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From the moment that Prince Eric's ship emerged from the fog in the opening credits it was apparent that Disney had somehow, suddenly recaptured that "magic" that had been dormant for thirty years. In the tale of a headstrong young mermaid who yearns to "spend a day, warm on the sand," Ariel trades her voice to Ursula, the Sea Witch (classically voiced by Pat Carroll), for a pair of legs. Ariel can only succeed if she receives true love's kiss in a few day's time and she needs all the help she can from a singing crab named Sebastian, a loudmouth seagull, and a flounder. The lyrics and music by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken are top form: witty and relevant, and they advance the story (go on, hum a few bars of "Under the Sea"). Mermaid put animation back on the studio's "to do" list and was responsible for ushering Beauty and the Beast to theaters. A modern Disney classic. --Keith Simanton
 Customer Reviews 
You Can Watch This All Day Long and Never Tire of It!
Rating: 5
I have found that this film has become one of our favorites, and for good reason. It has true love (ah, true love: the best kind!), determination, drama, humor, delightfully amusing scenes (Ariel the Mermaid flirtily combing her hair with a fork at the dining table in the castle, because Scuttles the Seagull [whose voice is superbly played by Buddy Hackett] told her a fork was a "dinglehoffer ... which humans use to straighten their hair with!"), an incredible Oscar wnning score, and a HAPPY ending. The original tale, by Hans Christian Anderson, did not end so happily...Disney was wise to change this. In so doing he made this film "The Little Mermaid" beloved by families all over the world. We may watch it a bit more than most families (we have children with autism --when they have favorites they like to watch them a LOT!!!) but I don't mind a bit. This is top notch cartoon filmmaking and I love this movie as much as my children do! Sebastian the Crab, for example, is charming! The plot is totally great! The extra additions, such as Ashey Tisdale singing a hip version of "Kiss the Girl" are really fun to watch and listen to. This Platinum Edition, very well done, is a GREAT addition to your film collection whether you choose it because it is a cartoon or just because you want a good old plain superterrific movie!
Have some underwater fun and get it today!
all ages
Rating: 5
very colorful and good story line. my favorite characters were sebastian and the seagull
An engaging Disney classic!
Rating: 5
Deep down in the oceans in the wonderous kingdom of Atlantica where the Mer-Folk live, a beautiful Mermaid princess named Ariel always dreams of living on the land with humans for she believes that they are not dangerous as her strict father says they are. One lucky night, she rescues a human prince named Eric from drowning and falls in love with him. With the help of her friends Flunder and lovable Reggae crab Sabastian, they want to help her dreams come true as they seek the sea witch Ursula who makes a deal with her to sell her voice and to make her human, but if she can get the kiss of true love then she will be human forever and if she doesn't within three days then she will become a Mermaid again and will belong to Ursula forever. She does the deal for now she is speechless (literally) and is human, she is taken in by the prince she desires and they both begin a relationship that seems magical, although Ursula is jealous as now she wants vengeance and the kingdom to herself until Ariel must stop her.
One of Disney's most beloved and magical movies of all time! sure after "Black Cauldron" and "Great Mouse Detective" flopped in theaters and "Oliver and Company" being a minor hit in 1988, it wasn't until late 1989 when this motion picture based on Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tale become a major blockbuster for the disney studios and proved to be the ultimate ray of hope. The animation is nothing sort of breathtaking considering it took 4 years to make with some early CGI and excellent voice acting by Jodi Benson (Perfectly gorgeous voice), Pat Carrol as Ursula, Rene Aubejenos as the goofy French chef, Buddy Hackett as the moronic but charming Scuttle, Ben Wright as Grimbsy, and Samuel E. Wright as the show-stopping crab Sabastian. It won two oscars and become a true milestone in disney animation for a long time thanks to the unique songs by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, a must see! Ariel is quite an animated dish and guaranteed to make any man drool.
This 2-Disc special edition DVD offers quality picture and sound with excellent extras like audio commentary, behind the scenes footage, a look behind the special effects, deleted scenes, art and photo galleries, music videos, and more in this must have DVD for any animation fan.
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