The Princess and the Frog

It is no exaggeration to say that The Princess And The Frog, the bustling new hand drawn animation from Disney, redresses any number of historical wrongs. Back in 2004, the House of Mouse, facing increasing competition from Pixar and Blue Sky, decided to dispense with hand drawn animation altogether; master craftsmen of the form were sent packing as the studio embraced the digital era with some ugly results. As Chicken Little and Meet The Robinsons would soon prove, Pixar had eaten into Disney’s market share because of quality, not technology. Unsurprisingly, when the company came a-calling for John Lassiter’s services, one of the Pixar mogul’s first moves was to bring back the classic Disney animated picture.

The Princess And The Frog, a gorgeous old-school picture defined by good looking drawing, Randy Newman and big band tunes, is a fine showcase for the studio’s first African-American princess, some six decades after the embarrassment of Song Of The South. As the picture opens, Tiana’s royalty is far from assured. Like Belle or Ariel, our heroine (Anika Noni Rose) is smart, hardworking and sassy, though her humble origins count against her realising a dream to open her own restaurant. It takes a mischevious hoodoo man to bring our girl in contact with her Prince-to-Be, a vain, posturing lout who is transformed into a frog. Tiana’s kiss, rather than remedying the situation, earns her the same fairytale fate.

This is a film of colour in every sense. Jollied along by Big Band Jazz, gospel, colonial exteriors, Mardi Gras, zydeco and Cajun grotesquerie, it’s a fine return to the fray for Messrs. Clements and Musker, the gentlemen who, decades ago, rescued the studio from mediocrity with The Little Mermaid. Hopefully, this is the last time such services will be required.