The Little Mermaid

Plot synopsis:
Ariel, a sixteen-year-old mermaid princess, is dissatisfied with life under the sea and curious about the human world. With her best fish friend Flounder, Ariel collects human artifacts and goes to the surface of the ocean to visit Scuttle the seagull, who offers very inaccurate and comical knowledge of human culture. Ignoring the warnings of her father (King Triton) and court musician (Sebastian the crab) that contact between merpeople and humans is forbidden (the sea's primary contact with humans involve fishermen, so King Triton considers humans as nothing more than mere predators), Ariel still longs to be part of the human world; to this end she has filled a secret grotto with all the human artifacts she has found. ("Part of Your World") Sebastian, who is assigned to watch over Ariel and be sure she does not visit the surface again, tries to convince her that its better to live under the sea than in the human world ("Under the Sea").One night, Ariel, Flounder and an unwilling Sebastian travel to the ocean surface to watch a celebration for the birthday of Prince Eric, with whom Ariel falls in love. A sudden storm hits, during which everyone manages to escape in a lifeboatexcept for Eric who goes back to rescue his dog Max. He almost drowns saving Max but is saved by Ariel, who drags him to the beach. Although it seems that his heart isn't beating, Ariel notices that Eric is breathing. She sings to him but dives underwater when Max returns to Eric. Upon waking, Eric has a vague impression that he was rescued by a girl with a beautiful voice; he vows to find her, and Ariel vows to find a way to join Eric. ("Part of Your World (reprise)")Triton and his daughters notice a change in Ariel, who is openly lovesick. Triton questions Sebastian about Ariel's behavior, during which Sebastian accidentally reveals the incident with Eric. Triton furiously confronts Ariel in her grotto, using his trident to destroy her collection of human treasures. After Triton leaves, a pair of eels, Flotsam and Jetsam, convince a crying Ariel that she must visit Ursula the sea witch, if she wants all of her dreams to come true.Ursula makes a deal with Ariel to transform her into a human for three days ("Poor, Unfortunate Souls"). Within these three days, Ariel must receive the 'kiss of true love' from Eric; otherwise, she will transform back into a mermaid on the third day and belong to Ursula. As payment for legs, Ariel has to give up her voice, which Ursula takes by magically removing the energy from Ariel's vocal chords and storing it in a nautilus shell. Ariel's tail is transformed into legs, leaving her naked except for her seashell bra. Sebastian and Flounder drag her to the surface. Meanwhile, Triton discovers Ariel and Sebastian's disappearance and, wracked with guilt over his behavior, orders a search for them.Eric and Max find Ariel on the beach. He initially suspects that she is the one who saved his life, but when he learns that she cannot speak, he discards that notion, to the frustration of both Ariel and Max (who knows the truth). He helps her to the palace, where the servants think she is a survivor of a shipwreck. Ariel spends time with Eric, and at the end of the second day, they almost kiss ("Kiss the Girl") but are thwarted by Flotsam and Jetsam. Angered at their narrow escape, Ursula takes the disguise of a beautiful young woman named "Vanessa" and appears onshore singing with Ariel's voice. Eric recognizes the song and, in her disguise, Vanessa/Ursula casts a hypnotic enchantment on Eric to make him forget about Ariel.The next day, Ariel finds out that Eric will be married to the disguised Ursula on a ship. She cries and is left behind when the wedding barge departs. Scuttle discovers that Vanessa is Ursula in disguise, and informs Ariel. As Ariel and Flounder chase the wedding barge, Sebastian informs Triton, and Scuttle is assigned to literally "stall the wedding." With the help of various animals, the nautilus shell around Ursula's neck is broken, restoring Ariel's voice and breaking Ursula's enchantment over Eric. Realizing that Ariel was the girl who saved his life, Eric rushes to kiss her, but the sun sets and Ariel transforms back into a mermaid. Ursula reverts to her true form and kidnaps Ariel.Triton appears and confronts Ursula, but cannot destroy Ursula's contract with Ariel. Triton chooses to sacrifice himself for his daughter, and is transformed into a polyp. Ursula takes Triton's crown and trident, which was her plan from the beginning. Ursula uses her new power to gloat, transforming into a giant, and forming a whirlpool that disturbs several shipwrecks to the surface, one of which Eric commandeers. Just as Ursula is set to use the trident to destroy Ariel, Eric turns the wheel hard to port and runs Ursula through the abdomen with the ship's splintered bowsprit, mortally wounding her. With her last breaths, Ursula pulls the ship down with her, but Eric escapes to shore in time.With Ursula gone, her power breaks and the polyps in Ursula's garden (including Triton) turn back into the old merpeople. Later, after seeing that Ariel really loves Eric and that Eric also saved him in the process, Triton willingly changes her from a mermaid into a human using his trident. She runs into Eric's arms, and the two finally kiss.In the final scene, an unspecified amount of time later, Ariel marries Eric in a wedding where both humans and merpeople attend.

