*ariel finding the green mermaid figurine in eric’s library*
eric: “ah, my little mermaid”
me:
Eric and Ariel’s love story is one for the books. In the first clip of the video, Eric would rather believe Ariel was a fantasy, not real, then to accept the fact that she was lost to him.
The way they gradually fell in love with each other was amazing to see. Their common interests, thingamabobs, them wanting to break free from their parents and explore the world on their own. How they cared.
Eric falling for Ariel even though she wasn’t the “mystery girl” and when he found said “mystery girl” he was still worried and looking for Ariel. How once she turned back into a mermaid he still embraced her, literally and figuratively.
When Rob said the animated Eric was a two dimensional character he was not lying. (Have you seen the lashing AEric is getting on twitter? Rightfully so.) He brought depth and life to this new Eric.
The Little Mermaid (2023) is the best live action Disney princess movie hands down!
🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️🧜🏽♀️
JONAH HAUER-KING “I just can’t seem to get the floating aspect of swimming. Some people seem to do that really easily. Like that comes naturally to them. I just sink to the bottom.”
My favourite line from the new The Little Mermaid movie:
"You shouldn't have had to give up your voice to be heard."
Regardless of how sick I am of the live-action cash grabs, I still get emotional every time I think about about how Howard Ashman was a gay man who battled AIDS, stigma, and Disney, in order to write his music and how, decades later, Halle Bailey, a young black woman currently battling racism, stigma, and Disney, belts out that music, and does it so much justice, and how Part Of Your World's purpose is to be an 'I Want" song and how that 'want' transcends generations.
(Also, if you want beautiful video essays about Howard Ashman and the queer themes in his songs, check out Dreamsounds!)
HALLE BAILEY “I was blown away by her. I was so impressed that she deals with everything with such graciousness and elegance. The more I worked with her, the more I realised how incredible she is and how born she was for this role.” - Jonah Hauer-King “She was the first person [to audition]. We said would you like to sing or read first and she said, "Well, I like to sing.” So she sang ‘Part of Your World’. I remember she shut her eyes and started to sing the song. By the end of the song I was in tears. I thought this is so moving. She’s so deeply connected to what she’s singing about and what she’s feeling. I remember turning to [John DeLuca] and saying “Have we found Ariel? This is the first person [we’ve seen].” We saw hundreds and hundreds of girls after that because we really needed to make sure this was the one. But she set the bar so high. With all of it. She had the incredible passion and stength but she also had vulnerability. A sort of other-worldliness, ethereal feel and look. And naive. She was only 18 when she first auditioned for us. It was the full package. She came back [to audition] many times. We did a screen test but ultimately we didn’t have to choose. She claimed the role.“ - Rob Marshall THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023) Dir. Rob Marshall
What was your relationship with Halle like during filming? Very, very easy. She was immediately one of my best friends. She looked after me the whole way through. She was kind to me. She was supportive. She just looked out for me. She always held my hand. Literally and metaphorically. Yeah, I was very grateful for her.
Why Ariel gave up her voice
Ariel never gave up a voice for a man she has just met and hadn't talked to.
Ariel gave up her voice because she didn't value it. And she didn't value it because people around her didn't value it. They praised it when she used it for show, for singing for an audience that wanted to hear the sound but never listened to her words.
She felt unheard her entire life, misunderstood, alone, isolated. Sure, she has friends, like Flounder, Sebastian and more in the animated series, like Gabriella, her sisters, Urkin, etc. They all loved her but didn't understand her. Looked at her funny when she opened up about her love for the human world. Was even berated by some, like Sebastian and her father. She never felt heard. So, yeah, for everyone else, even the audience, is like: this girl is so stupid, she gave up her beautiful voice for legs.
Because with legs, she can stand, as she always wanted. And she never needed her voice to make Eric fall for her, or the castle's staff, with her personality, always overshadowed by her voice, she won everyone's hearts. With her blubby, spontaneous, happy, curious personality, she made the prince fall for her, made him forget that 'beautiful voice' he fell for (until Ursula put a spell on him, that is). Ariel felt heard for the first time, without a voice.
