The Little Mermaid I & II (Box Set) (DVD)

...time was…and still is *giggle* The Little Mermaid (1989). Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to be Ariel and now at twenty you would think I would have grown out of it…but as you're reading this you soooo know better :). I have, not that I should admit it, all of the Disney movies on VHS (Yes. Every. Single.One.) and was extremely upset when I realised I would be forced to buy them all again due to the DVD. So when it was released…with not ...
...(originally…) The Little Mermaid 2 - Return to the sea, I was extremely excited…

The Little Mermaid - 1989 (2-disc special edition)

- -Story Line- -
The story is lead by the 16 year old headstrong mermaid called Ariel. She is one of King Triton's seven daughters and despite being a princess (Triton's favourite) she still finds herself unsatisfied with the world of Atlantis and the sea. Instead she longs to walk ... more

If you know me then you would know that my favourite movie of all time was…and still is *giggle* The Little Mermaid (1989). Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to be Ariel and now at twenty you would think I would have grown out of it…but as you're reading this you soooo know better :). I have, not that I should admit it, all of the Disney movies on VHS (Yes. Every. Single.One.) and was extremely upset when I realised I would be forced to buy them all again due to the DVD. So when it was released…with not only all the extras but also a SECOND movie titled (originally…) The Little Mermaid 2 - Return to the sea, I was extremely excited…

The Little Mermaid - 1989 (2-disc special edition)

- -Story Line- -
The story is lead by the 16 year old headstrong mermaid called Ariel. She is one of King Triton's seven daughters and despite being a princess (Triton's favourite) she still finds herself unsatisfied with the world of Atlantis and the sea. Instead she longs to walk among those on land and become a human. Her fascination of the 'surface world' has no limit and with her friend Flounder the fish, they search the sea bottom to find anything possible to do with surface people and immediately after take it to Scuttle the seagull who will 'tell' them what each item is. When in full honestly, Scuttle is as clueless as Ariel at what each items does as he creates a new name for a fork - the Dinglehopper. She then returns this to her cave full of all the things she has found. All of this though is forbidden by King Triton himself. There is to be no contact with surface people, going any where near the surface is even a no. But of course Ariel doesn't need rules to live by and continues her quest to find out more. King Triton knows his daughter is defiant and soon worries about her. He then sends Sebastian to watch over her and advise her.

Soon Ariel's thirst is quenches when a ship passes by full of human life, laugher, music and…Eric. Its love at first sight and when everything goes wrong for the men on ship and Eric nearly drowns, Ariel feels compelled to save him and return him to land. Returning to her cave, her father soon finds her and is so furious as Ariel's deliration of love for a human he destroys half of her collection of human things including her statue of Eric.

Of course all movies need bad guys…or in this case a bad girl. Many years ago Ursula (who I think is an octopus/human…thingymabob) was banished from the kingdom by King Triton. For many years Ursula has been watching King Triton and his family to find an opening for the ultimate revenge and finally finds her target - Ariel. She offers Ariel the ability to become human but of course it has a catch. She has till the third day when the sun sets for Eric to give her the kiss of true love - without the aid of the one thing Eric would recognise, her voice.

And so with the aid of Sebastian she starts her quest to gain the love, and kiss of Eric within three days. Filled with love, laughter and deception this story is a true classic that the whole family should love.

- -Main Cast (voices only)- -
Jodi Benson as Ariel
Kenneth Mars as King Triton
Christopher Daniel Barnes as Prince Eric
Jason Marin as Flounder
Samuel E Wright as Sebastian
Buddy Hacket as Scuttle
Pat Carroll as Ursula
Rene Auberjonois as Louis

- -On the DVD- -
The first movie is a two disc special edition so has quite a few things on it

Disc One
Play - The movie itself is also digitally restored - meaning the picture is clearer and brighter then the original. It lasts approximately 89 minutes.
Scene Selection
There are a total of 27 places that you can start/continue to watch the movie.
Bonus Features
>>Music Video "Kiss the girl"<< *Tear* only they could ruin such a good soon. It is sung by Ashley Tisdale, who also recently starred in High School Musical. She makes it more up to date and has her own little school dance theme going on. She totally DESTORYS it. Why?!? They should be a-s-h-a-m-e-d for even thinking they could change it *shakes head in disproval*
>>Disney Song Selection<< This nifty little feature enables you to Play the four main songs of the movie by cutting straight to that bit. The songs are - Part of your world, Under the sea, Les poisons and Kiss the girl. You also have the ability to have the lyrics on the bottom. But to be frank, if you don't know all the words already then…well. I don't want to know you. Hmph!
>>Audio Commentary<<
With Ron Clements (co-writer, Co-director), John Musker (Co-writer, Co-director) and Alan Menken (Composer)
>>Sneak Peak<<
Preview for a couple of movies called Meet the Robinsons and Tinkerbell by Disney Pixar. They BOTH look really good! Of course an advert for the movie of 2006 - High School Musical, an advert for a Disney Princess short movie collection. And a few others things, all Disney related of course.
Set Up
Can be viewed in English, French or Dutch either in language or subtitles.

Disc Two
This is full of a few goodie's and a couple of duds but still worth a look.

