The Little Mermaid (1989 film): Difference between revisions
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The film follows the story of a beautiful, headstrong sixteen-year-old [[mermaid]] named [[Princess Ariel|Ariel]], who is dissatisfied with life under the sea. Ignoring the warnings of her father, [[King Triton]], and the court musician, [[Sebastian (The Little Mermaid)|Sebastian]] the crab, Ariel and her best friend, a [[fish]] named [[Flounder (The Little Mermaid)|Flounder]], often sneak up to the surface of the ocean. There, they collect human [[artifact]]s with the help of a goofy [[seagull]] named [[Scuttle]], whose supposed expert knowledge of human culture is far from accurate; he indentifies a fork as a hairstyling device called a "Dinglehopper", and a smoker's pipe as a "Snarfblat", a musical instrument. Ariel knows that contact between the humans and merpeople is forbidden, but she longs to be part of the human world. |
The film follows the story of a beautiful, headstrong sixteen-year-old [[mermaid]] named [[Princess Ariel|Ariel]], who is dissatisfied with life under the sea. Ignoring the warnings of her father, [[King Triton]], and the court musician, [[Sebastian (The Little Mermaid)|Sebastian]] the crab, Ariel and her best friend, a [[fish]] named [[Flounder (The Little Mermaid)|Flounder]], often sneak up to the surface of the ocean. There, they collect human [[artifact]]s with the help of a goofy [[seagull]] named [[Scuttle]], whose supposed expert knowledge of human culture is far from accurate; he indentifies a fork as a hairstyling device called a "Dinglehopper", and a smoker's pipe as a "Snarfblat", a musical instrument. Ariel knows that contact between the humans and merpeople is forbidden, but she longs to be part of the human world. |
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[[Image:Ar-iel.JPG|right|thumb|200px|[[Princess Ariel]]]] |
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Worried about his daughter's behavior, Triton assigns Sebastian to look after her and report on her activities. Sebastian discovers that Ariel has been collecting all of the items she finds from the surface in a secret underwater [[grotto]], but he decides not to tell Triton for Ariel's sake. |
Worried about his daughter's behavior, Triton assigns Sebastian to look after her and report on her activities. Sebastian discovers that Ariel has been collecting all of the items she finds from the surface in a secret underwater [[grotto]], but he decides not to tell Triton for Ariel's sake. |
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Revision as of 10:29, 3 December 2006
| The Little Mermaid | |
|---|---|
| File:Movie poster the little mermaid.jpg The Little Mermaid Original Teaser Poster | |
| Directed by | Ron Clements John Musker |
| Written by | Hans Christian Andersen (fairy tale) Roger Allers (story) Howard Ashman (musical) Ron Clements John Musker |
| Produced by | Howard Ashman John Musker Maureen Donley |
| Starring | Jodi Benson Samuel E. Wright Pat Carroll Christopher Daniel Barnes Kenneth Mars Jason Marin Buddy Hackett |
| Music by | Alan Menken (music) Howard Ashman (lyrics) |
| Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures |
Release dates | November 17, 1989 (original release) November 14, 1997 (re-release) |
Running time | 83 minutes |
| Language | English |
| Budget | N/A |
The Little Mermaid is the twenty-eighth animated feature in the Disney animated features canon. Based upon the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Little Mermaid", the film was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and first released on November 15, 1989 by Walt Disney Pictures and Buena Vista Distribution. [1] Grossing over $111 million in the U.S. and an additional $99 million worldwide, the film is given credit for breathing life back into the animated feature film genre after a string of critical and commercial failures and later, some low successes (The Black Cauldron, The Great Mouse Detective, and Oliver & Company). In addition, The Little Mermaid signaled the start of a decade-long period of successful Disney movies, The Rescuers Down Under (1990) being the only exception.