Tags: fantasy, cute, good versus evil, psychedelic, romantic, entertaining

Review:
The film is a cinematic classic that tells the story of a young mermaid princess who just wants to be human so she makes a deal with an evil sea witch to get her wish, but she loses her beautiful voice in the process and she must be kissed by her true love to get it back.
I remember watching this movie when I was a little girl and I just wanted a friend like Sebastian, he was so much fun, even though he's somewhat of a buzz kill, he can really get the party going.
Well, Ursella takes her voice away, but her intentions are for Ariel to fail and make sure that she takes over the kingdom.The Little Mermaid is such a fun Disney film and is a great treasure of our time.
I highly recommend this movie for anyone, it's a true Disney classic that is so much fun, I guarantee you that you might shed a tear when Ariel says "Daddy", you'll see what I mean when you watch it.10/10.
If you just free yourself from the sissy pink image of the movie you're in for a treat.The songs are great, by the same team who gave us Little Shop Of Horrors: Alan Menken and Howard Ashman who teamed up in Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin as well.
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?
It features lovable characters: Ariel the little mermaid is one of my favorite 'Disney girls', Sebastian the crab, Scuttle the wacky seagull, Flounder the...
Some of the most beautiful Disney songs are in The Little Mermaid- Part of Your World, Kiss the Girl and for a little bit of dancin' Under the Sea. A movie for all ages, you will be enchanted by Ariel's world under the sea, by the wacky characters, the cruel but in a strange way lovable Ursula, the score, the songs, the story and the animation.
Songs, music, characters are all terrific.While I think Beauty and the Beast stands as Disney's best animated film, The Little Mermaid is still one of the top ones to check out.
A story about Aeriel - the young mermaid curious about the human world who ends up falling for Prince Eric of the human race.And all the other cute characters such as Sebastian, Flounder, not to mention a very sinister villain with the Sea Witch.
This animated film brought the Disney company out of its long slump and you can see why it spurred a comeback: there is a lot to like in this movie.It features outstanding animation: brilliant colors and beautiful scenes, along with interesting characters and pretty good songs.
Launched Disney's Golden Age. A mermaid princess named Ariel makes a Faustian bargain with an unscrupulous seahag named Ursula in order to meet a human prince named Eric on land.This is the film that really launched Disney's golden age (or what some people call the Renaissance era).
Still, "Little Mermaid" has GREAT music, a fun story and some wonderful animation--and only a real curmudgeon could hate it..
A story about Ariel the Little Mermaid, who yearns to be part of the human world and who fell in love with human Prince Eric in the process.
What follows is a romantic story in how Ariel tries to win Eric's heart without her voice and an exciting race against time to ensure Ariel remains human, otherwise, returning back to the ocean and into the evil Ursula's custody.Ron Clements and John Musker did an outstanding job in directing this movie, grasping the audience's attention at the start of the film with a musical sequence on the Prince's ship, and then a spectacular entry under the sea when we are introduced to the mermaids, helped by a powerful music score.
All these plot elements and twists make this a very exciting Disney movie from start to finish.The characters are very lovable and memorable, especially Flounder, Sebastian (my favorite) and Scuttles.
Disney's film is a colorful tale with quite a few comical characters.I enjoyed this film quite a bit but I would have liked to have seen this movie a bit "darker" in tone (animation and story).
THE LITTLE MERMAIDThis is one of my favourite Disney films.The movie is about a mermaid princess who dreams of exploring outside of the ocean.
The calypso style was a very creative choice by musical directors Alan Menken and Howard Ashman.Of course, the star of the show is Ariel, the rebellious 16 year old mermaid who dreams of walking on the beach and dancing with the Prince.
There are jolly songs ("Under the Sea" and "Les Poissons"), a love song ("Kiss the Girl"), a song of hope, anxiety, dreams and optimism ("Part of your world") and a dark-spirited song ("Poor Unfortunate Souls").Ursula is one of Disney's big villains.
He's a self-claimed "expert" on human stuff and makes up funny names for objects (in his language, a fork is a "dinglehopper" and he says people use it to comb their hair; a pipe is a "snarfblatt" and he tells people use it to play music like a trumpet).Ariel (nice name, by the way) is one of my Disney princesses of election.
Personally, I thought the Mermaid deserved better and, on taking my kids to see this movie when it was first released, I was delighted to see that the people at Disney had given her the ending I always wanted for her.The very first sequence, of Prince Eric's ship looming out of the mist, took my breath away.I can understand Under The Sea getting all the attention - it is, after all, very jolly and colourful.
