Yes, it had been quite a while since Disney had a fully animated film that was considered a classic, with "The Sword and the Stone" the last one and others not nearly on the Walt scale of memorable family fair. For the song writing team of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, they created something memorable, an adaption of the Hans Christian Andersen tale that was unique enough and groundbreaking to reopen the animated department to a full level and create modern classics even better than that.
As a 20-something male, I had to admit that this was not written for me in mind, but as a fan of the Broadway musical, saw the structure that lead to success on rare occasion. Broadway's Jodi Benson is perfectly cast the singing and speaking voice of mermaid princess Arielle who only has one desire in life: to be human. Along comes evil squid witch Ursula (veteran actress Pat Carroll) who wants her singing voice so she grants her wish.
True love with a human prince leads to further jealous actions by Ursula, but Arielle's seafood (oops, meant sea life) friends and of course her father are there to stop these evil intentions. I don't find it perfect, but I can't dismiss the artwork and initiative that brought Disney back to its former glory. My favorite song, "Under the Sea", seems like a companion piece to "The Beautiful Briny Sea" from "Bedknobs and Broomsticks", and while "Part of That World" has some awkward speaking moments in it, I see why it's now a clasdic.
As a 20-something male, I had to admit that this was not written for me in mind, but as a fan of the Broadway musical, saw the structure that lead to success on rare occasion. Broadway's Jodi Benson is perfectly cast the singing and speaking voice of mermaid princess Arielle who only has one desire in life: to be human. Along comes evil squid witch Ursula (veteran actress Pat Carroll) who wants her singing voice so she grants her wish.
True love with a human prince leads to further jealous actions by Ursula, but Arielle's seafood (oops, meant sea life) friends and of course her father are there to stop these evil intentions. I don't find it perfect, but I can't dismiss the artwork and initiative that brought Disney back to its former glory. My favorite song, "Under the Sea", seems like a companion piece to "The Beautiful Briny Sea" from "Bedknobs and Broomsticks", and while "Part of That World" has some awkward speaking moments in it, I see why it's now a clasdic.