moriarty@tc.fluke.com (Jeff Meyer) (12/10/89)
THE LITTLE MERMAID
A film review by Jeff Meyer
Copyright 1989 Jeff Meyer
That's *two*.
These days, the press likes to hype the comeback trail for just about
anyone: politicians, celebrities, musicians, and even companies. Obviously
Disney has, over the last ten years, shown a mighty resurgence in the fiscal
arena, with the success of Touchstone Pictures and it's various amusement
parks. However, those looking at the quality of Disney's recent films will
find even more hopeful signs, particularly those who fondly remember the
animated features of bygone days. It appears that someone in the upper
echelons has taken the cuffs off the Disney animators and told them to knock
his or her socks off. After seeing THE LITTLE MERMAID, I'd guess you'd find
have to hunt for their shoes somewhere in their secretary's office.
A step back: I really sat up and took notice when THE GREAT MOUSE
DETECTIVE came out from Disney a couple of years ago. It was an extremely
entertaining feature, with a good sense of visual ingenuity, a fine comic
sense, and a script that was enjoyable for both kids and adults. Being a
Holmes fan, I realized bias, but it really was head-and-shoulders above the
fairly listless, cut-out animated features that started in the late sixties
(after, but not including, THE JUNGLE BOOK) and dominated the 70s and early
80s, right through the extremely over-hyped THE BLACK CAULDRON. THE GREAT
MOUSE DETECTIVE wasn't as technically accomplished as anything in Disney's
Golden Age (PINOCCHIO, SNOW WHITE, FANTASIA, etc.), but it was a solid
production and something to keep one's eyes open for.
Well, you won't have to squint to notice the quality to be found in THE
LITTLE MERMAID. This is, I believe, the best Disney animated feature since THE
JUNGLE BOOK, certainly the best "animated musical adventure" since TJB;
technically, however, it's the best thing to come out of Disney's animations
studios in decades, showing a sense of visual imagination that I haven't seen
since Disney's pictures in the early 50s. There are sequences that surprised
me, dazzled me, made me laugh with surprise (!) in how the animators had
orchestrated the scene; and two of the musical numbers literally made me want
to applaud after they were over. (The munchkins next to me would have taken it
as a sign of weakness, though, so *next* time I'm listening to A Voice of
Reason and seeing this at 9:30, past most of the little delinquents' bedtimes.)
The technical bits were damn impressive -- while not being up to the standards
of a PINOCCHIO, it did have sequences which stand out as way-above-average.
For the kids, for those who enjoy animated features or musicals, and for the
animation aficionado, THE LITTLE MERMAID is a treat.
Let me take this point-by-point:
VISUAL IMAGINATION: The well just does NOT run dry. The opening credits, the
introduction of the characters... right down to the point-of-view of each
shot. After THE LITTLE MERMAID, you'd think Disney Studios had forgotten how
to do a two-dimensional shot. The intro of the Sea Witch is particularly good,
as is the opening credits of a ship at sea. But the sparks really fly in the
musical numbers, particularly the very amusing "Kiss the Girl", and "Under the
Sea", which honest-to-God should be released as a music video -- it'd end the
glut of black-and-white monstrosities on MTV single-handedly. And the old
tried-and-true cartoon humor is in full evidence, which is a welcome sight --
it seemed for a while that someone at Disney had forgotten that this was an art
form in itself. (Looking at Saturday morning TV, perhaps a lost one.)
There is no single element more important to an animated film than the whimsy
to out-think the audience and surprise them with what the film-makers are about
to do. The lights are apparently burning brightly at Disney Studios.
TECHNICAL: In a phrase, Nothing Looks Cheap. You'd be hard-pressed to
associate this film with the company that made THE ARISTOCATS, which brimmed
with single-dimension animation, static backgrounds and strictly
two-dimensional action. There must have been a large sign up somewhere in THE
LITTLE MERMAID'S production studio: "USE THE Z AXIS." And there are little
touches everywhere -- I particularly liked the light-waves against the sea
floor. But more than that, this are several distinct styles in the artwork and
animated sequences in this film. Many of the characters have the standard
Disney character "look", i.e. the humans in 101 Dalmatians: The Prince, his
steward, etc. But they have more texture, more distinctiveness; Ariel, the
mermaid, in particular comes of with a visual individuality. Then there are
the early sequences, and the introduction of the Sea Witch; I want to see it
again, but I could swear that I was looking at SNOW WHITE-level animation --
almost cel painting. Gorgeous stuff -- somebody opened their pocketbook for
this one. Finally, as in THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE, computer animation is
integrated into the film very smoothly (mostly the wooden ships, I think); I'd
be curious to know if it was used in other places.
Really, this is a technological milestone for Disney. They've gained a lot of
ground back with THE LITTLE MERMAID, and I hope the box office on the film is
good enough for them to try it again.
CHARACTERIZATION: Good, up-to-snuff, if not great. I'm very partial to
Sebastian, the composer crab who is one of Ariel's companions, myself, but most
are standard roles, e.g. Flounder, heroine's best friend; but there are
several other, smaller roles which come off very well. Most of the voices,
while familiar to animated film fans, aren't "celebrity voices", with the
exception of Buddy Hackett, who's "animized" into a seagull. (I half expected
him to be living in a beached, rusted Volkswagen Beetle.) Rene Auberjonois was
also distinctive in his small role as the French chef during "Les Poissons",
probably the shows best comedy sequence. (Though I kept thinking how much fun
it would have been if John Cleese had been doing his "Of course I'm French!
Why do you zink I have dis ouutraaaageous Frentch Ak-zant?!!" voice for it.
