In honor of Mardi Gras I thought I would take an opportunity to gloat about New Orleans’s Super Bowl victory.
Okay, now that the gloating is over, I would like to tip my have to New Orleans in another way. By, praising Disney’s new film, “The Princess and the Frog”. Now, I see a lot of movies… before kids, I used to go to the movies at least once a week… but now? Well… I’ve only been to the theatre a handful of times in the last twelve months… and most of the time they are to see children’s movies with Grayson… some good, some okay, some not so good. But, in the realm of children’s movies, “The Princess and the Frog” is excellent. It was an interesting balance of Tennessee Williams, August Wilson, and Classic Walt Disney. Two thumbs up
In my movie geek opinion, if Pixar’s “Up” wasn’t in the running for the “Best Animated Film” Oscar, “The Princess and the Frog” would be the hands down winner. The positive press surrounding the film is warranted. Gone are the days of Brother Bear… This is a solid film with a solid script, more reminiscent of how Disney used to make films.
It borrows a lot of elements and is pretty self aware about it, even including the classic “Frog Prince” fable, which wasn't just a theme skirted around, but a major story element front and center. It was complete with John Goodman’s character being called “Big Daddy” and shouting “Stella” at the top of his lungs… it was a cheap joke, but still made me laugh. On the other hand, it’s homage to jazz-era New Orleans was beautiful and Terrance Howard (from Hustle and Flow) should teach classes in voice acting. His cameo as the hard working father who is motivated only by his love for his family was moving. And the more classic Disney elements like the Jazz trumpet playing Gator and the Cajan, Zydico playing, Fireflies reminded me of “Jungle Book”… while also capturing a love story reminiscent to “Cinderella”.
For my friends with kids, this is a must see movie.
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