The youngest of King Triton's daughters, Ariel is a beautiful and spirited young mermaid with a thirst for adventure. Longing to find out more about the world beyond the sea, Ariel visits the surface and falls for the dashing Prince Eric. Following her heart, she makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, to experience life on land.
Director: Rob Marshall
Cast: Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Daveed Diggs, Awkwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Noma Dumezweni, Art Malik, Javier Bardem, Melissa McCarthy
Release Date: May 26, 2023
Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Musical, Romance
Rated PG for action/peril and some scary images
Runtime: 2h 15m
Rob Marshall's live action The Little Mermaid is a colorful and lively remake that's elevated by a strong cast and lavish visuals. This newest entry into Disney's live action remake cash cow isn't as inventive as 2021 Cruella instead it hews closely to the original which gives it an old fashion feel throughout. There is a matter of changes like the much talked about change in the main characters race and a larger variety of ethnic diversity all around in addition to some lyrical tweaks, song deletions and additions. Unless you are a diehard traditionalist these changes don't really affect the central story much, if at all, and are far less distracting than the realistic versions of Sebastian, Flounder and Scuttle which takes some getting used to. Changes aside, the film doesn't take long to hit its stride with wonderfully staged versions of classic songs like Part of Your World and Under the Sea which allows Marshall to splash a kaleidoscope of color and energetic camera moves that make those moments pop. Ursula's Poor Unfortunate Souls already has hints of Chicago's When You're Good to Mama built into the song which perfectly pairs with Marshall's repertoire. The songs and staging are excellent, and the cast is led by luminous Halle Bailey in what is sure to be a star making role. Bailey possesses a natural onscreen presence which makes her performance undeniably likeable, especially once she starts belting out those classic songs. She keeps your attention throughout, even in the film's latter half which starts to drag noticeably. Jonah Hauer-King isn't able to match Bailey's turn as he comes off as bland and forgettable even with a solo song. Melissa McCarthy is scenery chewing machine as Ursula with the aforementioned Poor Unfortunate Souls serving as her showcase. Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay and Awkwafina turn in solid voice work as Sebastian, Flounder and Scuttle even though the random rap added for the latter feels a little out of place. Javier Bardem isn't tasked to do much outside of sound stern and fatherly which does with general ease. Together the cast keeps the film entertaining even though it loses steam as it moves into its final act which makes its extended runtime even more of headscratcher. A bit of editing would have helped this film keep its energy going from start to finish. That being said this live action redo of The Little Mermaid stands above most of the other adaptations due in large part to a well matched director and actors.
B
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