The mixed reaction to the color version of ‘The Little Mermaid’ is criticized for being poor
The film follows Ariel, the youngest son of King Triton, who possesses a captivating voice. Under the control of his father, he longs to live freely and has a special interest in the terrestrial world. By chance, one night, Ariel saves Prince Eric from a shipwreck and falls in love with him.
Despite her father’s opposition, Ariel is determined to pursue her dream. Ursula the witch lured her to change her voice and gain deadly legs. From here, Ariel embarks on a journey to explore the world, winning the heart of the handsome prince.
A scene of the movie Siren live-action version (Image: Disney).
Many newspapers praise Siren The live action version is faithful to the original. In particular, the music of the film with a series of legendary songs such as Part of Your World, Kiss the Girl, Unknown Wild Waters or Under the Sea… they are all very impressive. Most of these songs are performed by the lead actress Halle Bailey. Experts highly appreciate the performance and voice of the black singer.
Ellen E Jones of The Guardian commented: “THEAlle Bailey, with her big round eyes, high-pitched voice, and pure soul, makes her character so natural. So it’s ironic that her role as Ariel was controversial.”
Movie Siren announced its implementation plan starting in 2021. However, in the last two years, the creation of the Ariel character has created many controversies on social networks. The director’s choice of a black actress to play the mermaid Ariel, far from the original, caused a stir.
Halle Bailey caused controversy by playing the mermaid Ariel (Image: Disney).
The “mermaid” Halle Bailey has brown skin and the braided hairstyle typical of many African girls. Last year, when the first trailer for the movie was released, she became the hot topic of discussion online. After just 2 days of its release, the commercial for the film has received over 9 million views, over 300,000 likes but over 1.3 million “dislikes”. This number is increasing day by day, making the Walt Disney Studios YouTube channel hide the number of dislikes.
Many opinions say that the black artist Halle Bailey is not suitable for the role of the mermaid Ariel. “WOMENthere is no innocence in the image of Ariel”, “The color of the film is too dark and the characters are not bright”, “I was really disappointed when I saw the appearance of the mermaid Ariel, the prince was also not what I expected”... is the opinion about the film.
Critic D. Jeremy commented, “To attribute a Nordic cultural character to an African-American actor is an infringement on the culture of people of color. Because of the way people of African descent portray themselves, closeness through music, love, social history are all different and unrelated to the origin and context of the birth of the mermaid character.”
In the animated version, the mermaid has her characteristic red hair, smooth skin, and bright white, but in the live version, this famous character has brown hair, fluff, and dark skin.
Critics praised Halle Bailey’s voice and effort in playing the mermaid Ariel (Image: Disney)
However, contrary to the reaction of the audience, the film director stated, Halle Bailey is the right choice for the role of the mermaid Ariel. Mermaid director Rob Marshall finds a rare combination of spirit, heart, youth, innocence, and temper in Halle Bailey. According to him, these are the intrinsic elements necessary to play the iconic role of her.
Director Rob Marshall said: “Bailey has a very good ability to dig deep into Ariel’s search for passion and true love. I saw a great actor born.”
Director Rob Marshall first discovered Halle Bailey at the 2019 Grammy Awards while watching her perform the song. Where is the love? of her and her sister – Chloe. He was fascinated by the crystal clear voice of the young star. So, he invited her to audition for the role of The Little Mermaid performing her character’s song: Part of Your World.
“The moment Bailey sings, all the best of the original is recreated. The best feeling in the movie is not only the crystal voice of her but also the emotion of her when she sings”shared Director Marshall.
True to director Marshall’s comments, The Wrap also praised the black voice: “Bailey brings a realistic version of Ariel, different from the cartoon mermaid. Her voice perfectly matches the innocent and sweet nature of her character. There’s no question that Bailey’s performance is the film’s biggest draw.”
A scene from the movie The Little Mermaid (Photo: Disney).
Many critics said that the 2000-born singer had many moments to shine on the big screen, showing off her positive spirit and energy. And the natural voice that makes Halle Bailey’s Ariel different from all other versions.
Sharing before The Little Mermaid officially debuted before the audience, Halle Bailey said: “I only focus on the positivity and the beautiful reactions. The big goal is to help children of color see themselves and understand that they deserve good things. Such a special moment makes me feel like I’m doing the right thing and in the right place.”
On review site Rotten Tomatoes, The Little Mermaid currently receives a score of 72% from 119 critics, earning the “fresh tomato” certification. In addition to the music, the image is also a bright spot not to be missed in the film. The highlight of the film is the vivid and attractive image of the underwater world.
However, there is still some dissatisfaction with the live version of The Little Mermaid. The AP’s Lindsey Bahr called The Little Mermaid “a disappointment”. She said that the film still made the same script mistakes as many previous Disney projects.
“The Little Mermaid” Halle Bailey on the day of the film’s US release (Image: Getty Images).
Critic Justin Chang said that The Little Mermaid (in 2023) is far from the original. While New York Post critic Johnny Oleksinski expressed his disappointment with the soundtrack. According to Hindustantimes, the live-action version of The Little Mermaid is bland, empty, and devoid of emphasis.
In addition to young star Halle Bailey, the live-action version of The Little Mermaid also stars Jonah Hauer-King (as Eric), Melissa McCarthy (as Ursula), Javier Bardem (as King Triton)… The actors from dubbing, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian the Crab, Awkwafina as Scuttle the Bird, and Jacob Tremblay as the Flounder Fish.
Box office for The Little Mermaid in the US and Canada is expected to reach $120-125 million and around $200+ million worldwide. The film will be officially released on May 26.
According to Dan Tri
at Thuvienpc.com – Source: 2sao.vn
