The Princess and the Frog (2009)

I remember watching The Princess and the Frog many, many years ago and really enjoying it. It was so lovely, it had charming characters and a nice romance. That last bit is the reason I decided to rewatch it, doing this crusade of mine of watching all these movies with romances. Unfortunately, it wasn't as good as the first time. 

1920s New Orleans. Tiana (Anika Noni Rose) is a young, hardworking waitress who dreams of owning her own restaurant. Naveen (Bruno Campos) is an arrogant, carefree prince who's been cut off by his parents. Their paths cross when Naveen is turned into a frog by the Shadow Man (Keith David), a voodoo magician, and kisses Tiana who he believed was a princess so to become human again. But she's no princess and she too is transformed into a frog, and they must find a way to turn back into humans before it's too late.

In other words, this is Disney's take on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale The Frog Prince, and it's different enough to be interesting and to keep the story a little unpredictable --it's still pretty obvious how the story is going to end, especially the romance. 

There are a few problems with the plot though. First, there's a lot going on, probably/definitely too much for a kid's flick; second, it kind of gets lost and drags at some point and instead of being engaging the story is quite boring. Also, at points, the plot relies too much (more like only) on action and songs to move forward and several important plot points relies entirely on coincidences. There are also some problems with the prince's advisor impersonating the prince subplot. 

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The characters, on the other hand, are as charming as I remembered them. I particularly love Tiana because she isn't your typical, helpless princess/damsel in distress, but she is a hard-working woman trying to make her dream come true, and I'm sure many little girls will find her inspiring. The prince, Naveen, is cooky and spoiled but also human. The animal sidekicks pretty good too, especially the Jazz loving alligator. As for the villain, the Shadow Man is a complete disaster. He resembles a lot of Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Damn and Jafar from Alladin, but he is not nearly as good. He is paper-thin, not so threatening and his motives are not that clear.

The songs are a bit of an up and down. Some are great, fun and catchy --Almost There and Friends on the Other Side--, some don't work that well --My Belle Angeline.

The animation is simple and yet beautiful: the filmmakers' decision to go back to Disney's traditional 2D animation works here because of the setting of the story.