The Little Mermaid...

by Al Kessel

"Undah the sea...undah the sea...darlin' it's better down where it's wetta take it from MEEEE!" Oh man...that Sebastian REALLY can sing! 

What do you get when you cross a stubborn willed, disobedient teen aged girl who wants what she wants, no matter the cost, and a mythical sea dwelling race? Well, Disney's The Little Mermaid of course! Back in 1989, Disney brought to life the adventures of strong willed and free-spirited teen-aged mermaid called Ariel, who sets off on the adventure of a lifetime with her best friend Flounder (yep, a fish) and the above super-star singing crab Sebastian to find true love. 

Ariel and Flounder

Now, I remember way back when Disney released The Little Mermaid and thinking how silly this was going to be. BUT...little did I know how awesome this movie was going to be! Yes, I'll admit, I went in skeptical, but came out singing Poor Unfortunate Soul, and Part Of Your World. This film was more than just a silly cartoon, it was an animated masterpiece. Everything was just spot on - the story, the acting, the comedy and the desperate situations our heroes found themselves in. Now, I'm not a fan of musicals, especially animated musicals, but Disney knows how to do them right. 

Flash forward 24 years. October 1, 2013 to be exact. Disney Animation released The Little Mermaid for the first time ever on Blu-Ray and 3D Blu-Ray. And you know what? I loved it even more! Even knowing what to expect, I still found myself jumping when the Evil Ursula (voiced expertly by Pat Carroll) makes the scene! 

Ursula The Sea Witch!

By now, (hopefully) most of you have seen Disney's The Little Mermaid. But yes, there are, I'm sure, some who have yet to experience this awesome classic story told in a way only Disney could tell it. I won't go in to too much detail about the story, remember, we're all about saving the spoilers here, but I will talk about some of the major plot points. So, if you're one who wants to be surprised, fair warning!

Ariel (voiced by Jodi Benson), is the youngest daughter of King Triton (voiced by Kenneth Mars). All Ariel wants to do is be her own person...err, mermaid and do what SHE wants to do. She's gathered quite the collection of human treasures, like gadgets and gizmos aplenty! And, she's become very dissatisfied with life under the sea, and longs for LEGS so she can live ABOVE the sea, with the humans. Accompanied by her best friend Flounder (voiced by Jason Marin) and her King/Father appointed guardian Sebastian (voiced by Samuel E. Wright), Ariel sets out on an adventure that is bound to

The Crooning Crab Sebastian 

'land' her in trouble (ha-ha...get it? LAND???). Of course, what great Disney story would be complete without a GREAT villain? This time around, the nasty villain comes in the form of an octopus sea witch named Ursula, who convinces Ariel she can make all her dreams come true...but, we know, Ursula has plans of her own!! (cue evil laughter here).

Ursula Offers Ariel a Deal

With a terrific musical score by Disney Legend Alan Menken, The Little Mermaid is full of great songs that you'll find yourself singing YEARS after you see the movie!

The newly released The Little Mermaid: Diamond Edition brings this classic back to it's original splendor. The Blu-Ray version cleans up the print quite a bit, once again showing fans just how beautiful this movie really is. And although the animation is quite old, it's just as spell binding as it was in 1989. We did not review the 3-D version, but from what we've been told, it's spectacular. The 3-D brings out elements of the movie that just blow one's mind. 

Ariel's Father King Triton

The Little Mermaid: Diamond Edition comes with a few bonus features as well:

• An All New "Part Of Your World" Music Video by Carly Rae Jepson (Call Me Maybe)
• The Real Little Mermaid: Live Action Reference Model
• Part of Her World: Jodi Benson's Voyage To New Fantasyland
• "Howard The Merman" A Never Before Seen Deleted Character
• Disney Intermission - Press Pause and See What Happens!
• @DisneyAnimation - Behind The Scenes with Today's Top Disney Animators

The deleted character bonus was kind of interesting. Not actual animation (presented in storyboard format with animator character narration), Howard was a character from earlier on in the movie that was cut for time. This scene told of the unlucky merman Howard and his dealing with Ursula. So, we would have gotten a foreshadowing of what could happen to Ariel. 

