The first votes for “Arielle, the mermaid” are here: is the remake as good as the animated classic?

The first voices in the remake of “The Little Mermaid” especially emphasize lead actress Halle Bailey and give the impression that everyone looking forward to the film should keep this expectation high.

However, as always with early Twitter comments, the few characters tend to focus on the positives, which can make them sound a bit more exuberant than later reviews. A tweet from Steven Weintraub seems to point in just that direction likes “Arielle” a lot, other than praising the “great” leading lady Halle Baileybut also ended his tweet with a “But…”:

Anyone who thinks that they omit the negative aspects of the film itself is mistaken. Weintraub complains that the new movie doesn’t respect the original enough because Ron Clements and John Musker, the team behind 1989’s “The Little Mermaid,” are so hidden in the credits. But he has no problems with the film itself.

The comparison with the animated film “Arielle, the mermaid” will, of course, be quite common – including in the first voices. Disney expert Kirsten Acuna criticized that a “paint by number remake that isn’t quite as good as the animated masterpiece”.

Her colleague Zoë Rose Bryant, on the other hand, is very enthusiastic that the new “Arielle” retains the “heart and soul” of the original, but rises above it – thanks to the performance of lead actress Halle Bailey.

As mentioned at the beginning, this is showered with praise in numerous voices we were able to find. Matt Neglia, who doesn’t seem to be thrilled with all the visual effects, explains how Bailey “amazed” him:

And for Perri Nemiroff is Bailey’s performance “flawless”with plenty of other cast members also earning her praise:

“The Little Mermaid” will certainly not only be compared to the original, but also to all the many other Disney live-action remakes of the recent past. For Erik Davis, “Arielle” is like that “definitely one of the better live-action adaptations” (again with credit to Bailey), …

…while Felicia Wade even made the movie “up close and personal with the best live-action Disney movie”.though she is one of the few voices not completely convinced by the villain (Melissa McCarthy as Ursula).

Germain Lussier summarizes the very different first voices well, for whom it is “very simple”: If you are looking forward to “Arielle”, you will like the movie. Those who are skeptical will likely see their skepticism confirmed.

“Arielle the mermaid‘ will hit theaters on May 25, 2023.

The well-known story, loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Little Mermaid, about a seamaid who wants to know what it’s like on land and falls in love with a human prince, was adapted by Rob Marshall (“Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Chicago).

The music was contributed by legend Alan Menken, who also wrote the 1989 original, along with Lin-Manuel Miranda. They not only updated the songs of the classic, but also wrote some new ones. With a running time of about 2 hours and 15 minutes, the remake is also significantly longer than the original, which only lasted 1 hour and 23 minutes.