Movie Review: ‘The Little Mermaid’

Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ might be the best Disney live-action adaptation yet as Halle Bailey is a powerhouse and Melissa McCarthy’s steals every scene.

Halle Bailey as Ariel in Disney's live-action 'The Little Mermaid.'

Get ready for life under the sea in the upcoming Disney live-action adaptation of ‘The Little Mermaid’, splashing into theaters on May 26th. Directed by Rob Marshall, the film is adapted from the 1989 animated feature of the same name.

The story of ‘The Little Mermaid’ follows the youngest of King Triton’s daughters - Ariel. With a thirst for adventure and an unwavering curiosity about the Above World, Ariel longs to learn more about humans. When she finally breaks the surface, she sees and falls in love with Prince Eric. Ariel seeks out sea witch Ursula to strike a deal to live as a human - exchanging her golden voice for legs.

The movie stars Halle Bailey as Ariel, Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, Javier Bardem as King Triton, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian, Awkwafina as Scuttle, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder, and Nomi Dumezweni as Queen Selina.

The Little Mermaid

"Watch and you'll see, some day I'll be, part of your world!"

PG2 hr 15 minMay 26th, 2023

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Initial Thoughts

The 1989 animated feature film is a part of the Disney Renaissance era, best known for its vibrant musical films such as ‘Beauty and the Beast’, ‘Aladdin’, and ‘The Lion King’. The original is beloved amongst Disney fans who know this movie (and all of its songs) forward and backward. Reimaging a classic like ‘The Little Mermaid’ is no easy task, yet director Rob Marshall has stepped up to the plate and delivered a live-action version that is faithful to the original while adding unique spins to the story. Halle Bailey proves to be the perfect choice as the lead, with her angelic voice that captured Ariel’s essence in her rendition of ‘A Part Of Your World’.

The biggest challenge for any Disney live-action adaptation is transforming the iconic animation into live-action with the help of CGI and special effects. Underwater scenes are never easy to do, and at times the effects looked disjointed and rough. Regardless, it doesn’t take away from the charm of the movie and with a solid performance from the cast, ‘The Little Mermaid’ is a joy to watch.

(L to R) Scuttle (voiced by Awkwafina), Flounder (voiced by Jacob Tremblay), and Halle Bailey as Ariel in Disney's live-action 'The Little Mermaid.' Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2023 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Changes From The Animated Movie

With any live-action adaptation, audiences will be looking for certain scenes and moments from the original animated film. Rob Marshall’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ kept many of the fan-favorite moments such as Ariel’s iconic hair flip as she breaks the surface after receiving her legs from Ursula. But what changes did they make? The most obvious change is the looks of Ariel’s sidekick trio: Flounder, Sebastian, and Scuttle. As it is a live-action adaptation, it wouldn’t have made sense to make these characters look exactly like the cartoon. Instead, the film’s photo-realistic version depicted Flounder as a tropical yellow fish with dark blue strips, Sebastian as a ghost crab, and Scuttle as a Northern Gannet instead of a seagull.

Another change from the animated is the addition of Queen Selina - Prince Eric’s mother played by actress Noma Dumezweni (‘Mary Poppins Returns’). Having her in the film was a welcoming change, giving a lot more layers to Prince Eric’s storyline and fleshing out the Above World more than the animated movie did. Dumezweni is reunited with Rob Marshall and producer Jon DeLuca on ‘The Little Mermaid’ as she previously worked with the duo on ‘Mary Poppins Returns’.

King Triton’s concert from the original animated was not featured in the live-action version, and while this film does highlight Ariel’s Mer-sisters in a different way, the concert would have given the audience a closer look at Ariel’s siren voice - which King Triton eludes in the film that it contains magical properties such as healing. This is not to say Ariel uses her voice to affect someone’s decisions or moods. Additionally, the concert would have given more life to the underwater kingdom by showing other merfolk and architecture, which was sorely missing from the film.

Halle Bailey as Ariel and Javier Bardem as King Triton in Disney's live-action 'The Little Mermaid.'

Another fan-favorite scene that did not make it into the live-action version is one that takes place in the castle’s kitchen with Chef Louis who chases Sebastian around the kitchen while preparing a meal for Prince Eric, Grimsby, and Ariel. It was rumored that Lin-Manuel Miranda may have played the part of the Chef, and it would have been fun to hear his rendition of ‘Les Poissons’

There are a few new songs added as well, including a solo number for Prince Eric. Ariel also has a brand new song that will have you tapping your feet. The overall story and pacing of the movie match the original, the changes made it so that this was not just another shot-for-shot movie.

Halle Bailey’s Powerhouse Performance As Ariel

Halle Bailey is no stranger to the spotlight. She began acting at the age of 3 and launched a YouTube channel with her sister Chloe at the age of 11. Their covers of ‘Best Thing I Never Had’ and ‘Pretty Hurts’ went viral, propelling the sisters onto the road of stardom. Later, the sisters were signed to Parkwood Entertainment management company, which is owned by Grammy Award-winning singer Beyoncé Knowles.

Bailey was the first actress to audition for the role of Ariel. She sang ‘A Part of Your World’ for her audition, and director Rob Marshall was left in tears by her performance. It’s easy to see how Marshall felt so emotional during her audition. Bailey’s rendition of the song made many in the audience feel overcome with emotion, and sniffles (and cheering) were heard all over the theater.

She captured the essence of Ariel - her passion and curiosity of the human world, her longing to be heard and be independent, and how much love and kindness she had to give. Bailey gave it all she got and is easy to see why she was the best choice to play Ariel.

Melissa McCarthy as Ursula in Disney's live-action 'The Little Mermaid.'

Melissa McCarthy Steals The Scenes As Ursula

The sea witch Ursula has become an iconic Disney villain. The bigger-than-life role falls on the shoulders of Melissa McCarthy who had the audience wrapped around her tentacles. Her performance was big and theatrical, and she delivered ‘Poor Unfortunate Soul’ with so much flair it was a joy to watch. While she delivered some intense (and at times unhinged) moments, she also used her comedic ability to break up the tension, causing the audience to burst into laughter. All eyes were on Ursula whenever she was on the screen.

Final Thoughts

‘The Little Mermaid’ may just be the best Disney live-action adaptation to date. Halle Bailey shines as Ariel. The original songs from the animated sounded great with performances from Bailey, Diggs, and McCarthy. Daveed Digg’s Sebastion and Awkwafina’s Scuttle are fantastic as a comedic duo.

It was great to see Prince Eric have more of a backstory and substance than just a typical Disney Prince treatment. The special effects and CGI were rough in parts, and the world-building of the underworld world left much to be desired but the performances and story outweigh those issues. If you loved ‘The Little Mermaid’ growing up, you will have fun with this one.

‘The Little Mermaid’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.

Other Movies Similar to ‘The Little Mermaid:'

'The Little Mermaid' (1989)
'Cinderella' (2015)
'Beauty and the Beast' (2017)
'The Lion King' (2019)
'Aladdin' (2019)
'Mulan' (2020)
‘Cruella' (2021)
'Pinocchio' (2022)

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‘The Little Mermaid’ is produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Lucamar Productions, and Marc Platt Productions. It is set to release in theaters on May 26th, 2023.