Waited longer to see The Princess and the Frog than I usually do with new Disney films. The delay was for a lot of reasons, but mostly a feeling from the previews that this would be lackluster.
But I have to say, it was very enjoyable. The animation wasn't quite up to the peak of their late 90's run. Too, the character designs were a little bland, and the color palette was hazy and undefined, leaving the whole production feeling a little more like an animated Thomas Kinkade painting than any Disney film should.
All of that aside, the film was well written, easygoing and had two really stunning sequences - namely, the heroine's first song, as usual, the villain's song. Apologies for no full video on that second number, which is wonderfully kinetic and spooky, and psychedelic in the best Disney tradition. Dr. Facilier is a wonder of lanky animation, and it's nice to see that the artists aren't afraid to push his design a little bit into caricature. You can see a little of it here.
If this film is the starter's pistol in a new run of amazing animated features from Disney, then not only is it a good start, but also placing them a little ahead of the game, since I think it's a bit stronger than 'The Little Mermaid,' with the exception of Ashman and Menken's excellent songs from that film, of course.
PS: Yesenia liked it, too.
D.
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