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The Little Mermaid

1989

John Musker, Ron Clements

Animation, Voice: Jodi Benson, Samuel E. Wright, Pat Carroll ...

6.7

96,536

Animation. Fantasy. Musical. Kids The mermaid Ariel, daughter of King Triton, is fascinated with humans. She falls in love with the human prince Eric after she rescues him from a shipwreck. Condemned by her father for engaging in illicit contact with the surface world, Ariel then receives an offer from the scheming sea witch Ursula - Ursula will turn her into a human for three days, but during this time she must win the kiss of true love from Eric otherwise Ursula will ... [+]

	Media	Author	Review
		Variety	"May represent Disney's best animated feature since the underrated 'Sleeping Beauty' in 1959."
		Janet Maslin The New York Times	"A marvel of skillful animation, witty songwriting and smart planning."
		Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times	"A movie that's so creative and so much fun it deserves comparison with the best Disney work of the past (...) rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"
		William Thomas Empire	"This was the rebirth of Disney in the modern era and due to superb songs, enduring humour and a touching plot it remains an animation classic (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		Colette Maude Time Out	"The underwater scenes are spectacular (...) Why, given this kind of creative care, do the film-makers resort to racial stereotyping for Ariel's crustacean servant?"
		Michael Wilmington Los Angeles Times	"'The Little Mermaid' -- impudent, grandiose, a multilevel crowd-pleaser -- almost returns the Disney animated features to their glory traditions of the '30s and '40s."
		Scott Tobias Rolling Stone	"This was the one that set the bar for high production values and impeccable song craft"
		Noel Murray AV Club	"[The story] is thin and under-imagined, the characters are over-rounded and cutesy, and the images don't have much depth (...) It's funny"
		James Berardinelli ReelViews	"'The Little Mermaid' reminds us how agreeable the animated releases were just a few years ago (…) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 4)"
		Eric Henderson Slant	"The result wasn’t slim, but malnourished. It wasn’t quirky, but calculated (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"

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