An unfortunate side-effect of Pixar's emergence onto the scene from 1995 onwards was the diminishing fortunes of the traditional hand-drawn animation. Of course, Hollywood being Hollywood, it was deemed that the decline in the box office revenues of traditional cartoons was due to the fact that the kids now wanted CG and nothing else, rather than the fact that many traditional 'toons of the late '90s and early 2000s were simply lacklustre films. Fittingly, it is Pixar's founder John Lasseter who has provided a voice of reason and overseen the rebirth of classic animation at the Mouse House, and The Princess and the Frog is the first progeny of his new creative direction.
Something that is quite readily apparent with the film is that despite Lasseter's involvement, the traditional Walt Disney format has not been "Pixarised" at all; Princess belongs completely within the realm of the musical fairytale, rather than the more postmodern and contemporary charms of the Lasseter school. It makes for a hugely refreshing change of pace. There's a character and magic to the film immediately, borne out of the evident loving care applied to every frame, and the clear commitment to make a film that rises above run-of-the-mill to sit alongside prior Disney classics, such as those produced in the early '90s renaissance. The Princess and the Frog achieves that goal in some style; it's a heartwarming, engrossing fable that both rejuvenates some of the old Disney staples and injects some original and unpredictable touches of its own.
The art design of the film is simply fantastic. The decision to set the tale in period New Orleans is a masterstroke, which both gives it an absolutely distinctive visual style and also influences composer Randy Newman's musical approach, which is heavily jazz-, ragtime- and gospel-based. Beginning with a prologue with main character Tiana as a young girl, which illustrates her less than privileged upbringing in a subtle and endearing way. Soon the film skips a number of years to meet Tiana in young adulthood. She's working as a lowly waitress but harbours a dream, inspired by her late father, to own her own restaurant. It's a surprisingly mature beginning, and while it takes some time for this set-up to transition into a story about her meeting an eastern prince who has been transformed into a frog by a sinister voodoo practitioner, then finding herself transformed into a frog too, the way it is handled - with good humour, appealing songs and that beautiful artwork - means that it's captivating from the start.
If the film's subsequent detour into a trek through the bayou accompanied by a trumpet-playing crocodile and a Cajun firefly feels like a concession to the kiddies, the tonal shift is relatively seamless, and the anthropomorphised animal characters are more than simple comic relief. Less well defined is the film's villain Dr. Facilier, the aforementioned voodoo conjuror, whose insidious plot is never made particularly clear, and the character himself is unmemorable. That's not the fault of the voice actor, Keith David, however, and indeed the whole cast, mercifully free of incongruous but attention-grabbing star names, acquit themselves very well indeed, from Anika Noni Rose's feisty but vulnerable heroine (Disney's first black protagonist, a fact which is subtly referenced but never shoved down our throats) to Jim Cummings as the firefly with the thick bayou accent.
Although, as a fairytale, the ultimate outcome of the plot is a foregone conclusion, it doesn't restrict the entertainment value at all, and there are a couple of twists that even jaded viewers may not see coming. There's a joie de vivre present throughout that makes the film simply a pleasure to watch.
Release Information
Country: UK / Region: Free / Version: Triple Play / Discs: 3 (1 BD/1 DVD/1 Digital Copy) / Distributor: Disney
Presentation
The exquisite artistry of Princess' recreation of New Orleans was always going to shine on Blu-ray, and indeed it is magnificent: the colours! The detail! The clarity! (And not a hint of aliasing or banding, as can be a problem with animation in HD.) Equally sublime is the audio, the opening number, "Down in New Orleans", providing a perfect showcase - you can make out the individual instruments in Randy Newman's orchestra.
In short, Disney + animation + Blu-ray = audio-visual perfection.
Extras
There's not a huge amount here, but it is wonderfully good-natured and passionate. The most substantial is a 20-minute Making Of and a jovial commentary; thankfully there are few exclusively kiddie extras like games that they're never going to play. Naturally, there's much discussion of this being the rebirth of Disney hand-drawn animation; sadly, further more recent showpieces for the technique have been conspicous by their absence.
Summary
The CG-animation bandwagon has long been overcrowded. The Princess and the Frog is a breath of fresh air, full of vitality, charm and artistry - reminding us exactly what made Disney animation so beloved in the first place.
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