An upcoming stage adaptation of the film is planned with additional songs by Alan Menken and new lyricist Glenn Slater and is expected to open on Broadway in 2007 or 2008. [2]. The book for the musical has been completed by Doug Wright. [3]
Plot
The film follows the story of a beautiful, headstrong sixteen-year-old mermaid named Ariel, who is dissatisfied with life under the sea. Ignoring the warnings of her father, King Triton, and the court musician, Sebastian the crab, Ariel and her best friend, a fish named Flounder, often sneak up to the surface of the ocean. There, they collect human artifacts with the help of a goofy seagull named Scuttle, whose supposed expert knowledge of human culture is far from accurate; he indentifies a fork as a hairstyling device called a "Dinglehopper", and a smoker's pipe as a "Snarfblat", a musical instrument. Ariel knows that contact between the humans and merpeople is forbidden, but she longs to be part of the human world.
Worried about his daughter's behavior, Triton assigns Sebastian to look after her and report on her activities. Sebastian discovers that Ariel has been collecting all of the items she finds from the surface in a secret underwater grotto, but he decides not to tell Triton for Ariel's sake.
Unknown to anyone, all of this is being observed by Ursula, who for many years has been seeking a way to exact her revenge upon King Triton for banishing her from the kingdom. She sees Ariel as the perfect pawn in her quest to rule the seas.
That evening, Ariel and Flounder (with the concerned Sebastian in tow) travel again to the surface to watch a fireworks celebration for Prince Eric's birthday. Eric is presented with a giant stone statue of himself, commissioned by his guardian Grimsby, who is pressuring Eric to get married so he can become king. The birthday celebration is cut short when a violent storm destroys the ship. Eric is lost at sea and almost drowns before he is saved by Ariel, who falls in love with the handsome young prince. Ariel drags him through the ocean and onto a shoreline. In the ocean, Eric loses his boots. She disappears just as he is awakening, but Eric is enthralled by the memory of her beautiful singing voice. Sebastian, fearful of the consequences for both Ariel and himself, decides to conceal these events from the King as well, including the fact that Ariel has fallen in love with Eric.
Ariel's dazed behavior the next morning causes her father to become suspicious, and Triton attempts to extract from Sebastian the name of the man she is in love with; paranoid that Triton already knows the truth, Sebastian reveals Ariel's secrets in a panic. When King Triton learns that his daughter is in love with a human, he becomes furious and destroys Ariel's grotto, including the stone statue from Eric's birthday party, which Flounder had arranged to be placed there.
Ursula decides that now is the time to make her move, and she assigns her pet eels Flotsam and Jetsam to bring Ariel to her underwater cave. There, Ursula makes a deal with the princess to transform Ariel into a human for three days. Within these three days, if she plans to remain a human, she must get from Eric the "kiss of true love"; otherwise she will transform back into a mermaid at sunset on the third day. If this happens, Ursula will own her very soul and wither her down into a polyp, to join her garden of other lost merfolk. Sebastian tries to stop her, aware of the sea witch's trickery, but Ariel is bitter and blames him for telling her father about her love for Eric.
As agreed, Ursula makes a potion to change the little mermaid. As "payment", she takes Ariel's voice and makes her unable to speak, knowing that Eric remembers Ariel only by her voice. Ursula's spell begins to take place. A magic bubble captures Ariel, and she writhes in pain as her tail is split into two legs. Sebastian and Flounder drag the drowning and helpless Ariel to the surface. She breaks into the sky and gasps for air. Her friends then take toward the beach. She learns to stand shakily. In a matter of minutes, Eric comes along and sees her. His initial hopes that this familiar-looking girl is the one he is looking for are dashed when he learns that she can't speak--he is seeking the one with the beautiful voice. He has no idea who Ariel is and what she has done for him, and she is unable to tell him.
While Ariel is enjoying life with Eric in the human palace, Sebastian, Flounder and Scuttle try to get Ariel and Eric to kiss and break the spell. Ursula, however, is trying to prevent them from doing so. Taking the guise of a beautiful young woman named Vanessa, Ursula appears onshore, singing in Ariel's voice, which is housed in a magic nautilus shell around "Vanessa's" neck. She casts a spell of enchantment on Eric, who plans to marry her immediately, much to Ariel's dismay.
