I couldn’t contain my excitement while bounding into the theater. I also couldn’t care less that it was seen as childish to be this excited about a Disney movie at 15. I had been eagerly anticipating the release of the live-action remake of The Little Mermaid for months for one main reason.
Halle Bailey, a famed singer due to her growing success as one of the sisters in the vocalist duo Chloe x Halle, was making her movie debut as Ariel. While I was enthused and confident she would do well in the role, many others weren’t, simply because she is an African American taking on a character that had been predominantly pictured as a white-skinned girl with red hair for decades.
Nevertheless, unaffected by the opinions of the outside world, I sat and watched in awe as the film unfolded. The movie mainly followed the original story of The Little Mermaid (1989), with Ariel (Halle Bailey) longing to learn more about the mysterious humans on land. In spite of Ariel’s dreams, King Triton (Javier Bardem) the king of the seas —as well as Ariel’s father— forbade her from exploring the surface, as he claimed humans were a danger to all mermaids. Unmoved by her father’s demands, Ariel ventured to the surface and promptly fell in love with Eric (Jonah Hauer-King), a dashing prince also longing for adventure.
Struck by her father’s malevolence toward humans, Ariel made a deal with the sea witch Ursula (Melissa McCarthy) to become a human for three days and hopefully make relations with Eric, but there was one catch: she would not have her bewitching siren voice. Despite this, Ariel agrees and progresses to her mere three days on land.
I expected the picture to stay completely true to the original, but I was delighted when Eric was given his own song, “Wild Uncharted Waters.” The song depicts Eric vying for Ariel, trying to find her to the best of his ability. He proclaims at the end of the song, “If it takes my life / I will finally find you again / in uncharted waters / come find me again.” I believe this song was a wondrous addition to the film and enhanced the character of Eric.
Additionally, there was also the fact of casting. As mentioned earlier, there was quite a bit of controversy around Bailey being cast as Ariel, but she was truly perfect for the role. When she sang, I was captivated by her true talent, as well as her acting performance overall. She flawlessly exhibited the curiosity and kindness of Ariel and also kept audiences beguiled with her undeniable energy with Hauer-King throughout the film.
Another change I adored from the original was the addition of a Hans Christian Andersen (the original writer of the Little Mermaid story) quote in the beginning scene of the film. As the ocean washes over the rocks in the opening scene, a quote appears, saying, “But a mermaid has no tears, and therefore she suffers so much more.” This quote symbolizes that when a mermaid cries, her tears are invisible, washed away by the sea as if they were never there. She isn’t allowed to feel sadness. But at the conclusion of the movie, Ariel releases one single tear down her cheek, showing that she is finally free to be herself.
I daresay that this remake was better than the original film. With new songs, additions to the cast list, and amazing images, The Little Mermaid was a charming rendition of the beloved authentic story by Hans Christian Andersen.
I was and continue to be an avid lover of this film, and will rewatch it whenever I get the chance to relive the joy it brought me that one day in the theater.
