The Little Mermaid review

THE LITTLE MERMAID: 

HALLE BAILEY MAKES A “SPLASH” IN BETTER-THAN-AVERAGE DISNEY REMAKE! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

DISNEY

Halle Bailey as Ariel in The Little Mermaid (2023)

 

            The world of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic story comes to life in The Little Mermaid, the latest of Disney’s live-action remakes based on the 1989 animated film of the same name. The film is directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Mary Poppins Returns) and stars Halle Bailey (Last Holiday, Grown-ish, The Color Purple (2023)) as the mermaid with the most majestic singing voice ever, Ariel. 

            Saying I’m nostalgic for the original animated film is a huge understatement, I loved the animated Little Mermaid growing up, watched it many times on VHS, and it was the movie that helped shape the movie-obsessed man I am today. Why is that? Well, when the film was re-released in 1997, it was the very first movie I saw in theaters. 

            So yeah, the original Little Mermaid is extremely special to me, and I even got to share that with the original Ariel voice actress herself, Jodi Benson when I met her earlier this year. Honestly, not a bad film to make really special…in fact, the original movie is awesome with beautiful and vibrant hand-drawn animation that still holds up today, memorable songs and equally memorable characters, and an engaging story for both kids and adults. 

            Needless to say, I was skeptical when the live-action remake was announced because of how important the original animated film is to me. Not to mention, my reactions to some of the recent Disney remakes have been less than stellar (Aladdin (initially), Lion King, Pinocchio, etc.) and I didn’t want a subpar remake to sour my feelings towards the original. 

            Well, I can gladly say that the new reimagining of The Little Mermaid is…good! This is a perfectly serviceable remake of a beloved classic that’s nowhere near the same level of quality as the original, but there is still a lot to appreciate about it and even find charming. 

            The film follows a mermaid named Ariel (Bailey) who dreams of the human land, but her father, King Triton (Javier Bardem-No Country for Old Men, Skyfall, Lyle, Lyle Crocodile) has a serious prejudice against humans so she must remain “Under the Sea” (See what I did there?). When Ariel saves a man from drowning during an intense storm and immediately falls in love with the human prince named Eric (Jonah Hauer-King-Howard’s End, Little Women (2017), A Dog’s Way Home), she becomes determined to become human by any means necessary…even if that involves making a deal with the wicked Sea Witch, Ursula (Melissa McCarthy-Bridesmaids, The Heat, Can You Ever Forgive Me?). 

            But this diabolical witch has other plans and it’s up to Ariel and her friends Flounder (voiced by Jacob Tremblay-Room, Wonder, Luca), Sebastian the Crab (voiced by Daveed Diggs-Blindspotting, Hamilton, Soul), and Scuttle (voiced by Awkwafina-Crazy Rich Asians, The Farewell, Raya and the Last Dragon) to save the day and seal her true love with Eric via a kiss. 

            The film also stars Noma Dumezweni (Dirty Pretty Things, Mary Poppins Returns, The Kid Who Would Be King) as Queen Selina, Art Malik (The Living Daylights, True Lies, John Carter) as Sir Grimsby, and Jessica Alexander (Penny on M.A.R.S., Get Even, Glasshouse) as Ursula’s human alter-ego Vanessa. 

            Overall, this new take on The Little Mermaid may not have the spark of its animated original, but thanks to a phenomenal Halle Bailey as Ariel, it successfully casts some of its own magic. While my heart will always belong to Jodi Benson’s iconic vocal performance as the animated Ariel, I thought Halle Bailey did a fantastic job bringing this character to life in her own way. 

            You can tell in every scene she’s in that Bailey really cares about the Ariel character and pours her heart and soul into her performance and what I appreciate is the fact that this is “Her” Ariel. She’s not trying to impersonate Jodi Benson, her vocals during the song sequences are different from her animated counterpart and she does an excellent job conveying Ariel’s emotions during the latter half when she’s voiceless (Which was honestly the aspect I was most concerned about because it isn’t animated, but she nailed it!). 

            Much like how the animated Ariel is a huge icon for redhead girls where they can picture themselves as the character while watching it, I can see Halle Bailey’s Ariel doing the same thing for African-American girls. With an excellent performance to boot and easily the best live-action portrayal of an animated Disney Princess since Naomi Scott’s Jasmine from Aladdin. 

            I also like how Prince Eric is more fleshed out in this version compared to the animated movie, there’s quite a bit of time spent with him sharing his hopes and dreams and interacting with his family and workers in the castle. He’s more than just the handsome prince that Ariel needs to kiss in three days, and I respect that, both he and Ariel have great chemistry and feel more refined than the romance in the animated original.

            Nothing will ever top the late Pat Carroll’s iconic vocal performance as the wicked Ursula, but Melissa McCarthy portrays a very faithful rendition of the Disney villain even right down to the design and mimicking the animated version’s “Body Language”. While very few Disney villains were successfully translated to live-action, I’m happy to say that Ursula is one of them. 

            The underwater scenes are gorgeous and look incredible on the big screen, lots of vibrant colors and the environments are brimming with atmosphere and personality. Pretty much the complete opposite of the Pride Lands from the 2019 Lion King, at least this movie is lovely to look at. 

Even though I found myself enjoying the film for the most part, it does have its share of flaws. Flounder’s uncanny design being one, but also this version does tone down some of the more intense aspects of the animated original like there’s no insane chef trying to kill Sebastian in this one and Poor Unfortunate Souls doesn’t feel as insane or menacing as in the original. The film also takes certain liberties in terms of various plot points from the original, specifically how Giant Ursula is defeated at the end and a couple of scenes where Halle Bailey was singing in her head after her voice was taken away, I felt her facial expressions were more than enough and the extra songs while good, were unnecessary among other flaws and nitpicks I have. 

            Despite its flaws, The Little Mermaid (2023) is a solid Disney remake that honors the animated original while still being different enough to stand on its own. The animated film will always be the superior option to me, but it’s nice to know that the reimagining wasn’t foul like sewer water, grab your Dinglehopper and dive on in.