The ceremony is set to take place at sunset, which is when Ariel's deal with Ursula ends. Unknowingly to "Vanessa", Scuttle spots her while staring in one of the boat's portholes and sees the reflection of Ursula in the mirror. He rushes towards Ariel and explains the situation. Sebastian rushes to inform Triton, while Scuttle, Flounder and Eric's sheepdog Max stall the wedding by causing all sea and air animals to distract the wedding party. Scuttle and his fellow seabirds pull at "Vanessa's" hair and nautilus necklace. After a flock of seagulls fly between her causing her to stumble, Max bites her bottom and she becomes susceptible to revealing her true identity. When "Vanessa" is distracted, the nautilus shell around her neck is broken, and Ariel's voice is restored. Realizing that Ariel was the girl who saved his life, Eric rushes to kiss her, but he is too late; the sun sets and Ariel transforms back into a mermaid. "Vanessa" transforms back into Ursula and she grabs Ariel as she disappears into the sea.
Triton catches up with Ursula and attempts to destroy the deal she made with Ariel, but is unable to do so. Before Triton's eyes, Ursula's contract swirls around Ariel and she begins to wither into a polyp. While she is transforming, Ursula offers Triton a deal: she will accept his soul in the place of Ariel's. Triton sacrifices himself for his daughter and is transformed into a helpless polyp.
Ursula takes Triton's crown and trident and declares herself ruler of the sea. Enraged, Ariel attacks Ursula; the Sea Witch throws her aside, and Ariel's rage turns to pleading fear as Ursula levels the glowing trident at her. Eric suddenly arrives, though, and throws a harpoon at Ursula; it misses, but it distracts Ursula long enough for Ariel to get free. After Flotsam and Jetsam are unable to drown Eric thanks to Flounder and Sebastian, Ursula decides to remove Eric herself, aiming the trident for a destructive blast. Ariel rushes to stop her, and causes Ursula to destroy her pet eels. An enraged Ursula transforms into a giant. Ariel and Eric can only cling to one another in fear as Ursula summons a storm. The two are ripped from one another, and Ursula forms a massive whirlpool that drags wrecked ships from the bottom of the sea. Ariel clings to a rock to avoid them, and watches in dismay as one crashes down on Eric. Her own problems increase, though, as Ursula spots her and blasts her off of the rock, sending the little mermaid into the bottom of the whirlpool. Ursula fires blast after blast at her, but Ariel narrowly dodges each one. Ursula then laughs and raises the trident for a final blow, and Ariel gapes in horror. But neither one is aware of Eric--the prince has taken control of one of the shipwrecks, and he rams the ship's splintered bowsprit through Ursula's heart just before she can destroy the princess. The Sea Witch proceeds to die in a spectacular and explosive display.
With Ursula gone, the polyps in Ursula's garden, including Triton, are all changed back into merpeople. Noticing how sad his daughter is and how much she truly loves Eric, Triton decides to give Ariel what she wants. Ariel watches in astonished delight as she is changed permanently into a human, and walks gracefully to shore before her proud father's eyes. She runs into Eric's arms, and the two finally kiss.
In the next scene, she and Eric are seen kissing again, this time at the true wedding. Both humans and merpeople turn out for the wedding, and Triton accepts Eric as a part of the family. Eric and Ariel sail away into the sunset to live happily ever after.
Significance
The Little Mermaid is an important film in animation history for many reasons:
- It marks a return to the musical format that made Disney films popular from the 1930s to the 1970s, after a test run with Oliver and Company the year before. It features seven original songs by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman, who also served as the film's producer.
- It had the most special effects for a Disney animated feature since Fantasia was released forty-nine years earlier. Effects animation supervisor Mark Dindal estimated that over a million bubbles were drawn for this film, in addition to the use of other processes such as airbrushing, backlighting, superimposition, and some flat-shaded computer animation.
