#tlm text

[ithillyienseowyn]

Grimsby in The Little Mermaid 1989: lowkey stuffy stooge. Needs to lay back and chill sometimes

Grimsby in The Little Mermaid 2023: WOW I HAVE NEVER SEEN ERIC SO HAPPY AND CARE FREE IN MY WHOLE LIFE AND I AM LIKE HIS SURROGATE FATHER LOWKEY SO I WILL GIVE HIM THE SPACE HE SO DESPERATELY NEEDS BECAUSE HE LOVES BONDING WITH THIS QUIET GIRL ITS TAKEN HIS MIND OFF OF SEARCHING FOR THE GIRL WHO SAVED HIM IMMA TELL HIM HE NEEDS TO OPEN HIS EYES TO WHATS IN FRONT OF HIM.... WHO IS THIS BITCH VANESSA???? NO ONE I KNOW AND QUITE FRANKLY I DONT WANT HER ANYWHERE NEAR ERIC BECAUSE HE LOVES ARIEL AND HE IS ACTING WEIRD FOR REAL OH MY GOD THE RING IS GONE???? LET ME JUST ADD TO THE MAYHAM OF THIS FARCE ENGAGEMENT AND KICK THAT SHIT INTO THE CROWD

Me: talented brilliant incredible amazing showstopping spectacular never the same totally unique

[ithillyienseowyn]

Thinking about how I've brought up the whole fact that the reunion kiss is framed as the whole visual of I can fit my entire world in my hands and how those two are just stunned to see each other after like 3 days apart? and how I loved that they even had them separated for more than 2 seconds. Literally this movie feels like all this stuff happens in more than 3 days because of how drawn out some moments feel.

But now I'm thinking about what happened in between those few days {or whatever number of days Ariel and Eric had apart} because just the thought of him sitting outside the entire time waiting for her everyday by the sea on that balcony just makes me wheeze. And her sitting by that rock everyday looking at the castle.

And I bet they have deleted scenes of what happened in between that time of defeating Ursula and Ariel agreeing to go back home and Eric temporarily, {but not really} letting thoughts of Ariel go. And now that I've brought this up I just really want to see it?

{falls over with my head in my hands} I need this dvd.

[ithillyienseowyn]

Do you ever think about the Ariel and Eric reunion scene and how every single angle is a whimsically romantic wrap around shot and cry because Rob Marshall upon using that specific style conveyed the I can fit my entire world in my hands meme because it starts on the left side as he goes to kiss Ariel and ends on the right side as he pulls away and hugs her because she's his entire world or are you normal...

[ithillyienseowyn]

See I say Im going to chill out about over posting about The Little Mermaid but I really just cant because the fact that they changed the whole statue scene so that when Triton blows her whole cove up and the piece that Ariel saves out of literally anything else is the broken hand..and like not to be that person but that whole decision just set the entire tone for how they were going to handle Ariel and Eric once she just got on land. Like there is just something that is so much more endearing to me in that fact.

They made these two so soft and tender and endearing and now everyone complaining about this movie or just their dynamic in general just sound like white noise to me or internet dial up sounds.

Its like the sister parallel to me noting that Part of Your World and the reprises felt like a cumulation of 3 acts. There is just something that has the hand thing between Ariel and Eric be a running motif throughout the movie UNTIL Kiss the Girl where it just comes full circle.

Like they really are in love LOVE by the time those two go through that whole song sequence after spending the day together and going back to the palace and I feel so justified and validated. And kissing everyone on the head for making Ariel and Eric the 2 hour 15 minute slow burn that they deserve over the 80 minute linear that is the animation....

And I know that Eric's age is still the same as in the OG, and that they aged Ariel up but there is a LEGITIMATE FEEL OF CHILDLIKE WONDER IN HOW INNOCENT THE LOVE THESE TWO HAVE IS LIKE THEY JUST FEEL LIKE TEENAGERS IN LOVE TO ME.

Their romance in this film is fucking beautiful 100/100 no notes.

[ithillyienseowyn]

Its the way that even though I've only sat and watched The Little Mermaid all of one (1) time and the only thing I constantly think about is the whole linear progression from the time Ariel sees Eric when she's brought to the palace to them looking at maps and his little doodads in his library :') to their whole outing and the entirety of Kiss the Girl and them coming back and saying goodnight after their day out {AND WAS SO STARRY EYED AND IN TEARS BY HOW IN LOVE THEY MADE THEM BOTH THAT I FORGOT URSULA STILL HAD TO RUIN THEIR PERFECT DAY BY MARRYING MY BOI}

Like I really sat in the cinemas HOPING and PRAYING they gave him an extra 5 seconds and let him tell Ariel he loved her but THE SCORE PICKED UP FOR ERIC'S DECISION AND I HAD A WHOLE OH NO MOMENT {in a room full of kids} WHEN I REALIZED {the scene playing out on the edge of the cliffs like Ursula/Vanessa was straight up luring him out was incredible in fact the whole vision- {like I know this is how it plays out in the animated version} but the conception of him being drawn to the ocean in general in this film is incredible but we know this already. But I go so dopey every time I think about the big brain energy of it all}.

Like when I say it felt very reminiscent of a folktale I meant imagery like the things stated above. This movie had a whole plethora of concepts that didn't make it too cluttered.