Backstage Disney
>>Treasures untold: The making of the little mermaid<< Has five acts. It is basically what it says it is. An insight as to how the movie came about etc.
>>Storm Warning: The little mermaid special effects unit<< Tells you all the little things you didn't know about the movie. For example, did you know that Ariel was the first of the Disney princesses to have a cleavage outline? Or that over 1 million bubbles were drawn during the making of the film…that's a lot of bubbles!!!
>>The story behind the story<< The little mermaid - like most Disney movies, wasn't originally theirs. It has been taken from another story. This is about the original little mermaid and the author.
>>The little match girl<< This is a short story by the man who wrote the little mermaid. Defiantly worth a watch!
There is also an art gallery, early presentation reel and the original theatrical trailer.
Deleted Scenes
There are a total of seven deleted scenes. Each starts with the co-writer John Musker giving an explanation as to why it wasn't chosen and then you see only pictures of what they might have finally finished with voices over the top. Not much fun really.
Games and Activities
There are four different 'Games and activities' to do. I'm telling you now, the word game was used extremely loosely. There is NOTHING interactive to do. All you can do is watch. They are fun for a minute yes but don't be fooled that you can join in.

The Little Mermaid II - Return To The Sea

- -Story Line- -
This story is set a few years after the original film. Ariel and Eric give birth to a beautiful baby girl who the name Melody. To celebrate this, a party is held on a ship far into the sea so that humans and merpeople can attend. Soon the party is gate crashed By Ursula's younger sister Morgana. She wants to avenge her sister and tries to steal the king's triton using Melody as a hostage but fails. Before vanishing in a pool of oil she swears to get them back one day.
Ariel, terrified for her daughter's safety bans all contact for Melody and her family from the merpeople, including her father. She even builds a wall between the castle and the sea so nothing can get in or out. King Triton's last wish is for Sebastian to take care of Melody and so the crab stays on the surface to watch her grow.

We then skip forward to Melody's 12th birthday and as expected she has taken after her defiant mother and has found a way to get to the sea, even with Sebastian constantly in her ear telling her it's dangerous. Melody has found that most of her life she has struggled to get along with people her age but finds comfort with the sea and when one day she finds a locket with her name engraved on the front and with the city of Atlantis hidden within she finally demands answers from Ariel. After not getting the information she wanted, Melody sets out into the sea with Sebastian to find the city of Atlantis and find some answers to who she really is.

Morgana has taken a page out of her sister's book and manages to trick Melody using her weakness. She turns Melody into a mermaid but tells her that with out the Trident, which was stolen from her by King Trident - she will not be a mermaid for much longer. So Melody is sent on a mission to find the Trident, not realising it is a trick for Morgana to gain power over the sea.

The story then follows Melody on her quest to find out where she really belongs and making new friends, Ariel trying to find her daughter by becoming a mermaid again and Morgana trying to get revenge for her sisters' demise.

- -Main Cast - Voices Only)- -
Jodi Benson as Ariel
Samuel E. Wright as Sebastian
Tara Strong as Melody
Pat Carroll as Morgana
Rob Paulsen as Prince Eric
Kenneth Mars as King Triton
Cam Clarke as Flounder
Buddy Hackett as Scuttle
Clancy Brown as Undertow
Max Casella as Tip
Stephen Furst as Dash
Rene Auberjonois as Louis the Chef
Edie McClurg as Carlotta the Maid
Kay E. Kuter as Grimsby the Valet
Frank Welker as Max the Sheepdog

- -On The DVD-
For the second movie there is only one disc. Instead of skipping forward and straight to the movie…wait a minute. You will then see a movie for the little mermaid three!!!
Play
The movie is approximately 72 minutes.
Chapter Selection
There are a total of 19 places that you can start/continue to watch the movie.
Bonus Material
>>The Little Mermaid II Trivia Game<<
Although childish, this game is quite fun. You are asked a question and given three possible answers. If you get it right you hear either a whistle, an audience clapping a xylophone ping, stadium music, people yahooing/wowing or church bells. You also see the scene that you correctly chose. If you get it wrong you hear either a 'bad bell' sound, a trumpet or a fog horn and you get a picky of a bad guy from the movie. You can play until you choose to and just go back by pressing the main menu button. Defiantly a good laugh.
>>The Little Mermaid II DVD Storybook<<
This is just the movie in book form. Would be a good short bed time story. You can either have the story read to you or you can read it by yourself.
>>What am I? Game<<
A screen comes up with the choice of three sea creatures. You then hear a friendly female voice giving a description of the sea creature she is thinking of. It is your aim to guess the correct one. When you get it correct you will hear some interesting facts. For example, did you know there are 270 different types of turtles? If you get it wrong you ill just go to the next one and miss out on all the information. If younger children are playing, they will find this both fun and educational.
Set Up
Can be viewed in English, French or Dutch either in language or subtitles

- -My Opinion- -
Well what can I say except that The Little Mermaid is like the best movie of like all time like ever (sorry for the chavness there but I get quite excited thinking about it all *giggle*). It is packed with loads of extras too. Ok, not all of them are good but the majority is and if you are a fan then the two disc edition for only a couple of quid extra is defiantly the way to go! It is a classic movie that most people will recognise and is always a joy to watch.

The second movie isn't as good as the first but there are very few sequels that are. However, it is still a fantastic movie which I thoroughly enjoyed and have managed to get most of the kids I baby-sit to want to watch it again and again. And if you don't want a happy ever after then you are defiantly picking up the wrong thing, what do you expect? It's Disney!!!

I would recommend this to all families and anyone who loved it originally and would like a little blast to the past…  

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