The Princess and the Frog Movie Review

The Princess and the Frog is a Disney animation released December 11th in theaters nationwide.  A lively musical animation, the movie is a retelling of a classic story as a fairy tale set in Jazz Age-era New Orleans and centered on a young girl named Princess Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose) and her fateful kiss with a frog prince Naveen (voiced by Bruno Campos) who desperately wants to be human again.

In the traditional story of The Princess and the Frog, the prince received a kiss at the end from his princess and regains his human form.  This Disney retelling of the story has a very unique Bayou flavor and diverging plot.  A shadow voodoo villain manipulates the young prince into seeking out loads of “green”, which ultimately leads to him taking the form of a green creature (frog), while his servant is plugged into his role as the prince.

“Waitress” Tiana wants to fulfill her dad’s dream and own her own restaurant.  She just needs enough money to make it happen.  She wishes upon a star and her prince (the frog) shows up.  She kisses him thinking she can make him human, but since she is not a prince and the prince has been curses, Tiana turns frog.  The pair must escape near death experiences many times to live long enough to try to find a way back to humanity.

They discover the path back to “normal” is through Tiana’s best friend who is Princess for a day.  She believes she is marrying the prince, but it is really his servant.  Can Tiana and Naveen reach her before time runs out at midnight or will they be destined to be frogs forever?

Disney’s The Princess and the Frog is a very musically driven animation that uniquely puts an emotionally and effective spin on a classic story.  This is something that is often hard to do.  However, like many Disney animations, The Princess and the Frog has a lot of darkness (voodoo, spirits from the ‘other side’, and violence).  Disney movies usually have a poignant story but often have too much peril for younger audiences at which they are targeted (despite G-ratings).

If you have a sensitive child be prepared for concern as the ‘frogs’ don’t always find the quickest path to success and there are lots of grim and dark moments.  The movie is entertaining by adult standards, though.  It does have an interesting story with lots of twists and turns and a solid ending.  It might be best for slightly older children, though.

MPAA Rating: G
Running Time: 97 minutes
Theatrical Release Date: December 11, 2009

Grade: B+

Director: Ron Clements, John Musker
Starring Voices: Bruno Campos, Anika Noni Rose

The Princess and the Frog movie review by Neil of Movie Room Reviews

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