The Princess and the Frog (2009)

Those who know me know that I love Disney, I always have, and when it comes to Disney movies, I love the hand-drawn feature-film animation style that made Disney what it was - I love Disney so much that when we found out we were expecting a child it was my mission to hand paint a Disney-themed mural in the babies room (and now that we are thinking of moving I am in the difficult situation of parting with my little project - Don't fret, I'll be okay I, promise).

Sadly Disney has all but abandoned this art-form in favor of the computer generated animation which we are now accustomed to, so I was thrilled that for the first time since 2004 Disney would commission another piece of hand drawn animation art and revisit the Disney Renaissance era with this little movie.

Disgusted that it has taken me so long to watch this movie, especially because I have such strong opinions and a love for this type of movie, but happy that today I got to have a respite from the Barney and Teletubbies invasion I have been a victim of for all too long.

So what do I think of Disney's little project?

I have mixed feelings in this regard, while I am truly appreciative of the effort made, and cannot fault the art flowing on screen (except for some noticeable unintentional stylistic shifts which occurred mid-telling). Where am I struggling you may ask?

The story telling was very choppy, and actually, particularly at the beginning, difficult to follow, and it shouldn't be should it? I had to rewind.

I felt that apart from the main character Tiana in the piece, all other characters needed to be fleshed out a bit more, at times it all felt a bit rushed, like the animators were on a deadline and trying to hard to have a genie. But respect to Disney for finally having an African character of which they can be proud (a character of colour I mean), it is about time that little black girls had a princess of their own!

New Orleans is one of my must visit destinations, I love the idea of the city, I feel that the attempt to pay tribute to the soul of the city made the film feel a bit too cluttered - the city never fully becoming the character it absolutely could have been.

The main villain needed further development, he really could have been made the villain of all villains, the voodoo inspiration available to be played with not fully exploited (loved The Shadow Mans shadow though). This villain should have been the genie of The Princess and the Frog, really really, will say it again, could have been one of the greatest characters

The music while totally appropriate for the setting was not Disney magic as I would have liked it to be...

I can't quite put my finger on all I didn't like, against what I actually enjoyed - and I actually don't want to focus on the negative, this is an Academy Award nominated Disney movie and a worthy addition to the cannon... Happy I finally watched it.

nuff said...