So far, I haven’t been a fan of these live-action Disney remakes. While most have been fine, they’re not my cup of tea, and the last one I saw — “Mulan” — was terrible. Very rarely are these films an improvement on the original and none of them need to exist — they’re just a way for Disney to capitalize off of established IP, knowing the live action remakes are going to make them the most money in today’s box office.
“The Little Mermaid” remake expectedly follows a lot of the same beats as the original. Princess Ariel (Halle Bailey) of the underwater merpeople of Atlantica is fascinated by human objects that fall into the sea, so much so that she wants to be a part of their world. Her father, King Triton (Javier Bardem), forbids it, knowing how terrible people can be especially when faced with things they don’t understand. Being a rebellious teenager, Ariel decides to be a part of the human world anyways, especially after she rescues Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King), whom she becomes infatuated with after she sees him rescue a dog.
This leads her to accepting the help of the banished sea witch Ursula (Melissa McCarthy), who agrees to make her human in exchange for her voice. If she doesn’t get true love’s kiss in three days, Ursula will keep her voice and have Ariel’s servitude. Triton dispatches the crab Sebastian (Daveed Diggs) to watch over her and upon her agreement to Ursula’s horrible deal, enlists the help of Ariel’s friends Flounder Jacob Tremblay) and Scuttle (Awkwafina) to encourage Eric and Ariel to fall in love.
Unlike the other live-action Disney remakes, there are several elements that I think are better than the original. Bailey was born to play Ariel and she displays more range in her voice than Jodi Benson, Ariel’s original voice actress. The filmmakers make full use of her voice, notably extending her opening “Part Of Your World” song.
Ariel and Eric also have more chemistry than in the original. The film spends time letting them get to know each other, which highlights common interests and complimentary personalities. The original cartoon had a very low bar for its romance, but in this film, you do get the sense that they really like each other and enjoy each other’s company.
Its emotional climax and themes of overcoming prejudice are also better defined than in the cartoon. I think Bardem’s Triton is also more convincing than in the original. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I was a kid when the cartoon came out and I’m watching this version as an adult, but I sympathizes much more with his character this time around. He wants to protect his daughter and humans have given him every reason not to trust them, but he also wants his daughter to be happy. He also immediately realizes when he’s messed up, especially when he goes on a rampage and destroys Ariel’s trove of human things — the equivalent of a parent destroying their child’s Xbox. He clearly was the disciplinarian in the relationship and suffers from the absence of his wife, who is long dead at the time of the film.
With that being said, there is also a lot of fluff and extraneous elements that hold the film down. Some of its musical numbers don’t work and should have been cut — “The Scuttlebutt” being the prime suspect. The film also reduces Flounder’s role (Ariel’s best friend) and expands Scuttle’s, who is insufferable. Maybe it’s because she keeps getting loud, annoying roles, but I’m not a huge Awkwafina fan, and frankly Scuttle is the Jar Jar Binks of this film — a loud and obnoxious character the studio thought kids would like.
McCarthy partially works as Ursula, but she botches her “Poor Unfortunate Souls” song. She’s not a singer and the studio should have hired one to sing her part for her. Not every actor or actress can take vocal training lessons and unlock their hidden voice; some just don’t have it and that’s OK.
This is an overall very strong remake. Some precise cuts could improve it, but what works in it is better than the original. Rob Marshall provides strong direction and its cast bolsters it above its peers in the subgenre.
“The Little Mermaid” (2023) gets an 8/10
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