Wait a minute - there are actually people who HATE this?

Rating: 10/10 (6 October 2002)

I was definitely no kid when I saw "The Little Mermaid"; in fact, I was 20. I was thoroughly captivated by this movie - one of the last real delights from Disney's regular animation crews (before they had to get help from Pixar and Tim Burton) - and the Mouse couldn't have wished for a better movie to get them back on the proper road, animation-wise. (Of course, after this, "Aladdin" and "Beauty and the Beast" they've slipped a bit - though they're still better than DreamWorks.)
Though not exactly loyal to the original story - Hans Christian Andersen was much more keen on unhappy endings - it's doubtful it would have worked as well if it had. The movie has just about everything going for it... lush animation, spirited musical numbers (this started Alan Menken's run of success for Disney, and he's surely had enough time to refresh himself by now, and for us all to forget "Pocahontas"), wonderfully evil villain, likeable supporting players, and my all-time favourite Disney heroine, the endearing and lovely Ariel (remember the episode of "Cheers" when Norm said he fancied her? She got a lot of real life guys' hearts - beat that, Princess Fiona from "Shrek").
And as a plus, the subsequent TV series (set before the movie) even managed to capture some of the spirit of the movie. But go for the original... a classic.