OK. My thoughts on The Little Mermaid.
First, Ariel she didn't sell her voice to get a man she barely knew. She always wanted to be human and she just happened to find a human being that was really, really, really good looking. She never saw humans up close and personal before. It just so happens that the human happens to be a prince. Regardless, I think some people would be upset over whatever man she saved even if he were a fat dumpy guy. But, no. She saved a prince. And what some people don't think is that fairy tale princes are (mostly) gentlemen who wouldn't dream of any improper behavior or hold prejudices. Hell, in comparison to the original story's prince, Prince Eric is a freaking saint. The prince in the original story dresses up the humanized mermaid in a page boy's outfit and has her dance a lot even though the smallest of steps makes her feel like she's walking on knives and causes her feet to bleed.
Prejudice. That's the one of the messages of the story, isn't it? Merpeople are forbidden contact with the human world and I've always felt it wasn't some recent development. This has been institutionalized isolationism and xenophobia that's been going on for God knows how long. This have been passed on from monarch to monarch. Triton is basically Namor the Sub-Mariner only he wants to prevent contact with the surface world while the Marvel anti-hero usually invades it from time to time.
But Ariel's different. Ariel loves the human world. As her song says (which should have been nominated for a Best Song Oscar, Mr. Katzenberg), "I want to be where the people are. I want to see. Want to see them dancin'. Strolling around on those...what do you call them? Oh! Feet. Up where they walk, up where they run, up where they stay all day in the sun, wandering free. Wish I could be Part of That World". In other words, Ariel doesn't want to be a mermaid. In fact, she hates it. She likes human things. She wants to do human things. She wants to live and die a human. Is it any wonder this movie resonates so much with the LGBTQ community. I've felt this way. I liked girly things and princesses and Disney films. I wanted to stay a guy but can't even straight guys like princesses and not feel ashamed of it? Or Disney? I didn't want to play sports. I hated sports, even (except for the uniforms). I didn't like boy stuff like playing war or wrestling or getting dirty. I liked my world of fairy tales and femininity. (Also of cartoons and Mama's Family, but I don't want to get too off topic),
(Also, how has no one mentioned how crazy freaking strong Ariel is? All that living under the sea must have given her near super strength. I mean, she pushes back a boulder that serves as the door to her grotto with ease and is able to drag an drowning man who must be 170 lbs maximum back up to the surface with one arm and to dry land without getting tired. Forget Eric's kingdom! Ariel should be part of the Goddamn Avengers. So should Donald Duck, but I digress.
Now, "Under the Sea" is a good song and everything, but "Part of Your World" is the best song. I'm conflicted over if it's the best Disney song or if "Feed the Birds" is. As for this movie, "Poor Unfortunate Souls" "Part of Your World reprise" and "Kiss the Girl" are above "Under the Sea", at least for me (hey, that rhymed).
And Ursula is delicious as a villain. She just oozes evil, she is pure camp, and she is absolutely evil and I love it. That they patterned Ursula after Divine in Pink Flamingos is a stroke of genius. Guess that makes Flotsam and Jetsam Crackers and Cotton. Also, Ursula wouldn't be Ursula is she weren't voiced by Pat Carroll. Had they gone with Elaine Stritch, it just wouldn't have fit. I mean, imagine Elaine Stritch's voice coming out of Ursula when she turns into Cthulhu at the end.
Speaking of the end, I love how they brought back the ship Ariel was searching at the beginning to be the one that Eric uses to kill Ursula.
Also, can we give it up for Prince Eric. Prince Eric is the man, was the man, will always be the man. Not only does he make sure everyone is safely off the ship when it catches fire, he goes back to save his dog. It put his own life at risk to save Max. Then there's the whole climax. "Grimm, I lost her once. I'm not going to lose her again." Oh, my God, I got chills just writing that. And when he dives in the water and is able to hit Ursula in the arm with a freaking harpoon? Eric is more than a prince, he's a freaking king! And then he gets on the wrecked ship, steers it along a whirlpool, and rams it into Ursula's big gut! Eric needs to be on the Avengers, too! He can't keep a pair of boots on his feet to save his life and apparently doesn't believe in socks, but who the hell cares?
And Triton's last lines in the film: "How much I'm going to miss her." choke me up every. Time. That and "I love you, daddy". Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. The original story is dark and sad and she turns into sea foam because there can be no happiness on the internet (though people conveniently leave out the part where the mermaid becomes a "daughter of the air"), but the animated movie's ending is beautifully bittersweet, too. Ariel gets to be a human but she'll never see her family again. Also, she's going to need to learn all the proper terms of the items she had in her grotto and what they're used for. Oh, that's another thing. Ariel got all the crap into her grotto using her super strength. Why is she hated on again?
I'm already hating the remake. Not because Ariel is going to be played by a black girl, but because they're going to give Triton a backstory on why he hates humans so much, I'm certain of it. A tragic backstory no doubt involving the death of his wife and Ariel's mother. Systematic prejudice doesn't need a reason. It just is. Also, they're probably going to make Triton and Ursula siblings and how he wanted to maintain a patriarchy and framed her for witchcraft and she went on the run or some crap. And Ursula will be played by Melissa McCarthy if rumors are correct. I love you Disney, but sometimes I want to bust Mickey in the freaking nose.
Next time, I'll be getting to Alice in Wonderland. What I like, what I don't like, and my thoughts on Tim Burton's trashing of it.
Well, I feel like I wasted my time besides Queen Latifah and John Stamos. Tomorrow, I watch the movie in the comfort of my room and make my thoughts known on a different forum here.