Ariel In Trouble...Again!

The Disney Intermission function/bonus is really pretty neat. When you pause the movie, instead of a regular still image, you get a crab-e-okie sing along to help pass the time! Pretty cool...

But, what was NOT pretty cool (in my opinion of course) was the all new music video by Carly Rae "Call Me Maybe" Jepson. Not sure why Disney chose to add this rendition of a VERY classic and VERY well done "Part Of Your World" but they did. And I'm very sorry they did. No offense to Ms. Jepson, but this video makes no sense in the context of The Little Mermaid, and the way in which she sings the song, well, it's just not in line with the 'heart' of the song at all. She sings it rather lazily and honestly, she sounds to me like she's whining. The video takes place in the city, which looks kind of dirty and grimy...a little to urban for The Little Mermaid. For me, this was really the only bad thing about the Diamond Edition, and honestly, Disney should have left it out. 

The Little Mermaid: The Diamond Edition is now available for purchase on:

• 3-Disc Blu-Ray Combo Pack (Blu-Ray 3D+ Blu-Ray+DVD+Digital Copy+Music Download). SRP $49.99
• 2-Disc Blu-Ray Combo Pack (Blu-Ray+DVD+Digital Download). SRP $44.99
• 2-Disc Blu-Ray Combo Pack (Blu-Ray+DVD). SRP $39.99

Feature Running time approximately 88 minutes, bonus features are over 3 hours. 

All in all, The Little Mermaid: Diamond Edition brings back all of those great Disney memories from years ago. If you're an old timer like me, it's great to relive the adventures of Ariel. If you're brand new to the story, well, you're in for a terrific treat! The Little Mermaid: Diamond Edition is a MUST have for anyone's movie collection, regardless of your age! 

I'm Gonna WRECK IT!...The Review

Ok, so the term "completely and totally unequivocally awesome" may be over used these days (yeah, ok, I made that up), but it DOES apply to Disney's Wreck-It Ralph. When we first saw some unfinished footage of this film during the D23 Expo in 2011, we KNEW this would be one of those rare movies we would brave the theater crowds for...and we were not disappointed. Well, now The Walt Disney Studios has given us one of the greatest gifts of all: Wreck-It Ralph on DVD and Blu-Ray so we can enjoy it as often as we like, in the comfort of our OWN HOME (excuse me for a moment...I need to weep a bit). 

Weekly Meeting of Bad Anon

On February 5, 2013, Wreck-It Ralph was released on HD Digital Download. The early digital release marks a first for the Disney company. Then, on March 5, 2013, the HD Digital 3D formats will be released. 

Winner of five Annie Awards including Best Animated Feature, the Producers Guild Award, a Critics Choice Film Awards and National Board of Review for Best Animated Film, Wreck-It Ralph, as you may have guessed, brings to life the world of video games, where, after the arcade closes for the day, "Game Central Station" comes alive with characters from our favorite video games, including cameos from Sonic The Hedgehog, Q-Bert and more. 

Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly) is the villain in 30 year old (but still fairly popular) arcade game called Fix It Felix. It's Ralph's job to wreck the apartment building the good citizens all live in, and of course, it's up to Felix (voiced by Jack McBrayer) to repair all Ralph's damage with his magic hammer. For 30 long years, Ralph has lived in Felix's shadow. Every night after the arcade closes, the good citizens celebrate Felix's heroism, while poor Ralph is banished to his rubble-pile home. Then, for the 30th anniversary of Fix It Felix, Ralph sees that the citizens have thrown a huge party for Felix, complete with CAKE, but have neglected to include Ralph - without whom there would be NO game. As Ralph attempts to crash the party, he's informed that he's the bad guy and will be nothing more. Of course, this does not sit well with our hero...err, I mean villain. 

Ralph In Action..HUGE hands!

