The Princess and the Frog follows the adventures of Tiana, a working-class young black woman, who is a genius cook and wishes to open her own restaurant. However, the amount of money she has saved from working two jobs at once comes just short of enough, and she is ready to give up. But then she meets a talking frog who calls himself Prince Naveen and promises her tons of money if she kisses him. Needless to say, plan backfires, adventure happens, the two fall in love, etc. Everything you'd expect from a Disney Animated adventure, except in a swamp. With frogs.
The fact that both main characters are frogs leads to some, ahem, "sticky" situations as they get used to their new bodies; however, they still manage to teach each other a few things about life as humans while they're at it. Naveen is a spoiled rich kid who's never done a hard day's work in his life, so Tiana teaches him about preparing food. Tiana's a workaholic "stick-in-the-mud", so Naveen shows her how to loosen up and dance. And of course there's the whole love story hanging over the narrative like a big ol' cartoon anvil waiting to drop, but it's pulled off surprisingingly well.
Nevertheless, the movie is not without its flaws; it’s the first Disney 2D-animated feature since 2004, and it shows. the animation doesn't feel as smooth as used to be, and the soundtrack, while catchy and well-suited to the theme, seems to have lost the Alan Menken sparkle that older Disney Animated Movies had. But the one thing that really drove me nuts was this - why, exactly, was the curse designed to spread when Naveen kissed someone? Was the Shadow Man just that Genre Savvy? Or, if he didn't plan it, why that particular cause? Other people touch the frogs at various points, so it's not communicable just by touch.
All of this, however, fails to detract from the fact that the plot is solid as a whole, and still quite enjoyable. It has a good setting, a neat and addictive soundtrack, and some witty and fleshed-out characters to fill out the space. It's not perfect, and a few fundamental flaws keep it from being the best Disney Animated Canon work, but it's better than one would expect from a six-year hiatus.
A Worthy Addition to the DAC
The Princess and the Frog follows the adventures of Tiana, a working-class young black woman, who is a genius cook and wishes to open her own restaurant. However, the amount of money she has saved from working two jobs at once comes just short of enough, and she is ready to give up. But then she meets a talking frog who calls himself Prince Naveen and promises her tons of money if she kisses him. Needless to say, plan backfires, adventure happens, the two fall in love, etc. Everything you'd expect from a Disney Animated adventure, except in a swamp. With frogs.
The fact that both main characters are frogs leads to some, ahem, "sticky" situations as they get used to their new bodies; however, they still manage to teach each other a few things about life as humans while they're at it. Naveen is a spoiled rich kid who's never done a hard day's work in his life, so Tiana teaches him about preparing food. Tiana's a workaholic "stick-in-the-mud", so Naveen shows her how to loosen up and dance. And of course there's the whole love story hanging over the narrative like a big ol' cartoon anvil waiting to drop, but it's pulled off surprisingingly well.
Nevertheless, the movie is not without its flaws; it’s the first Disney 2D-animated feature since 2004, and it shows. the animation doesn't feel as smooth as used to be, and the soundtrack, while catchy and well-suited to the theme, seems to have lost the Alan Menken sparkle that older Disney Animated Movies had. But the one thing that really drove me nuts was this - why, exactly, was the curse designed to spread when Naveen kissed someone? Was the Shadow Man just that Genre Savvy? Or, if he didn't plan it, why that particular cause? Other people touch the frogs at various points, so it's not communicable just by touch.
All of this, however, fails to detract from the fact that the plot is solid as a whole, and still quite enjoyable. It has a good setting, a neat and addictive soundtrack, and some witty and fleshed-out characters to fill out the space. It's not perfect, and a few fundamental flaws keep it from being the best Disney Animated Canon work, but it's better than one would expect from a six-year hiatus.