Ursula the sea witch is perfectly villainous that works of course as an entertaining one as well.Also a reason why this is a classic are it's great memorable sing along songs.
"The Little Mermaid" revitalized Disney's animation department and would make it a force to be reckoned with over the next several years, before Pixar came along and picked up the mantle."Mermaid" isn't one of my favorites (I prefer "Beauty and the Beast," "Aladdin" and "The Lion King" over it), but it is a beautiful and now nostalgic throw back to hand-drawn animation, and it does boast one of the best scores written for a Disney film.
The only Disney movies you would bother going to see were the reissued classics from the 40's/50's/60's.The Little Mermaid is as imaginative as "Sleeping Beauty", as touching as "Cinderella" and as groundbreaking as "Snow White".
Disney's "The Little Mermaid" is a case study of a great, classic animated masterpiece.
And Ariel is one of the most beautiful Disney heartthrobs.The soundtrack is also what never fails to grab me in "The Little Mermaid." First of all, the musical score by Alan Menken is absolutely wonderful.
Filled with wonderful characters, animation, songs, and story Little Mermaid in my opinion is the best Disney movie ever!
The characters are probably the most memorable in a Disney movie, especially Ariel, a beautiful and feisty mermaid, with a dream of being a human.
There are many things I like about "The Little Mermaid"; the beautiful music, the lush colour and pageantry, the excellent voicework (though all would eventually be outclassed by later, better Disney efforts), and there's no denying that Ariel is someone your average adolescent girl can identify with.
The Little Mermaid ushered in an entire new era of Disney movies,yet took us back to the golden age of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty.
Based on the Hans Christian Anderson story of the same name, this movie is a timely and fun almost-masterpiece.We meet Ariel, a rebellious and passionate teenage mermaid, who is the daughter of the ruler of the sea, King Triton.
Ariel has three days to kiss a human prince or else she will belong to Ursula.The songs are catchy and memorable; tunes such as 'Under the Sea' and 'Part of Your World' are instantly recognizable and you can't help but sing (albeit badly) along to the irresistible melodies.
My only issue is that perhaps if Ariel had shown more remorse for her actions, she would have been more of a good character (she doesn't really learn a lesson).All in all, while not their best film, The Little Mermaid truly ranks up with some of Disney's highest classics, a personal, fun and dramatic animated adventure.
Filled with sing-along songs, beautiful animation, spritely and memorable characters and an intriguing plot, The Little Mermaid is not to be missed :).
I wasn't sure the story required that Ariel actually lose her voice for a significant period of time, but if it's in the original story (and I haven't checked) then fair enough, I suppose.There's nothing earth-shatteringly original in this movie which looks backward to Disney's glorious fairy-tale legacy of youthful innocence being corrupted by some evil menace going all the way back to Snow White, but modernised as here with some good jokes and today's music, it happily updates the studio's legacy and of course set the path for the great successes the studio and its PIXAR affiliate has enjoyed ever since..
The deal allows her to be human for three days but she must make the man she loves love her in return.THE LITTLE MERMAID was an incredibly important picture for Disney because they animated features were really lacking any classics but this film came along and put them on the map and it would kick off a tremendous run of titles that would include BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ALADDIN and THE LION KING.
This film is going to be impossible to resist and is one of the better Disney animated films ever made.Based of the fairytale by Hans Christensen Anderson, Ron Clements film is about how a mermaid named Ariel makes a pact with the evil sea witch, Ursula to become human and she has three days to kiss her true love or else she will turn back into a mermaid and endure being her servant for eternity.This film really has no famous voice-cast but I truly must single out Jodi Benson for her exceptional voice work.
After watching it I feel so good and happy.The story is of an immense beauty, art and the soundtrack is outstanding.We see the growth of Ariel and her love for a human, we see a frill father that does everything for his daughters and see a sea witch who uses all possible means to achieve the triton.
The music is fantastic (Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl have to be my favorite Disney songs of all time - love that little Calypso singing crab).
From the animation to the music to the story to the characters, "The Little Mermaid" has enough terrific things about it that one can be willing to look past the flawed message the film provides and just enjoy it for what it is.
The songs are some of the best that Disney has ever done, nuff said.The Little Mermaid has great and lively animation, Ursula is one of Disney's best villains (she and Scar from TLK are my favorite Disney villains of all time!!!!), Flounder is the cutest fish ever, it has a great plot, plus Jodi Benson as Ariel!
This movie is about the sweet little mermaid Ariel who is dreaming about becoming a human so that she can be with her dream prince.This has got to be one of the best animated movies ever made by Walt Disney Studios.
This doesn't affect the movie and the magic in a bad way, it just makes the story more dreaming and sweet.Jodi Benson is the voice talent behind Ariel and she really does bring adventure and charm into the character.
