The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie Review

Underwater.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 2, 2014

For individual reviews of both titles, and additional screenshots, please click through the links below.

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea
The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning

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The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea
Score: 1.5/5.0

Disney's track record is nearly untarnished when it comes to major animated releases -- there are far more good titles than there are bad titles -- but the acclaimed maker of timeless animated films fit for audiences of all ages doesn't have the best of luck when it comes time to shove out a sequel, or two, onto the direct-to-video marketplace. Sequels to classics like Cinderella were met with with some derision by critics, and the trend knows no boundaries, neither land nor shore alike. The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea, the follow-up to the terrific and immensely popular The Little Mermaid, is a dud of a sequel, a tired, slowly paced, and not at all musically catchy follow-up that more or less reverses its predecessor's plot and, at the same time, reverses everything that made the first so good, such as excellent music, enthusiastically performed voice acting, and a dramatically weighty story that perfectly blended humor, heart, action, and drama.

Ariel (voiced by Jodi Benson) and Eric (voiced by Rob Paulsen) are celebrating the birth of their daughter, Melody. All of Ariel's underwater friends and family -- including King Triton (voiced by Kenneth Mars) -- have appeared to join in the festivities. Unfortunately, one invited guest crashes the party: Morgana (voiced by Pat Carroll), sister of Ursula and out to take Triton's powerful trident for herself. Her plot is foiled, but it's enough for the family to worry about Melody's future by throwing away Triton's gift to her -- a pendant meant to reminder her of her mermaid heritage -- and keep her away from the water for the rest of her life. A dozen years pass. Melody (voiced by Tara Charendoff) has become hopelessly attracted to the sea. One day, she discovers the pendant and sets out on a quest to discover her heritage, a quest that could have deadly consequences for all life on shore and under the sea alike.

It's hard to imagine a Disney movie as, well, frankly, boring, but here is a rare film that fits that criteria. The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea lackadaisically sets out with a paper-thin plot that, to be fair, isn't much less than that of the original. But the similarities end there. Whereas the original showed a deeper underbelly of drama -- themes of self-worth, self-confidence, family, and friendship -- none of that is apparent in the sequel, at least not in any meaningful way. In this film, the powerful delivery of emotions -- embodied in a spectacular coordination of voice work and animation in the original -- is left by the wayside in favor of, well, almost nothing of substance. In the original, much of Ariel's screen time was spent while without the ability to verbally communicate her emotions. That necessitated a greater technical polish, a tighter surrounding story script, and reliance on heartfelt feeling to convey messages and win the day. Not so much here. It's not that Melody having a voice is a problem, it's that the voice shares nothing of substance. The audience is left with a shell of an emotional center, one that exists only as far as the simpleminded script allows, not one shaped by inspired talents working with meaningful drama and towards a near perfect animated film.

Indeed, The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea feels rushed in most every way. The animation, for the most part, is solid, but that it becomes a focal point throughout only reinforces the idea that the film's core is lacking anything worth seeing. The voice talent is disappointingly uninspired. Not a single cast member seems to give it his or her all, not the talents portraying Ariel, Melody, Triton, Morgana, or any of the aquatic supporting cast. The main voice cast is comprised of returning members (Jodi Benson as Ariel, Samuel E. Wright as Sebastian, Kenneth Mars as Triton) and new talent replacing old favorites (Rob Paulsen as Prince Eric and Cam Clarke as Flounder) that breathe life into the words but fail to breathe substance into them. The entire film plays with a straightforward cadence embodied in that bland voice work, one that seems content to simply tell the story rather than make sure the audience feels the story and understands its purpose, if there is one beyond selling movies.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning
Score: 2.5/5.0

It's nowhere near as awful as The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea, but The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning frequently gives it a run for its money. Another direct-to-video outing in the popular The Little Mermaid franchise, Director Peggy Holmes' (The Secret of the Wings) prequel Mermaid film sees music banned in the underwater kingdom and some rogue creatures rapping and bopping in secret. Mayhem ensues and anger reaches a boiling point but happily ever after ultimately rules the day. For a movie with so much rhythm, Ariel's Beginning lacks much of a pace, coming across as rather slow footed and incapable of carrying a dramatic beat. While the first film certainly steps all over this one, the littlest of fans should at least find some toe-tapping good times with what is, ultimately, a cut-rate pre-story that accomplishes little more than splashing a few favorite characters across the screen for one more adventure under the sea.

When King Triton's (voiced by Jim Cummings) wife is killed by pirates, all that he has to remember her by is a music box he gave her moments before her demise. Distraught over the loss and heartbroken whenever he hears music, he bans it throughout his underwater kingdom. Ten years later and the waters of Atlantica remain eerily silent. Ariel (voiced by Jodi Benson), one of Triton's daughters and the most rebellious of the bunch, one day stumbles into a secret underground dance hall. When she's caught humming her favorite beat, Triton doubles down on enforcing the law and places his daughters' power-hungry governess, Marina Del Ray (voiced by Sally Field), in charge of making sure it never happens again.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning is, in essence, a Musical about the unifying power of music, a power that can make new friends, heal old wounds, and bring families closer together. It's not at all novel, but it does, at least within its tender bookends, find a spark of the satisfyingly dramatic and the recognizable Disney magic. The open is very well done, establishing a certain mood centered on music and shattering it with a suddenness and sullenness that's heartbreakingly effective but that fails to set the tone for what becomes, sadly, a tedious middle stretch that lacks interesting character construction, character depth, and catchy tunes. The film pushes along through several forgettable and predictable scenes. Its villain lacks the charisma of Ursula and the heinous presence of Morgana. When it reaches the predicable yet sweet conclusion, it finds momentary reprieve and at least allows its audience to walk away from the movie with a smile; it's just a shame the rest of the picture is such a drag.