- The Little Mermaid was a box office success and grossed over $200,000,000 worldwide.
- This film marked the first use of CAPS (Computer Animation Production System) in a Disney feature, seen in the movie's final scene. CAPS is a digital ink-and-paint and animation production system that colors the animators' drawings digitally, as opposed to the traditional animation method of tracing ink and paint onto cels (see Traditional animation). All subsequent 2D animated Disney features have used CAPS instead of ink-and-paint, with Home on the Range as the last one.
- This film signaled a renaissance in Disney animation; the films were popular and financial successes, causing Disney's feature animation department to begin significant expansion, from about 300 artists in 1988 to 2,400 by 1999. In fact, The Little Mermaid was Disney's first significant animated success since The Rescuers in 1977.
- The Little Mermaid won the 1990 Academy Award for Original Music Score. "Kiss the Girl" and "Under the Sea" were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song; the Oscar went to "Under the Sea".
- The sixteen-year old Ariel has the dubious honor of being the first Disney 'Princess' designed and animated in a way that shows off the lines of her cleavage.
- The soundtrack, riding high on the heels of the film's popularity and the Academy, Golden Globes and Grammy Awards, went triple platinum, an unheard-of feat for an animated movie at the time.
Production
In 1985, "The Great Mouse Detective" co-director Ron Clements discovered a collection of Hans C. Anderson's fairy tales while browsing a bookstore. He presented a two-page draft of a movie based on "The Little Mermaid" to CEO Michael Eisner, who passed it over, because at that time the studio was in development on a sequel to Splash. But the next day, Walt Disney Pictures boss Jeffrey Katzenberg, green-lighted the idea for possible development, along with "Oliver & Company".
That year, Clements and "Great Mouse Detective" co-director John Musker expanded the two-page idea into a 20-page rough script, eliminating the role of the mermaid's grandmother and expanding the roles of the Merman King and the sea witch. However, the film's plans were momentarily shelved as Disney focused its attention on "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" and "Oliver & Company" as more immediate releases.
In 1987, songwriter Howard Ashman became involved with Mermaid after he was asked to contribute to "Oliver & Company". He proposed changing the minor character Clarence, the English-butler crab, to a Jamaican Rastafarian crab and shifting the music style throughout the film to reflect this. At the same time, Katzenberg, Clements, Musker, and Ashman changed the story format to make Mermaid like an animated Broadway musical. Ashman and Alan Menken (composer) teamed up to compose the entire songtrack. In 1988, with "Oliver" out of the way, Mermaid was slated as the next major Disney release.
More money and resources were dedicated to Mermaid than any other Disney animated film in decades.[citation needed] The artistic manpower needed for Mermaid required Disney to farm out most of the bubble-drawing in the film to Pacific Rim Productions, a China-based firm with production facilities in Beijing.
Principal artists worked on the animation - Glen Keane and Mark Henn on Ariel, Duncan Marjoribanks on Sebastian, Andreas Deja on King Triton and Ruben Aquino on Ursula. Originally, Keane had been asked to work on Ursula, as he had established a reputation for drawing large, powerful figures (the bear in The Fox and the Hound, Professor Ratigan in The Great Mouse Detective.) Keane, however, was assigned as one of the two lead artists on the petite, charming Ariel and oversaw the "Part of Your World" musical number.
Another first for recent years was that live actors and actresses were filmed for reference material for the animators. Broadway actress Jodi Benson was chosen to play Ariel, and Sherri Lynn Stoner, a former member of Los Angeles' Groundlings improv comedy group, acted out Ariel's key scenes. Not all of Disney's animators approved of the use of live-action reference; one artist quit the project over the issue. An attempt to use Disney's famed multiplane camera for the first time in years for quality "depth" shots failed because the machine was reputedly in dilapidated condition.
