The Frog Prince - Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child [VHS]
The Frog Princeis a classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale about a spoiled princess who learns the true meaning of friendship. What's different about this production is its ethnic perspective. Narrator Robert Guillaume and voice talents Sinbad and Danny Glover speak in a folksy, ethnic dialect that lends a whole new perspective to the story. The animation, too, has an ethnic slant, with the main characters portrayed almost as caricatures.Princess Ebony has everything a princess could possibly want, but longs for some subservient, worshipful friends her own age. King Niger attempts to pacify his daughter by constructing a nugget court (a game that bears some resemblance to rugby) and bequeathing her a golden nugget ball that's been in the family for generations. The game entertains the princess for a while, but when the Jester challenges the Princess to a real game, she throws a tantrum and loses her valuable ball down a deep well. When an idiosyncratic frog offers to retrieve the lost ball in return for her friendship, the Princess agrees, but has absolutely no intention of keeping her promise. King Niger learns of his daughter's unfulfilled promise, realizes how spoiled and self-centered she has become, and vows to remedy the situation by insisting that she honor her promise to the frog. The princess endures the frog's company for a day, and is driven to a desperate act, the results of which teach her the true meaning of friendship and humility. For a very different look at this same classic tale, try the non-animatedFrog Kingin theFrom the Brothers Grimmseries by Tom Davenport. (Ages 3 and older)--Tami Horiuchi