Never satisfied...) The Sea Witch has all the good lines and lyrics, but then,
Disney villainesses always do. And Ariel herself is a strong central
character, a very pleasant (and long-overdue) change from those helpless Disney
females who cling to the hero's arm while he kills the villainess. She's
certainly the most appealing heroine I've ever seen in a Disney film, though
she doesn't break any Disney Heroine Regulations, I think. (The Prince is the
usual Disney good-looking, happy hunk; he basically plays with his dog and
battles sorceresses. Looks like a pipe-smoker to me.)
MUSIC: Pretty catchy stuff. Upon walking out of THE JUNGLE BOOK (at age 7), I
immediately initiated a campaign to coerce my parents into buying me a record
with "The Bear Necessities" on it (remember Ralphie and the B-B gun in A
CHRISTMAS STORY?); after the inevitable success (I could whine with the best of
them back then), I played that song over and over again until everyone (except
me) was sick of it. "Under the Sea" is just about as appealing, though the
lyrics are nothing special and I think a lot of the appeal rests in seeing the
animated sequence AND listening to the music at the same time. Luckily for my
parents, I know have enough money to buy the CD. (Pet gripe: they might list
the voice talents for the songs in the soundtrack brochure. That's Disney
corporate policy all over: the credits say DISNEY first, and everyone else in a
2-point font.)
DIALOGUE AND PLOT: Pretty standard stuff, though we have the heroine doing
most of the rescuing here. Outside of that, nothing special; the one thing
this film doesn't surpass THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE in is script, which had an
almost constant stream of good lines.
======
SO: Damn good film, worth seeing once and (for people like me) twice. Kids?
Well, there were some crying toddlers, as the villainess looks pretty nasty at
points, and there is a shark. Nothing worse than the usual Disney Nasty Person
Trappings, though. Besides, it's *good* for the little buggers! Gets those
psychological complexes started early, so they can be in therapy by the time
they're in high school. I mean, I saw the Wicked Queen's transformation scene
in SNOW WHITE, and it didn't screw me up any, did it? Outside of possible,
subliminal pro-drug messages...
Anyway, either use the kids as an excuse, or better yet, catch the late
show with your SO. Good animated features can make anyone into either a kid or
a romantic, and THE LITTLE MERMAID is an express ride to either.
Moriarty, aka Jeff Meyer
INTERNET: moriarty@tc.fluke.COM
Manual UUCP: {uw-beaver, sun, microsoft, hplsla, uiucuxc}!fluke!moriartyleeper@mtgzx.att.com (Mark R. Leeper) (12/16/89)
THE LITTLE MERMAID
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1989 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: Disney Studios is clearly trying to
create a classic for multiple re-releases by repeating the
formula of some of Disney's most successful animated
features. They probably have succeeded. Rating: high +1.
Walt Disney Studios built their reputation on animation, first with
Mickey Mouse cartoons and later with their full-length animated features.
Even among their feature-length animated films some seem to be more
respected than others. The real classics are SNOW WHITE, SLEEPING BEAUTY,
and CINDERELLA. The second-ranked ones are those such as PINOCCHIO, BAMBI,
and PETER PAN. Then there are the third-ranked ones such as THE JUNGLE
BOOK, THE FOX AND THE HOUND, and THE SWORD IN THE STONE. The ones best
regarded are adaptations of well-known German and French fairy tales. They
each seem to pit a young woman representing the forces of innocence and good
against an older woman who represents decadence and evil. Often the older
woman also represents the forces of witchcraft.
THE LITTLE MERMAID represents a return not just to the classic
tradition but also to the classic formula. Disney Studios is faced with the
competition of Don Bluth--who was bred in the Disney Studios and who left to
form his own competitive animation studios (much as Walter Lantz did
previously). Intentionally or not, in the holiday season of 1989 we are
having the showdown between Disney and Bluth. I have not seen Bluth's ALL
DOGS GO TO HEAVEN, but general scuttlebutt is that Disney's classic formula
has resulted in a much better film than Bluth's source.
THE LITTLE MERMAID is the story--very loosely based on the Hans
Christian Andersen fairy-tale--of Ariel, a mermaid who is fascinated by the
huge ship hulls she sees floating overhead. She also has a large collection
of half-understood human artifacts salvaged from shipwrecks. Ariel's
fascination with humans is in direct defiance of her father, King Triton,
who wants Ariel to be happy, but entirely within the confines of his
undersea kingdom. He has no interest in the "fish-eaters" who walk on two
legs. Ariel is a minor departure from the heroines of previous Disney fairy
tales in that she is strong-willed and intentionally disobedient. The film
gives her more character than Snow White or Sleeping Beauty. Present to
tempt Ariel is this film's villainess, the sea-witch Ursula. As Ariel is
half girl and half fish, so Ursula is an octopus with a corpulent woman
growing out of its head ... one of Disney's oddest-looking creatures.
The songs are by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, who did the music and
lyrics for the musical LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Their style in both works is
more verse-dialogue spoken to music than the usual song poetry. It is still
perfectly pleasant but it is immediately recognizable as being in the same
style. What is a slight disappointment is that the artwork in THE LITTLE
MERMAID is noticeably less detailed than in other Disney classics. (Each
frame of film IS different. This is unlike Japanese animation which has
very nice artwork but fairly jerky motion with drawings used for three or
four frames each.) But the sketches have less detail so were more
economical to draw.
The result of all this is that in some ways THE LITTLE MERMAID is
reminiscent of the best of Disney, in some ways in seems the victim of
cost-cutting. It represents an investment in the future by Disney and will
probably be released to theaters several times before it is ever sold on
cassette. This means if it sounds good you should go to see it in a
theater. That is the only way to see it. As for rating, I would give THE
LITTLE MERMAID a high +1 on the -4 to +4 scale.
Mark R. Leeper
att!mtgzx!leeper
leeper@mtgzx.att.com