I love Ariel, she's one of my favorite Disney Princesses along with Cinderella & Aurora from "Sleeping Beauty." Ariel's voice actress Jodi Benson has an excellent singing voice for the film; also suits her character.
The haunting legend of Ariel, a spunky mermaid who, against King Triton's will, falls in love with a human, has been brought to the screen by the Disney artists in full-blown animation that captures the spirit and charm of Hans Christian Anderson's fairy-tale with the additional grace of a memorable musical score.From the opening sequences under the sea (incidentally, "Under the Sea" is the big production number that won a Best Song Oscar), THE LITTLE MERMAID is a joy from beginning to end.
Youngsters will love it for the appealing story of the Mermaid and the human prince, and young and old will succumb to the charm of the animation and the humor.The songs are a sprightly bunch, written by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, and the background score deserved its Oscar too.
Watching The Little Mermaid again at 17 years, I don't love it quite so much, but I can still say it's a very good movie.Ariel is the youngest daughter of the king of the mermen.
Memorable songs and hilarious characters like Sebastian, a crabby crab that Ariel's father assigns to keep her in check, and Scuttle, a bird who thinks he knows everything but clearly does not, keep the story lively and entertaining.This Disney movie doesn't inspire me with as many feelings of praise as the Pixar films or Beauty and the Beast or the Lion King.
But it's a fun movie, and I have to say it has some of the best music Disney's ever put to film.
In 1989, Disney has made a terrific masterpiece that ended up winning two Oscars (ah, yes; winning awards was what Disney has done the best!): "The Little Mermaid," an animated motion picture based on the story by Hans Christen Andersen (spelling?) that was loved by many children and it still is today!!!!!Ariel, the mermaid, had a dream: she wanted to live life out of the ocean and wanted to be human because she was interested in a man on a ship.
It is not only a wonderful family film; it's also a very nice love story with lots of music (Hearing that lobster character (sorry, I forgot the name) sing songs like "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl" are very great; Ariel also sang "Part Of Your World" as well)!!!!!Some of you (even your Blockbuster) might have the 1999 fullscreen Limited Issue version, but wait about a month for the 2-DVD version with widescreen, bonus features, and more!!!!!"The Little Mermaid" is a delight for all.10 stars..
The Little Mermaid is a spectacular movie, and it saved Disney Animation from going under.
Perfect songs, magical vocal performances, spectacular animation all in the highest Disney tradition.The Little Mermaid is the tale of a beautiful young mermaid named Ariel who longs for something more than what she has in her life, namely to live on land and to 'be where the people are'.
This movie was wonderful I watched it when I was younger in 1998 and I loved it but when I was even younger my dad bought a different earlier anime version that was so much better than the singing and dancing and happy endings in Disneys version of The Little Mermaid.
But she is sea foam and in the Disney version there is a happy ending which I think is wrong that they copied this beautiful anime version of the little mermaid and made it into a happy movie instead of the original one.
One of Disney classic this moive I grew up with it was my favorite princess moive the beautiful visuals.funny characters,I recommended this movie..
As Good as You Remembered It. Just got the Diamond Edition and watched this in Blu-Ray, so what better time to review it than now.For the maybe one of you reading this who hasn't seen The Little Mermaid: it is the tale of Ariel, a sixteen-year-old mermaid who falls in love with the dashing Prince Eric, much to the dismay of her father, King Triton, who forbids her from going up on land.
All modern Disney movies are built off the Little Mermaid as much as the Bambi or Snow White, perhaps more.I'd go into the songs, but what's the point: you all know how good they are.
The mermaid princess, who goes by the name of Ariel, has three days to kiss Prince Eric or else she loses everything, including her soul and voice, to a sea witch named Ursula.
Under the Sea - a beautiful melodic song fully deserving of its Oscar.every time I watch this film and in case you haven't gathered already i am a big Disney fan it never fails to entertain me.The music score - amazing, the animation amazing, the story - heart warming and touching.16 year old Ariel fascinated with life on land breaks the law of the sea and visits the surface, she then falls in love with a prince, she makes a deal with a witch to become human for three days.
In my opinion, the animation holds up very well 26 years later.The cast of characters was extremely enjoyable - evil Ursula, funny Sebastian, loyal Flounder and of course, the man Ariel loved, Prince Eric.What truly made this movie a classic was the songs, particularly Under the Sea and Part of Your World, which Jodi Benson done a absolutely perfect job on.The Little Mermaid belongs in the top five all time Disney films in terms of both the movie and the soundtrack.
It's the story of Ariel (voiced by Jodi Benson), a beautiful, fun-loving, adventurous mermaid who dreams of living life on land even though her father, King Triton (voiced by Kenneth Mars), forbids her of having any contact with the human world.
The Little Mermaid is by far my favorite Disney Princess movie.