The Princess and The Frog Review

NOTE: This review is a repost from the first Reel Money Site. It was placed here to be included in our new archives. 



The Princess and the Frog (2009)
Starring: Anika Noni Rose, Bruno Campos, Jim Cummings, Keith David, John Goodman.
Dir: John Musker and Ron Clements
Written by: Musker, Clements, and Rob Edwards.

It's easy to walk into "Princess and the Frog," Disney's newest animated feature with mixed expectations. After all, everyone wants to see it suceed, because we all recall the films of Disney's heyday, (or rather heydayS, depending on your age) but when you recall that Disney's last hand-drawn films were Brother Bear and Home on the Range, you can realize that Disney has fallen far from the pedestal we hold it on in our memories. Cautious optimism is probably the attitude which which most people approached this film.

Be cautious no longer, for Princess and the Frog is a triumph. The animation is beautiful, the story sweet and engaging, the voice acting amazing, the music a delight. Most are aware of the films basic plot, an update of the The Frog Prince fairy tale, set in 1920's New Orleans. This time around, the prince is handsome Prince Naveen (Campos), of the fictional country of Maldonia, in town to marry a rich plantation daughter because his own parents cut his funds off. He is betrayed by his manservant Lawrence and turned into a frog by a voodoo practicing shadow man named Dr. Facilier. (David). Meanwhile, our heroine Tiana (Rose) is working constantly to save money to open up her own restaurant, a dream passed on to her by her late father, (Terrence Howard.) The two meet, and believing her to be a princess, Naveen requests a kiss, which backfires and turns Tiana into a frog as well. Misadventures ensue, and the two, along with a trumpet-playing alligator and a cajun firefly named Ray(Cummings) seek to find a magic woman in the Louisiana bayou to turn them back.

The first success of the film is that visually, it is striking. The hand-drawn animation clearly shows the no-shortcuts style new Disney animation director John Lasseter has implemented in the department. Each cell looks painstakingly drawn by a human hand, and the effort pays off. Many different animation styles are employed throughout, with occasional breaks from the art direction most of the film is set with. These changes are not distracting, though, rather exciting, and each one adds a rich new layer to an aesthetically brilliant film.

The characters in the film are presented with a surprising depth that lesser animation studios *coughDreamworkscough* would ignore. The best example of this is Ray, who could easily have been played for laughs as a hillbilly stereotype, but is instead given a sweet, heroic persona and even gets to sing the film's love song. (This essentially makes him this movie's Sebastian.) Naveen is also filled with charm, giving him the most personality in a non-beastly Disney prince to date. Tiana's character is well-defined from the start, and her determination is portrayed as both a strength and a flaw, giving her very human qualities rarely seen in animated protaganists. If the film has any flaw, it is that it sometimes pushes its point on the audience. (He doesn't know how to work! She can't have fun! We get it!) However, in a film meant to be viewed by children, it is difficult to reinforce the concepts without being pandering. In this, the film isn't really a failure, more like a "near success."

All in all, though, the film seems to be comparable to the best of Disney's canon, and hopefully is the beginning of a third age of Disney greatness, rather than a fluke. Final total: $55. One of the best animated films to come along in a long time, helped by Randy Newman's awesome score. I would gladly see it again and it is a needed DVD (or preferably Blu-Ray) for any collection.