NOTE: The Princess and the Frog is released in London’s West End on January 29th and will expand nationwide on February 5th
Is this the end of traditionally animated Disney movies? Hopefully not, but with The Princess and the Frog getting good reviews in the US but so far only making $99 million at the box office (despite costing around $105 million to make), it hasn’t been the resounding success many were hoping for. However as the film reaches the UK, maybe we can do our bit to make the film a bigger success.
Although not quite a return to the glory days of The Lion King and Aladdin, The Princess and the Frog is far closer to those movies than some of Disney’s later hand-drawn efforts, like Home On The Range. A new take on the classic tale of The Frog Princess, the film is set in a beautifully animated version of Jazz-age New Orleans. The prologue introduces us to young Tiana, the daughter of a seamstress and a man with dreams of owning a restaurant. As an adult, she’s holding onto her father’s dream and working two jobs in order to save up money.
News comes that Prince Naveen is coming to town for Mardi Gras, but while some are hoping to woo him and become a princess, Tiana is just happy to be earning cash by catering at an event Naveen will attend. However after learning that she unless she comes up with more cash she won’t be able to buy her restaurant, she meets a talking frog and strikes a deal. She will kiss the frog, who is actually Prince Naveen after he’s been cursed by the evil Faciler, if he gives her the money she needs. However rather than the kiss turning the frog back into a human, it turns Tiana into a frog.
It’s a neat twist on the traditional tale and allows the film to go off on a tangent and into the bayou, where the amphibious Tiana and Naveen meet all manner of strange characters, as they try to find a way to lift the curse and turn back into humans again.
Although the technical tricksiness of CG has resulted in most animated movies becoming ever more frenetic, The Princess and the Frog is a throwback to a simpler style. Disney’s last few hand-drawn movies tried to incorporate as much CGI as possible, however there’s less of that here, with the film instead concentrating on the sculptural, human feel that traditional animation does well and which computers tend to struggle with. There’s more of a focus on character and story, although plot-wise it could perhaps have done with a little more heft, as it does sometimes feel a bit lightweight.
Part of the problem here is that it tries to walk a rather difficult tightrope. Tiana is Disney’s first African-American princess and it’s set during a time when black people weren’t exactly equal members of Louisiana society. The film doesn’t want tackle racial issues head on (probably due to commercial considerations), but equally knows it might get into trouble by completely ignoring inequality – although the film busies itself with social rather than racial problems. As a result of this, the film sometimes feels like it having to hold itself back, rather than risking offending people or hurting its commercial chances.
Some have branded the movie racist, saying it preys on racial stereotypes, particularly with the film’s villains. However the idea the film is actively racist appears to be more because a minority seem to have desperately have wanted to view it that way, rather than it actually being all that problematic.
However while the story is sometimes a little weak, the film is still smart and funny, the animation is beautiful and Randy Newman’s score and songs are pretty good as well (although as with most Newman music, it’s nice while you’re listening to it, but you won’t remember the tune two minutes later). The Princess and the Frog is a throwback to the past that may go against the grain in this computer-generated world, but shows there’s a warmth to hand-drawn animation it’s difficult to match in a computer. It also proves that although Disney rather ballsed things up with Treasure Planet and Home On The Range, their failure wasn’t down to the fact they weren’t fully CGI.
Above all this though, the thing I liked the most about The Princess & The Frog is how timeless it is. So much modern animation feels like it’ll be forgotten in six-months time, while The Princess and the Frog is a film that wants to be entertaining kids through the ages. It’s also nice that whereas 99% of kid’s flicks have exactly the same theme – be true to yourself – The Princess and the Frog actually wants to promote the importance of hard work. It’s a slightly unusual theme for a family flick and stems from the film’s desire to both honour the fairy tale style while also subverting it. Right from the beginning of the film, Tiana is told that wishing for something will only get you so far, but hard work is needed to achieve it. It’s a theme that continues through the entire movie and helps the film stand out from the animated crowd.
It is a shame the film’s story sometime feels a bit lightweight, as The Princess & The Frog is an entertaining film that looks gorgeous. Perhaps the problem is that the movie was always going to have difficulty fully living up to the weight of expectation that came with Disney’s return to hand-drawn animation. It’s certainly better than most children’s films and the timeless feel is wonderful. Let’s just hope that the fact it hasn’t been a massive box office success doesn’t put Disney off making a few more hand-drawn treats. Quality-wise it’s a step above what Disney has produced in the last few years, and so it’s hopefully a sign of good things to come.
Overall Verdict: Beautiful to look at and featuring some wonderful timeless themes, it’s just a shame the story occasionally feels a little lightweight.
Reviewer: Sam Bruneau
