The Princess & the Frog: Up There with Other Disney Greats?

“Best Disney Movie since The Lion King”…is it though?

Princess and the Frog (2009)

SUMMARY
Tiana is a hard, young worker who lives in good ol’ New Orleans, working hours on hours to save up to buy a space for the restaurant she’s dreamed of having since she was little. Her father’s raised her to dream big and reach for the stars…but also to work very hard to accomplish her goals. Meanwhile, Prince Naveen, a spoiled prince cut off from his inheritance, is turned into a frog by the Shadow Man while his bumbling sidekick is given his life. Shadow Man plots to have the sidekick, in the prince’s body, pose as him in the costume festival/parade to kiss the closest thing they have to a princess to inherit her father’s money and kill him. Meanwhile, Naveen gets a kiss from Tiana which turns her into a frog, and they go on a journey in the woods to be turned back into humans, discovering from each other that what they actually needed all along was more than just their human bodies.

WHAT WORKS

1. Tiana – She is determined, quick, bright as all heck, thoughtful, and although she is a dreamer, she is also balanced very well between realistic situations vs. her dreams. She works to accomplish her goals, doesn’t act like she needs someone to complete her (although it would be nice, she thinks), and plans everything out as best as possible. Tiana is a great Disney princess and a great character in general because of how balanced she is. Her romance with Naveen (yeah, aside from being within a couple days…) isn’t too rushed or forced. She thinks he’s a slob/snob for a while until they actually do get to know each other, and she has to learn to let her guard down a bit. For movie pacing, that’s pretty decent.
   

   You go, Anika Noni Rose. Two for you, Anika Noni Rose.

2. The Music – Randy Newman’s soundtrack is perfect for this movie. I will admit that a few of them aren’t as memorable around the second act, but in general, the sound of this movie totally matches the New Orleans look and atmosphere. And the songs that are fun are really, really fun! The dark villain tunes are pretty darn sinister as well! Friends on the Other Side is up there for me in terms of Disney villain songs. Nice work, Randy Newman. You done good.
   
3. Shadow Man – What a great villain this is. He’s mysterious, he’s sinister, he doesn’t need much explained about him, he has a sweet villain song…and here’s what’s more. He’s not necessarily doing what he does because he woke up evil or just wanted to spite the main characters in revenge or anything. He’s stuck in the voodoo game, carrying out orders from the dark forces. So technically, he’s a pawn. This might sound weak, but really, he’s a step ahead of other Disney villains. Jafar’s motives were based on ‘POWER! POWER!’ and when he got it, all he wanted was more, and then he just got all goofy. Scar wanted to finally be better than his oh-so-perfect brother and achieve ‘POWER! POWER!’ and when he got it, he didn’t know what to do with it! Shadow Man is more of a master-of-ceremonies, keeping the chain of events moving until Tiana finally puts him out of business.
   
4. Charlotte – This chick is hilarious. I thought for sure I’d get sick of her hyperness QUICK, but it has this weird charm that keeps me laughing instead. We all know a version of this person in our lives…but Disney found a way to make us like them. She is just so much fun, all the way to the end. Aren’t you glad Tiana has a friend like this?
   
5. Animation – This isn’t always worth mentioning seeing as how this is what Disney is known for doing well; but I will say that the designs on these characters are very cool, original and creative! Now, yes, this is the first Disney princess story to feature an African-American princess as the lead, and setting the story in New Orleans was a good choice, I thought. But hey, as long as our black animated characters are given effort in their design and don’t look like the picture below, I’m satisfied.
   
6. Morals – Many fairy tale stories just tell you to dream…then a bunch of stuff happens…the hero/princess/whatever saves the day and the get what they want, or go on something ‘spirit-journey-esque’ but all are ultimately happy. This film does teach you to dream, but it also tells you to actually put the time, work & effort in to accomplish that. This is more than true! Every goal does start with a dream or idea. But without putting the work in, you can’t just expect it to show up. Scar didn’t work for Pride Rock, it just showed up…and since he didn’t have qualified working experience in his resume, things fell apart under his leadership. The sky got dark & the trees withered away because he didn’t know that eating his horticulture department would be a bad idea. Makes sense, right?

WHAT DOESN’T WORK

1. Ray the Firefly – Good lawd, I hate this thing. First, we meet him and he sings a song I just plain forget happens as soon as it’s over. Second, we already have Louis the alligator as their cartoony sidekick, so Ray is completely unnecessary – he just adds more padding & a couple fly jokes. The BIGGEST problem, as most have said already, is when they try to make us care about Ray’s death by pausing the climax of the movie for his big funeral scene. It comes right out of nowhere, literally stops the action, and lasts waaaay too long. I mean, good grief. It’s one of the most pointless moments in animated cinema I can remember – almost up there with the ‘big-lipped alligator’ songs from All Dogs Go to Heaven & Fern Gully, but way less pleasant. Ray can go take a hike. Under a fly swatter.
   
2. The Road Trip – I’m not gonna lie, the second act of the movie is the most forgettable part of the movie. The songs, meeting Ray, the hillbillies…yeah. Not like it weakens the movie per say (for the most part)…but when I think about Princess and the Frog, I think of the first and third act. Usually not the middle, until the two mains start getting along, and when they meet the voodoo lady.
   
3. Father’s Death – Come on now, Disney. Why did the daddy have to die? His passing definitely motivates her further to achieve in honor of his memory, sure. But honestly, part of me thinks he was only cut because this is a Disney movie, and Disney rarely promotes two-living-parent-homes. He easily could have been just old and kind of tired from his working days to support the family, still encouraging Tiana to work hard like her mother was doing. I just wasn’t a fan of that idea.
   
4. Too Much Plot/Loopholes – When you think about it/try to explain it like I did above, it really is rather complicated & nearly exhausting. I mean, go back and read that summary again. I didn’t even include what the festival is or why Shadow Man’s specifically needs Charlotte’s father specifically, which when you figure it out…it’s really just a gigantic loophole. When Tiana & Naveen are finally transformed back into humans, it’s exciting and deserved…but it’s based on a loophole. There’s at least one or two more loopholes in this movie, and it’s because this plot is stuffed like a Thanksgiving turkey. Then there’s the random adventures & sub-characters in the second act of the film that serve as your aunt’s crusty mac & cheese that…you don’t really want anywhere near the turkey.
   

CONCLUSION
I like this movie! It’s fun, the characters are memorable for the right reasons, looks great, has a good environment/feel to it much of the time that resembles a good Disney film, and has good things to teach kids. Where it falls short is a complicated storyline, consistency issues about 45 mins. in, and a bug you just want to squash on your screen. Thankfully, the good is just enough to outweigh the bad. I wish it would have gotten a re-write or two in some spots, because the creativity on this really could have propelled this even more into a true, true Disney classic. As is, it’s definitely worth a watch for a family movie night.

BLACKOMETER: 7/10

Let me know what you think! I’ll see y’all around the bayou.
-BB2

P.S. The guy who brought us Ocsar Proud brought us Shadow Man. No, really:

Just saying.