Aside from its main animation facility in Glendale, California, Disney opened a satellite feature animation facility during the production of Mermaid near Orlando, Florida, within the still-unfinished Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park at Walt Disney World. Though the park opened to the public a year later, work at the animation studio began in May 1988, and the Disney-MGM facility's first projects were to produce an entire "Roger Rabbit" cartoon short, and contribute ink and paint support to Mermaid.
The Little Mermaid is the last Disney feature film to use the traditional hand-painted cel method of animation. Disney's next film, "The Rescuers Down Under", used a digital method of coloring and combining scanned drawings -- CAPS (Computer Animation Production System), which eliminated the need for cels. A CAPS prototype was used experimentally on a few scenes in Mermaid, including the final wedding scene. Other CGI includes some of the wrecked ships in the final battle, a staircase behind a shot of Ariel in Eric's castle, and the carriage Eric and Ariel are riding in when she bounces it over a ravine. (Notice that the wheels aren't moving when it comes down for a landing.)
In November 15, 1989, The Little Mermaid began critics' screenings in Los Angeles and New York City. In November 17, 1989, the world premiere of The Little Mermaid took place near Orlando, Florida on all ten AMC Pleasure Island screens at Walt Disney World's newly-built Pleasure Island nightclub.
Box office
According to TheNumbers.com
1989 original run
| Release Week | Gross | Rank | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $6,031,914 | 3 | $6,065,716 |
| 2 | $8,384,862 | 3 | $16,832,844 |
| 3 | $4,030,274 | 5 | $22,109,571 |
| 4 | $2,764,119 | 7 | $25,748,251 |
| 5 | $2,522,362 | 4 | $28,941,871 |
| 6 | $3,319,664 | 6 | $34,089,416 |
| 7 | $9,235,512 | 3 | $49,401,857 |
| 8 | $4,585,047 | 5 | $56,126,383 |
| 9 | $3,851,208 | 6 | $60,855,174 |
| 10 | $2,823,840 | 8 | $65,247,711 |
| 11 | $2,174,414 | 9 | $68,066,110 |
| 12 | $1,774,352 | 9 | $74,262,415 |
1997 re-release run
| Release Week | Gross | Rank | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $9,814,520 | 3 | $9,814,520 |
| 2 | $5,687,421 | 5 | $17,950,386 |
| 3 | $3,990,314 | 8 | $23,947,879 |
Awards
- Two Wins
- Best Original Score
- Best Original Song - "Under the Sea"
- One Nomination
- Best Original Song - "Kiss the Girl"
- Two Wins
- Best Original Score - Motion Picture
- Best Original Song - Motion Picture - "Under the Sea"
- Two Nominations
- Best Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical
- Best Original Song - Motion Picture
- One Win
- Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television - "Under the Sea"
- Two Nominations
- Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television
- Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television
Other Awards
- BMI Film & TV Awards
- One Win: BMI Film Music Award
- Los Angeles Film Critics Association
- One Win: Best Animation
- Golden Screen Awards
- One Win: Golden Screen Award
- Golden Reel Awards
- One Win: Best Sound Editing - Animated Feature
- Young Artist Award
- One Win: Best Family Motion Picture - Adventure or Cartoon
TV series and sequels
- The animated series version of this movie titled The Little Mermaid premiered in late 1992.
- A direct-to-video sequel called The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea was released on September 19, 2000.
- A second direct-to-video sequel called The Little Mermaid III is in development for a 2007 release. It was originally scheduled for 2008, but when John Lasseter took over Disney Animation, more resources were spent on completing the sequel for a quicker release. In July 2006 Disney announced that work was wrapping up on Cinderella III and continuing on Mermaid III. A trailer and a musical number from The Little Mermaid III is attached to the DVD re-release for the original film.
Theatrical release history
- November 15, 1989 (original release)
- November 14, 1997 (re-release)
Home video release history
- 1990 (VHS - Walt Disney Classics Edition) - The film's home video debut was in May 1990 after a highly successful run at the box-office. Consumers made this the year's top-selling title on home video, with over 10 million units sold (including 7 million in its first month). It was one of the highest-selling home video titles ever at the time.
