Ever since childhood, Disney has always been a big part of my life. Like many other Disney adults, I grew up on Disney. I was a different Disney princess for each Halloween. I had all the soundtracks from each of the movies and sang the lyrics loud and proud well into my adulthood. The Little Mermaid was one of the first movies I had seen on VHS, and it will always have a special place in my heart. In fact, I spent many summers laying on a sandy beach perfecting my mermaid pose. Much like Ariel longed to be a part of the human world, my younger self longed to be a part of Ariel's world.
Upon hearing of the new Little Mermaid remake, I was cautiously optimistic. There weren't many remakes that I preferred to the originals, but I was hopeful that this remake would add more depth to the beloved story I grew up with. After the casting was leaked and the first few "sneak peeks" were given, I had some doubts about whether this remake would be worth a trip to the theaters. Although the movie is called live-action, it was clear from the first true trailer that the action would consist mainly of CGI.
Without even watching the movie, viewers can detect several noticeable differences between the animated version and the remake. The directors shocked fans of the animated version in their choice of cast, and left many questioning the movies intentions. While the casting of Ariel left many fans bewildered, the choice I was originally unhappy with was their choice for Prince Eric. Growing up, Prince Eric was my absolute favorite prince and I was reluctant with their choice of Jonah Hauer-King. Looking back, the trailers didn't do the movie justice, almost as if the scenes chosen showed the very worst of what the movie had to offer. Jonah was my favorite character throughout the remake and now I'd love to see a movie based on Eric's journey.
Meanwhile, there were other issues with the supporting cast. Flounder, Ariel's best underwater friend, loses his "silly guppy" charm in the filmmakers' attempts at making him seem more realistic. Sebastian the crab, on the other hand, appears as a tropical ghost crab, a confusing choice when considering the fact that those types of crabs drown in water.
I know I wasn't the only one confused in their changes with Scuttle, who went from a male seagull to a female northern gannet (a diving bird). Many of scuttle's scenes in the beginning are underwater. While diving birds can stay underwater for an extended period of time, most of Scuttle's scenes were really pushing it to the point of being ridiculous. It felt as if the filmmakers were making changes just for the sake of being different and not necessarily because changes were necessary. The remake also adds on an extra 52 minutes compared to the original and has three additional songs.
The Little Mermaid remake is a faithful adaptation of the animated classic and leaves its audience craving more depth. Much of the underwater scenes feel disconnected. While the muffled sound of moving water can be heard throughout the underwater scenes, the voices and music appears even sharper than they are on land and doesn't seem to fit in well together. Unfortunately, this gives the underwater scenes an unrealistic feel to them.
It is also noticeable that Bailey isn't used to CGI and her overall mermaid movements look forced and uncomfortable, leaving the mermaid looking more like a fish out of water. Considering this was Bailey's first on screen performance, it is understandable that she is getting accustomed to acting and she should be proud of her role. It is certainly difficult filming scenes with CGI and green screens, where even experienced actors can have difficulty playing out the scenes. I personally wish they had spent more time trying to improve the CGI as well, as it was disappointing in comparison to Avatar, which was released prior to The Little Mermaid remake.
The Little Mermaid remake is a faithful adaptation of the animated classic and leaves its audience craving more depth. Much of the underwater scenes feel disconnected. While the muffled sound of moving water can be heard throughout the underwater scenes, the voices and music appears even sharper than they are on land and doesn't seem to fit in well together. Unfortunately, this gives the underwater scenes an unrealistic feel to them. It is also noticeable that Bailey isn't used to CGI and her overall mermaid movements look forced and uncomfortable, leaving the mermaid looking more like a fish out of water. Considering this was Bailey's first on screen performance, it is understandable that she is getting accustomed to acting and she should be proud of her role. It is certainly difficult filming scenes with CGI and green screens, where even experienced actors can have difficulty playing out the scenes.
One of the noticeable changes to the remake was that each of Triton's daughters (Ariel, Mala, Indira, Caspia, Tamika, Karina, and Perla) have different skin tones and hair textures as they represent the seven seas. This detail was an interesting concept and felt it went overlooked. It also added more questions that went unanswered upon the films end. During the movie, Triton's daughters make several comments that lead viewers to assume they all shared the same mother; however, that would not make much sense with the different backgrounds and ethnicities of the girls. It would have added more profundity to give viewers a closer look at the family dynamics. Filmmakers chose to play it safe with the original scenes instead of adding more depth to the characters. Unfortunately, this left viewers such as myself wanting more and leaving disappointed.
The audience also learns throughout the movie that Prince Eric is not related by blood to his royal parents. Viewers learn he was found washed on shore after a shipwreck as a baby, although Disney chooses not to give viewers any more information on that backstory. It would have been interesting to see the movie start with Eric and how he came to be Prince. It could have even explained why Eric felt the way he did about mermaids and his love for the sea, whereas his fellow crew mates on the ship in the opening scene had much different opinions on Mermaids. I personally found that concept intriguing and would have liked to have seen Disney choose to build on that.
Overall, this version of The Little Mermaid felt muted in comparison. While it certainly wasn't a terrible movie, I wouldn't say it was great, either. Most of the disappointments with this remake involved little details and Disney's inability to add more to the original storyline. Its really a misery to notice the small details, and its something that no child would nitpick on, but the one reason for these remakes is that those who grew up with these movies grew up and had more questions longing to be answered. Like many of the other Disney remakes, this Little Mermaid feels more like a cover version instead of an inspired reimagining. The story does not change enough to justify a retelling of the original and leaves viewers craving more on the original story.
Comments