She didn't give up her voice for a man, but because she was so tired of not being heard, that she never saw the value of her voice, because nobody showed it to her beyond shallow reasons. She learnt, along with everyone else, how important her voice AND words are.
That's why I always felt related to her. I was always heard when it was convenient, if I expressed an opinion the adults around didn't like, I was shut down, belittled and patronized.
Your voice MATTER, will always MATTER. It doesn't matter how way you communicate. Look at Gabriella, in the animated series, she was mute but she still communicated and was heard by her octopus friend.
Please, NEVER let anyone make you believe your WORDS hold no value. Not even yourself.
everything i loved about "the little mermaid" live action
- Ariel's melody being her siren song!! that little new bit of lore!! i also really liked that it added more depth as to why Ursula wanted her voice in exchange for her becoming human
- the way Ariel became almost angry during the bridge of "Part of Your World", she was so frustrated that she couldn't do the things she was dreaming about, like YES let her be mad!!
- full body chills during "Part of Your World" + the first reprise
- Ariel helping Max onto the boat 😭😭😭
- I've mentioned this before, but Ariel hearing Eric's voice before seeing him!!! hearing him sing before seeing him!!! agh!!!!
- Eric holding Ariel's hand on the shore after she rescues him 😭
- the detail put into each of Ariel's sisters was so stunning, i'm so excited to read more about them in the books! i loved that they each had their own specific vibe
- THEY INCLUDED THE FACT THAT URSULA AND TRITON ARE SIBLINGS YES THANK YOU VERY MUCH
- "For the First Time" being a voice over, as Ariel's thoughts, and then the scene shifting to complete darkness except for her to represent us being in her head and hearing her thoughts, and the way it gets cut off when she realizes she can't say "hello" to Eric? i cried
- The Jodi Benson cameo and her giving Halle!Ariel the fork 😭 literally her passing on the mantel of Ariel 😭😭
- Eric and Ariel being total nerds with each other??
- The way Ariel "told" Eric her name using the constellations???? and him saying it was written in the stars???? hello????
- Also Eric saying "my little mermaid" made me so soft wtf
- Eric and Ariel running around and giggling in the castle and being the definition of puppy love like they're so goofy and in love i adore them
- the "Part of Your World" reprise after Ariel sees Eric with Vanessa shattered my heart, the MOST heartbreaking song
- Grimsby kicking the ring away after it falls near him, my man knew exactly what was going on, he's known Ariel for three days and is already a ride or die
- just Ariel and Eric holding each other so tightly after she gets her voice back, and Eric refusing to let her go until Ursula literally has to throw him away
- ARIEL BEING THE ONE TO KILL URSULA USING THE SKILLS SHE SAW ERIC USE OH MY GOD IT WORKED SO SO WELL
- i like that they added a chunk of time passing between Ursula's death and Eric and Ariel reuniting, it added a little extra drama and emotion when they finally saw each other again!
- listen i'm an absolute sucker for a "hug before kiss" reunion and i was SO happy that Eric and Ariel had that, it fit them and their relationship perfectly, the way Eric just clung to her, and Ariel's happy smile as she hugged him back 😭
- The mermaid statue and the dress representing the land vs. the sea???? and both returning back to where they're supposed to be but having new meanings????
- Ariel's wedding dress being pink to (probably) pay homage to her pink ballgown in the animated movie was such a good touch, and i loved the length!!
- Triton and Ariel's goodbye, where he says "you shouldn't have had to give up your voice for me to hear you"???? hello my father issues jumped tf out and had me sobbing in the theater
- literally the entire movie was so beautiful, i could talk about it for hours, this is the best live action remake honestly, and Eric and Ariel (specifically the live action version obvi) have moved up to become my favorite Disney Princess/Prince pairing, just behind Belle and Adam (bc let's be honest, nothing can top them)
@queen-with-the-quill bc i know you're seeing it soon! more things i forgot to tell you lol
