every frame in the original film was digitized so that all defects in the original could be corrected. This included ‘paint creep’ in the original cels, mistakes, flaws in the film medium, and other defects.

The sound track was also digitally re-mastered in order to bring it up to today’s standards – including the addition of 6-channel instead of 4-channel sound. The VHS version is now THX certified.


Summary

An entertaining fairy tale brought to life in grand style by the world’s recognized master of animation – Walt Disney Studios.




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