Review of The Princess and the Frog (2009) by Halfwelshman — 26 Feb 2012

The Princess and the Frog represents Disney's return to form, and to their natural home territory of traditional animation. It's a rich, heartfelt and involving story of a girl with a dream, and the journey she has to undertake to get there.

The setting of 1920s New Orleans is lovingly and beautifully re-created by animators, and Randy Newman's wonderful Jazz and Blues heavy score adds further depth to the film. The voice cast are incredibly strong, with Anika Noni Rose making our protagonist Tiana, a poor waitress with big dreams, very easy to connect with and relate to (and she has a great singing voice).

Bruno Campos' amphibian Prince Naveen, Michael-Leon Wolley's Louis Armstrong-inspired Louis the jazz-loving alligator, Jim Cummings' Cajun firefly Ray, Jenifer Lewis' bonkers blind shaman Mama Odie and Keith David's voodoo villain Dr Facilier all impress, and complete a very weird and wonderful cast of characters.

The animation is great, the songs are great and the characters and story are also great. The only thing that lets The Princess and the Frog down is something beyond its control - the press coverage (both positive and negative) that the film received for having "Disney's first black princess".

I really think too much was made of this - I don't remember the press picking up on Pocahontas being "Disney's first Native American princess" or Mulan being "Disney's first Chinese princess".

Disney generally choose characters appropriate for the story being told, and it's the same case here - of course a story set in city like New Orleans, that African American culture is so much part of, is going to have a black princess.

I personally feel anyone reading too far into why Disney now finally has a black princess (or taking offence at the film being set in New Orleans so soon after Hurricane Katrina) is taking the film a little too seriously.

The film doesn't really make any sort of comment on race, or the state of the world, and never aims to - it's an animated family film, and only aims to take its viewers on an amazing journey. Hopefully you'll be able to recognise that The Princess and the Frog isn't some sort of veiled racial propaganda or some malicious tool of offence, but simply Disney proving that it's still the very best at what it does.

The story is well-told, acting and singing top-notch, animation flawless and beautiful and the score truly evocative of the state of Louisiana. It's a fine animated film that'll bring joy to all but the most hardened and confrontational of hearts.