The Little Mermaid (1993) (V)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Directors:

Masakazu Higuchi
Chinami Namba

Writers:

Hans Christian Andersen (story)
Jack Olesker (writer)

Release Date:

1993 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

An animated classic for children of all ages

Plot:

A young mermaid princess risks being turned forever into sea-foam in order to fulfill her dreams of marrying her true love.

Plot Keywords:

Princess | Mermaid | Sea Witch | Anime | Foreign Language Adaptation

Also Known As:

La sirenita (USA: Spanish title)

Runtime:

50 min

Country:

Japan | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:G | Spain:T | UK:Uc | Brazil:Livre | New Zealand:G

Company:

American Film Investment Corporation

Trivia:

Part of Golden Films' second wave of "Animated Classics", which included Aladdin (1993) (V), Pinocchio (1993) (V), The Three Musketeers (1993) (V), Sinbad (1993) (V), Thumbelina (1993) (V), Beauty and the Beast (1993) (V) and The Little Mermaid (1993) (V).

Goofs:

Factual errors: The name of fairy tale author, Hans Christian Andersen is spelled incorrectly at the beginning of the film as "Anderson".

Quotes:

Bink: [to himself] Something's wrong. Something's wrong, isn't it?
Claudia: Are you a friend of the quiet girl?
Bink: Yes, my name's Bink.
Cecil: Nice you meet you, Bink. But I wish it was under better circumstances. The prince has decided not to marry your friend. He's gonna marry Princess Anna instead.
Bink: Oh, but he's got to marry Princess Lena! If he marries anyone else Princess Lena will turn into seafoam.
Claudia: Oh, Cecil, this is terrible! He's marrying the wrong girl.
Cecil: Ah, that's humans for ya. If only they learned to listen to their hearts.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Little Mermaid: Double Bubble (#1.5)" (1992)

Soundtrack:

The World Above

Beautifully told!

After GoodTimes' Thumbelina, this must be the second most charming film the infamous studio has ever produced! The story is told straight-forward, it doesn't pause for musical numbers or out-of-place sequences, it simply tells the story like it should be. There is, however, one song, and it is called "The World Above", it is about a minute long, but it is very lovely and its melody is replayed numerous times throughout the movie. I found this version to be slightly more touching than the Disney version. it doesn't have the catastrophic ending of the original Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, but if you pay close attention, you'll see that the happy ending isn't all there, either. Just like Thumbelina, Pinocchio or The Three Musketeers by GoodTimes, part of the sound appeal of the film is given with the addition of recognizable classical melodies that are carefully chosen and appropriately placed through different scenes in the movie. All characters in this film are warm and loving and with developed personalities, no characters are bland or forgettable.

This film is beautiful! If you enjoyed GoodTimes' Thumbelina, you'll enjoy this one, too!