- 1998 (VHS - Fully Restored Special Edition) - The growing popularity of Disney films that peaked with The Lion King in 1994 ignited much interest in "The Little Mermaid" from new Disney fans and from a new generation of kids. By the time the movie was re-released on VHS in March 1998, millions of people were eager to set their hands on a copy. The VHS sold 13 million units and ranked as the 3rd best-selling title of the year on the VHS chart.
- 1999 (DVD - Limited Issue) - The film was included in the Limited Issue line and was released as a "barebones" DVD set with a poor video transfer and no substantial features.
- 2006 (DVD - Platinum Edition) - The film was re-released on DVD on October 3, 2006, as part of Buena Vista Home Entertainment's Platinum Edition line of classic Walt Disney animated features. Deleted scenes, new musical sequences and several in-depth documentaries were included. [4] On its opening day the DVD sold 1.6 million units,[5] and in its first week, over 4 million units, making it the biggest animated DVD debut for October. It ranked second on the DVD sales chart and enjoyed the best first week sales of all the Platinum titles.[6]
Voice cast
Re-release soundtrack
A new soundtrack of the film was released with the special-edition DVD on October 3, 2006.[7]
Disc one (original soundtrack)
- Fathoms Below
- Main Titles
- Fanfare
- Daughters of Triton
- Part of Your World
- Part of Your World (Reprise)
- Under the Sea
- Poor Unfortunate Souls
- Les Poissons
- Kiss The Girl
- Fireworks
- Jig
- The Storm
- Destruction of the Grotto
- Flotsam and Jetsam
- Tour of the Kingdom
- Bedtime
- Wedding Announcement
- Eric to the Rescue
- Happy Ending
- Part of Your World (Single)
Disc two (bonus video and audio content)
- "Kiss the Girl" - performed by Ashley Tisdale
- "Poor Unfortunate Souls" - performed by Jonas Brothers
- "Part of Your World" - performed by Jessica Simpson
- "Under the Sea" - performed by Raven-Symoné
- MUSIC VIDEO – "Poor Unfortunate Souls" - performed by Jonas Brothers
- “MAKING OF” MUSIC VIDEO – "Kiss the Girl" - performed by Ashley Tisdale
Broadway
A Broadway stage version is in the works, with Alan Menken working on the music and Doug Wright working on the book. A demo album was produced featuring Kerry Butler as Ariel and Emily Skinner as Ursula. There is dispute whether Cheyenne Jackson (of All Shook Up) or Gavin Creel (of Thoroughly Modern Millie) was the voice of Prince Eric on the demo. Since the demo was made, various people were rumored to be tied to the project such as Celia Keenan-Bolger. The tracklist of the demo album is as follows:
- "Fathoms Below" performed by Eric and the Crew
- "Daughters of Triton" performed by Ariel's sisters
- "Human Stuff" performed by Scuttle and the seagulls
- "Wasting Away" performed by Ursula
- "Part of Your World" performed by Ariel
- "Part of Your World (reprise)" performed by Ariel
- "Under the Sea" performed by Sebastian
- "That World Above" performed by King Triton
- "Sweet Child" performed by Flotsam and Jetsam
- "Her Voice" performed by Eric
- "Poor Unfortunate Souls" performed by Ursula
- "Posituvity" performed by Scuttle and the seagulls
- "Beyond My Wildest Dreams" performed by Ariel
- "Les Poissons" performed by Chef Louie
- "If Only" performed by Ariel and Eric
- "If Only (reprise)" performed by Sebastian
- "Poor Unfortunate Souls (reprise)" performed by Ursula
- "Kiss the Girl" performed by Sebastian
- "All Good Things Must End" performed by Ursula
- "Finale"
Trivia
- In the scene where Ariel is turned human and is swimming up to the surface her buttocks can be scen plainly for about one second.