In short, The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning means well but does't work very well. The classic strings and stirrings captured in the original are largely lost here -- beyond the typically gorgeous Disney animation -- and replaced with oddly constructed and performed "popular" music underneath which can be heard the faint sound of cash registers clinking and clanking in every store around the world. A few tunes are catchy -- certainly more so than the forgettable drivel that defined the series' middle entry -- but lack anything even remotely resembling the quality of classics like Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl. The voice acting isn't quite so insipid as that found in The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea, yet a rather flat script and substandard pacing keep the performances sounding rather dry, anyway. The film is at least visually bright and cheery and enjoys a good selection of front-and-center new and newly defined characters, but never does it even come close to comparing to the power and grace of the original classic in any way.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea
Score: 4.5/5.0

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea does at least feature excellent video. Disney's 1080p transfer delivers bold, exciting colors and sturdy animated details. Ariel's bright red hair, multicolored fish under the sea, golden adornments on human clothes, and even the murky green that surrounds Morgana are all superbly balanced and exacting, lighting up the screen and doing more than any other element in the film to define it. Image clarity is excellent. Lines are smooth and natural, and the Blu-ray resolution brings out the best the animation has to offer even on large displays, including wooden textures, rocky formations, and most every object above and below the sea. The image does suffer from some occasionally light banding, but this is otherwise a picture-perfect Disney transfer in every regard.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning
Score: 4.5/5.0

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning's 1080p transfer is everything one would expect from a top-end Disney Blu-ray release. Colors are cheery and vibrant. Even if there's a lack of color diversity and subtlety -- reds, blues, and greens are all presented as very basic shades here -- they're unmistakably bold and jump off the screen at every opportunity. Details are pleasing. The high definition resolution allows the image to remain stable even on large display surfaces, and viewers will appreciate both clean, even lines and the ability to see with tremendous clarity every animated detail that went into the making of the film. Very light banding pops up along a few backdrops and represents the only real downside to an otherwise pristine transfer.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea
Score: 4.0/5.0

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea arrives on Blu-ray with a good, nicely balanced DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Music is presented admirably, yielding terrific vocal and instrumental clarity with a nice and wide front stage presence but not an excess of back speaker usage. A few heavier action sound effects are sufficiently hefty and nicely fill the stage. Several supporting effects, such as rolling waters or dialogue reverberation in chapter nine, are gently immersive. Dialogue delivery is steady, clearly delivered, and focused in the front-center portion of the soundstage.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning
Score: 4.5/5.0

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning swims onto Blu-ray with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It's perhaps slightly more aggressive and spacious in comparison to the track that accompanies The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea. Here, music is naturally flowing and richly clear, enjoying fine front-end spacing and a subtle and welcoming surround support. Several action effects are appropriately hefty, particularly the pirate "attack" heard near film's start. The track features some welcome and active surround support features, notably inside the underground dance club. An empty club and strummed or tapped instruments result in a quality reverberation through the back, and large crowds inside yield a pleasing din. Dialogue is presented accurately and naturally from the center. Overall, this is a high end soundtrack from Disney.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Little Mermaid II: Return To the Sea
Score: 1.5/5.0

• The Little Mermaid II DVD Storybook (480i, 4:3, 10:09): A reading of the storybook version of the film.
• Deleted Song (480i, 4:3, 1:54): Gonna Get My Wish.
• Classic Animated Short Merbabies (480i, 4:3, 8:36).

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning
Score: 2.0/5.0

• Splashdance: A Dancer's Adventures Under the Sea (480i, window box, 7:23): Director Peggy Holmes leads a brief behind-the-scenes journey through the making of the movie, with an emphasis on the voice acting and the musical theme.
• Deleted Scenes (480i, window box):Sebastian Waking the Girls (1:43) and Ariel Follows Flounder (3:58). Director Peggy Holmes introductions are included.
• Sing Along with the Movie (1080p, 1:17:30): A version of the movie that allows viewers to sing-along with the tunes. Essentially, subtitles turn on only for song lyrics.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning / The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Disney's sequel and prequel to The Little Mermaid inspire little confidence in the studio's ability to approach the quality of the original classic. Both films fail to find the sort of meaningful drama and catchy music that made the original such a memorable picture. Ariel's Beginning isn't awful, but neither is it great. Return To the Sea, on the other hand, is a giant missed opportunity for something significantly better and is easily the worst film of the trilogy. Disney's Blu-ray releases do deliver high end video, excellent audio, and several supplements. Still, these release don't come recommended.