So, Ralph decides he's tired of playing the role of bad-guy and takes matters into his own hands and sets out to prove everyone wrong, and he embarks on an action-packed adventure to prove to everyone that he is a true hero with a BIG heart! As he explores some exciting new worlds, he teams up with some unlikely new friends, including a feisty "glitch" of a program by the name of Vanellope von Schweetz (voiced by Sarah Silverman). And that's where things get interesting! Now, I'd go into deeper detail, but then, why would you have to see it for yourselves??? Besides...no spoilers here!

Ralph and Vanellope

Wreck It Ralph is without doubt one of the best movies we've seen in a long time. The animation is fantastic and seeing it on Blu-Ray is as beautiful as seeing it in digital 3D. As is usual, Disney paid so much attention to detail in this film that you almost forget it's animation - until Ralph knocks down a building! This film appeals to all ages really, and it's truly appropriate for everyone. The story is terrific, but beyond that, there is a touching and heartwarming message. It's about friendship, being true to yourself, to who and what you really are, and about sacrifice. 

Best Friends Come In All Sizes

Wreck It Ralph offers a great escape from the real world, if only for a short time (something Disney is absolutely perfect at giving us). Yet it also serves up some valuable lessons, not just for the young ones but for adults as well. Without realizing we've just been schooled, Disney has created a great portal to teach everyone the value of others, to look past what we see, and see others as they are deep down. And when a movie can make me feel good about learning something, AND entertain me...well, full endorsement from me!  And you thought it was just another cute cartoon!  

Director Rich Moore

Now, there are some pretty cool features that are exclusive to the Blu-Ray editions, and trust me, they ARE cool. When you pause the movie, instead of the boring old pause menu, you see a count-down to intermission pop up. Then, a new feature called "Disney Intermission: The Gamer's Guide To Wreck-It Ralph" begins! Hosted by Chris Hardwick (of Walking Dead/Talking Dead fame) this pause feature takes viewers through a series of 10 video segments offering an inside look at the many video game references, Disney references and other hidden surprises featured in the film! Now, I'm not going to spoil all of them, but for example, on the Fix-It Felix game, notice the high score of 120501. There's a very important significance to those numbers...think you can figure it out? And, there are at LEAST two hidden Mickey's in the film (but I'm not saying where!), and finally, director Rich Moore has a sort of...cameo in the film. See if you can spot him! Oh, and be sure to watch until the VERY end of the movie, you'll notice some pixelated code that some of you out there may be able to decipher! 

Disney's Wreck-It Ralph will be available on Tuesday March 5, 2013 on the following formats:

• 4-Disc Blu-Ray Combo Pack
• (Blu-Ray 3D + Blu-Ray + DVD + Digital Copy)
• MSRP $49.99 in the US and $56.99 in Canada
• 2-Disc Blu-Ray Combo Pack
• (Blu-Ray+DVD)
• MSRP $39.99 in the US and $46.99 in Canada
• DVD
• MRSP $29.99 in the US and $35.99 in Canada

All the Blu-Ray versions come with the following Features:

• Bit by Bit: Creating the worlds of "Wreck-It Ralph"
• The short takes viewers into Game Central Station with the artists who brought Sugar Rush, Hero's Duty and Fix It Felix, Jr to life
• Alternate & Deleted Scenes
• Video Game Commercials 
• Viewers can check out the commercials created for the video games featured in the film!
• "Paperman" 
• This Academy Award Winning short showcases first time director John Kahrs' minimalist black and white style with his story about a lonely young man in mid-century New York City, who relies on his heart, imagination, a stack of papers and a little luck, to change his destiny and win the girl of his dreams!

The DVD version has the feature "Paperman". 

You can buy Disney's Wreck-It Ralph just about anywhere, or, you can help out Tales From The Mouse House and purchase it from our Tales Amazon Store (just click the link)

Bottom line is, there are many, many films out there that are entertaining, moral, teaches a decent lesson, and visually beautiful, but there are very few that have all of these qualities. Disney's Wreck-It Ralph definitely has all of them! A must have for any movie fan!