I feel it had this weird balance of everything without making it shot for shot and beat for beat.

I'm not kidding when I say I spent this entire movie silent, wide-eyed and slack jawed.

[ithillyienseowyn]

In all honesty, am I the only one who watched the little mermaid and immediately didn't think it had the tone of a children's movie? This movie pulled from the other animated sources sure, and has that broadway musical feel as far as numbers go but the whole VIBE of that movie felt very reminiscent of the original story and honestly felt more mature than your standard disney. Even the romance felt more mature. In fact it felt like the most mature out of all the movies they released prior?

And there are still so many things they chose to do that was the complete 480 from what i thought was gonna happen that im still thinking about after a month of seeing it...

Truly the only time I got pulled out of what was going on {which was barely ever because I was just so glued to the screen} was whenever the kids behind me reacted.

[ithillyienseowyn]

See I've been thinking about this for quite a bit now in the midst of everyone trying to divide and conquer what version of The Little Mermaid is the 'best one' {TM} and then I think to just how linear and straight forward the animated actually is {not hating, far from it, and its something I definitely caught in the midst of my whole let me go prove my x y and z to everyone's a b c and d mentality}.

And I've been thinking about HOW and WHY the LA feels like such a gut wrench all consuming feeling, {mind you its all I've thought about for a whole half month}.

And I think its because they took care to expand so much of the story that wasn't just your standard animation and musical by pulling bits from the original HCA story, as well as pulling the whole bit of Ariel's mom dying from Ariel's Beginning and taking bits and pieces from Return to the Sea, add on to how AUTHENTIC the romance actually feels without being the straight forward linear beat for beat that the animated one is. Like they really took that and decided yeah no Ariel and Eric will still have that linear from the animated but we are going to really LEAN INTO the whole fact that they are actually strangers to acquaintances to friends to lovers. I'm kissing the ground for them making them friends in between literally everything but I think because that whole aspect rocked me so hard was because of how those two really just became besties on set as filming progressed. Which makes the whole bit with them saying goodnight even more insane because yeah dude realized he's in love but it had the whole vibe of {oh shit... I'm in love with my best friend?} and that's not even adding in the fact that you could actually FEEL everything Ariel and Eric were feeling as the relationship progressed... like this movie and Rob Marshall really said YOU THE AUDIENCE DONT JUST GET TO WATCH A SIMPLE DYNAMIC BETWEEN TWO YOUNGSTERS GROW YOU GET TO BE THE THIRD WHEEL TO THIS ROMANTIC JOURNEY NO NOTES. {Not to bring this up again but....the whole suddenness of how he grabs for her hand during the Kiss the Girl scene rocked me so hard the moment it happened that it literally nearly took me out.} That's why when they have the extra time separated after the battle with Ursula it just gets you in the most UNEXPECTED WAY and makes you see all the obstacles that are against them. In hindsight they could've made it so basic by not constantly throwing things at the both of them. But they deliberately chose not to so...

All that being said it really makes me think on just how much those two actually go through this whole entire movie because god the ending and them finally together and reunited feels so EARNED and DESERVED.

And I know it shouldn't shock me but I'm still thrown by the fact that out of all the disney live actions this movie is the longest out of all the live action runtimes.

I really don't want people thinking that I'm discrediting the classic when I say this but the difference to me is that yes I loved the animation as a kid but I also had a myriad of other Ren Era classics that I loved a tad bit more, it really depended on the day but sit me down with any of those era films and I will quote half of the movie {if not the whole thing} so this live action being one of my fave faves from the tip of the Ren Era is this weird euphoric feeling?

This movie is so special to me :') :')

[ithillyienseowyn]

Sitting here randomly thinking about how people lowkey are knocking or have knocked Melissa McCarthy's performance as Ursula and how I've seen in passing that people are again unfairly comparing the two films because "she's no Pat Carroll" and Poor Unfortunate Souls is such a down grade in the LA {I personally had a hell of a time watching her take on this}.

Meanwhile I saw an interview just the other day {it might've been last night because I was bored} where she was saying she was trying to honour Pat Carroll's performance and vibe but also not wanting to touch it with a ten foot pole... Because of course. So I took a gander at the animated film last night {shortly after saying I wouldn't because the back and forth is just exhausting to me} and you can literally see where she leaned into Pat Carroll's inflection and movements but also bringing the classic Melissa McCarthy staple to the role. {She is literally my fave LA villain next to Idris Elba's Shere Khan in 2016}.

Like there were many moments when I was watching this film and thought she was a legit scarier bitch than in the animated {but that's just my opinion because the whole detail of riddling her lair with mermaid bones and shit just gives me chills} and the discourse over her performance is making me think of the kids who were in my cinema group that were completely terrified and crying by the time you get to the engagement and Vanessa/Ursula turns back into a squid and drags Ariel back to the sea and kills Triton in front of her on top of Ursula growing double her size before the big fight at the climax of the film.

It just goes back to what I've been saying about how harsh and unfair comments have been in regards to this movie {from what I've seen} because Melissa McCarthy is one of those actors who up until recently has only been known for comedic roles {I love everything I've seen her in} and its clear that you can see she had fun with this role.