The Little Mermaid – An Average Adaptation

The plethora of animated films from Disney have held a special place in the hearts of audiences both young and old over decades. In the age of reboots and remakes, they have now turned to their classic animated IPs as of late to create live action adaptations, hoping to convert nostalgia for those films into box office revenue. Individual film quality aside, this strategy has been a resounding success for the most part. That being said, many have lacked the kind of energy and life that made their source material originally so successful. Offering what essentially amounts to an updated greatest hits of sorts, these adaptations hit enough of the right spots but its arguably safe approach fails to make them stand out. The next target for a live action adaptation is The Little Mermaid, based on the 1989 animated film of the same name. When it comes to this adaptation, much of the narrative remains while technical advancements help bring the world under the sea to life in impressive fashion and its songs are given a cool modern update. However, the film plays it too safe. Though it will definitely have some appeal with audiences, it lacks the energy to be anything more than an average adaptation.

For those unfamiliar with The Little Mermaid, the story follows a young mermaid named Ariel (Bailey) with a fascination beyond her home under the sea. The youngest of King Triton’s (Javier Bardem) daughters, she was headstrong and her thirst for adventure often got her in trouble. As far as Triton and his daughters were concern, the surface world was forbidden, stemming from a long time hate for humans. That being said, it did not stop Ariel from thinking about humans and what it was like above the surface despite her overprotective father’s wishes. Something had to give as her latest adventure led Ariel to the surface where she encountered the dashing Prince Eric (Hauer-King) for whom she saved following a shipwreck. Falling for him, she vowed to get back to him but to do so, she needed legs instead of her tail and become human. In order to become human and experience human life, the naïve Ariel would need to make a deal with the Sea Witch Ursula (McCarthy). Little did she know, this chance came with a price.

Living under strikingly similar circumstances, Eric had the same penchant for adventure as he looked to the world beyond his island kingdom as a means to move forward and survive as his mother (Noma Dumezweni) sought to reign him in as a means to protect him from himself. Vowing to find the woman who saved him, something clearly had to give as he and Ariel found themselves together once again even though he may have not been aware of it at least at first. However, she was without her voice. Experiencing being a human in the human world for the first time made for plenty of wholesome moments as her faithful companions Flounder (Jacob Tremblay), Sebastian (Daveed Diggs), and Scuttle (Awkwafina) were there with her, assisting her every step of the way. To solidify her status as a human, all Ariel had to go was kiss Eric but that proved to not be as straightforward as it seemed. At the root of her adventure in the human world, there were ulterior motives at play as the fate of the kingdom under the sea laid in the balance. While seeing both worlds come together was inevitable as the final outcome, the climax was somewhat exciting as the story outside of Ariel and Eric was thin at best.

Sticking with the tried and true, the songs that made The Little Mermaid all come back here and are given a modern spin. The singing ability of the cast is more than up to the task, especially Bailey who is an already established singer. “Part of Your World” and “Under the Sea” are highlights and then, there’s the misfire that was “The Scuttlebutt.” As mentioned, the film excels on a technical level in bringing the vibrant world under the sea to life through decent CGI. Though the dimly lit trailers were cause for concern, the actual film is much better lit. The sea world wasn’t utilized in as powerful of a way that tapped into one’s sense of wonder. Meanwhile, the transition between both worlds wasn’t always necessarily seamless. It also seems that Disney learned a lesson after the lifeless CGI characters from its 2019 live action adaptation of The Lion King by giving Flounder, Sebastian, and Scuttle some sense of life but they still have to learn how to give them more emotion.

In the end, the performances are the best part of The Little Mermaid by elevating it above its issues. Bailey is such a star that she commands the screen as Ariel in spite of the pedestrian material. She has the right youthful energy needed to connect with the character’s journey over the course of the film. It’s just a shame that the film around her wasn’t quite at her level. Hauer-King was fine as Eric but perhaps lacked the emotional depth to fully sell the character. Ultimately, their strong chemistry prevailed as they were better together than individually. Tremblay, Diggs, and Awkwafina brought the emotion to Flounder, Sebastian, and Scuttle that the CGI couldn’t. Diggs and Awkwafina were scene stealers for different reasons with Diggs’ energy and voice bringing energy to Sebastian while his rendition of “Under the Sea” was easily a highlight. However, Awkwafina was miscast as Scuttle as the comic relief character is more annoying than funny. McCarthy thankfully camps it up as Ursula and entertains in her limited screen time.

Overall, The Little Mermaid will mean different things for different audiences. The nostalgia factor will bring them to the theatre and keep most entertained with its songs and performances but at the end of the day, it’s just another average live action adaptation.

still courtesy of Disney

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.