- As revealed on the DVD, Howard Ashman re-wrote three scenes.
- The film was originally planned as one of Disney's earliest films. Production started soon after Snow White, but was put on hold due to several circumstances probably from World War II.
- The idea for the movie was one of Walt Disney's favorites. In the 1980s, the Disney company did not know that Walt had intended to make a Little Mermaid film. The Disney Company thought of the idea independently. While in production in the 1980s, someone found Walt's Mermaid script by chance. Many of his changes to Hans Christian Anderson's original story were coincidentally the same as the changes made by Disney writers in the 1980s. (source: DVD making of)
- Glen Keane, the supervising animator for Ariel, jokingly stated on the Pocahontas: 10th Anniversary Edition DVD that Ariel looks exactly like his wife "without the fins." The character's body shape and personality were based upon that of Alyssa Milano, then starring on TV's Who's the Boss? and the effect of her hair underwater was based on footage of Sally Ride, when she was in space.
- In Kingdom Hearts II, Atlantica features a series of games that feature new songs such as "Swim This Way," "Ursula's Revenge," and "A New Day is Dawning." It also uses songs from the movie such as "Part Of Your World" and "Under the Sea" with vocals by Sora, Donald, and Goofy. It more closely follows the plot of the movie than the first game.
- In Ursula's spell to turn Ariel human, she uses types of caviar in her incantation. (E.g., Beluga, Sevruga...)
- When Scuttle is providing "vocal romantic stimulation" while Eric and Ariel are out at the lagoon, he is actually squawking his own version of Tchaikovsky's "Romeo and Juliet".
- A number of backgrounds used during the Kiss the Girl song scene were recycled from Disney's earlier film, The Rescuers.
- The dress Carlotta the servant wears is a larger version of the one used by Cinderella in Cinderella.
- The Little Mermaid ranks as #51 of the 100 Greatest Cartoons.
- Near the start of the film when King Triton is seen riding a dolphin-pulled chariot over a audience of mermaids and mermen, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy can be seen in the audience standing together. Also a figure that looks like Kermit the Frog can be seen.
- Divine, the drag performer known for his role in Hairspray, was in part the inspiration for the design of Ursula the Sea Witch.
- In the contract Ursula has Ariel sign, there is a crude drawing of Mickey Mouse's head amongst a jumble of letters.
- During Scuttle's disruption of the wedding between Eric and Vanessa, The Grand Duke and King from "Cinderella" can be seen standing together in the background.
- This version of The Little Mermaid is a mixed retelling of Doctor Faustus and Faust and the original tale, with Ariel representing Faust and Ursula representing the Devil.
- In the scene after Ursula is destroyed, Ariel's pose as she looks longingly at Eric bears no little resemblance to the famous statue of Anderson's little Mermaid in Copenhagen (sculpted by Edward Eriksen)
- When Grim first meets Vanessa, her hair is brown. But when Vanessa is in her room getting ready, her hair is black. Then at the wedding scene her hair is brown yet again.
- There was an urban legend surrounding an early version of the VHS cover that a spire resembling a penis was drawn by a disgruntled artist and caused some controversy in the media. [8] While this proved to be unintentional, the offending spire was removed in later versions. Another urban legend claims that the minister who was processing the wedding between Eric and Vanessa was sexually aroused, but was proven to be false as well. [9]
See also
- The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea
- The Little Mermaid III
- Other Disney animated features canon
External links
- The Little Mermaid - Official The Little Mermaid Platinum Edition DVD site
- The Little Mermaid Special Edition - Product page on DisneyVideo.com
- The Little Mermaid at IMDb
- Daring to Dream - A fansite dedicated to the movie, plus its sequel and spin-off tv series
- 'UltimateDisney.com: Limited Issue DVD Review with Pictures'
- The Big Cartoon DataBase entry for The Little Mermaid
- 'UltimateDisney.com: Platinum Edition DVD Review with Pictures'