Barbie as the Island Princess

I came to this because I had a bad experience watching the Disney "Cinderella," and wondered at what passed for acceptable these days. I chose what I thought would be the gene with the lowest standards. I picked wrong. I should have gone with preteen boy anime, because this is pretty darn good.

The animation is actually good. The rendering isn't naturalistic, but since this is supposed to be a doll, its apt. What struck me was how natural the movements of the princess (played by Barbie) were. I think this must have been a marketing decision, because if I recall the doll itself is stiff. The decision to have the girl play with what could be sold as stuffed animals also clearly influenced the story.

The story itself was pretty standard; one arc but with enough elaboration to qualify as long form.

But what made this stand out was the music. This was actually a very professional assembly, on the order of production values every bit as good as your standard Broadway musical. Naturally, the songs are pulled from that formula book. There's nothing to get excited about in terms of depth; its just that this was not taken lightly. The little girls who watch this, at least get the respect of not being taken for granted.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

This was my all-time favorite Barbie movie when I was a child. The music was amazing and I loved the story!

Despite the title and the horrid animal animation, it was quite a charming movie!

Of course, my only complaint is the animation but it was 2007 so I cant try to look past that to enjoy this sweet and heart-warming movie.

I have a 18 month old daughter and a 3 1/2 year old son and if there is any one video in their small collection that will keep them BOTH happy, its the Barbie series. I have a couple of them and so far, this one is the favorite of my entire family. Even my husband LOVED it, which is saying a lot since he's not into Barbie. The music is so wonderful and catchy. I had to hunt down the "I Need to Know" song for my husband's Ipod, I do encourage you to find it. You can purchase it online. There is a UK cd available as well. This is a great video and I hope they continue to produce more Barbie Musical videos. I'm already planning on a Barbie themed Christmas this year for my daughter. She may not be able to play with the toys, just yet, but she will have them when she can. I do recommend this video as well as the other Barbie vids in this series. They are great for all ages.

It isn't your ordinary movie, the plot and character development is so in depth some may be unable to process it. The character development showing their identities as they grow through this coming of age masterpiece.