Disney the Princess and the Frog Script

The Walt Disney Company recently revealed that it will alter the theme of its classic attraction, Splash Mountain.

Disney wants to remove all connections to the shameful Song of the South. In its place, Imagineers will add story elements from an early 2000s classics.

So, I've decided to take another look at this charming film. Here's my review of The Princess and the Frog.

The Idea

You may not know the names of Ron Clements and John Musker, but you certainly know their work.

The two men have teamed on marvelous animated features like Hercules, Aladdin, and The Little Mermaid.

Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

More recently, Clements and Musker co-directed Moana, one of the most popular Disney animated movies of the past quarter-century.

These gentlemen are Disney royalty, and their work has had wide-ranging implications for the animated industry.

Their work also shows that Disney's timeless animated classics share the same DNA.

A Disney scribe takes a fable and modernizes it enough to make it relatable to current audiences.

With 2009's release of The Princess and the Frog, the directors did the opposite.

Writer Rob Edwards, who had previously worked with Clements and Musker on Treasure Planet, came up with a sublime twist.

Edwards took the notion of a kissed frog turning into a prince and reversed it.

What if the frog and woman kissed, and the fairytale took a different turn?

Yes, the premise of this film is that when women kiss frogs – and you really shouldn't do this – they turn into frogs rather than the amphibians becoming princes.

Logic dictates this, as there aren't a lot of princes around, but there are frogs aplenty.

The Story

Edwards' script deftly delivers before and after sections to the story. During an introductory scene from childhood, Tiana, the protagonist, is a dreamer.

Her mother, Eudora, is a dressmaker who designs Disney Princess-style outfits.

Her main client is Charlotte La Bouff, a spoiled but kind girl whose father, Eli, is a local bigwig.

Tiana and Charlotte, aka Lottie, spend a lot of time together as children while Eudora creates masterpieces.

Charlotte innocently dreams of growing up and becoming a princess, while Tiana lives/loves to cook for her neighbors.

Tragedy strikes when Tiana's doting father passes away before he can buy the restaurant he's always wanted.

The main story skips forward until Tiana is a hard-working adult trying to scrounge up enough money to achieve her father's lifelong dream.

Early in the film, Tiana finally has enough money to reach her goal, and Lottie discovers that a bona fide prince is coming to town.

In one fell swoop, both women appear likely to achieve their dreams. Then, Prince Naveen arrives, and all plans fall apart.

Naveen encounters the nefarious Dr. Facilier, whom Tiana calls the Shadow Man, who turns the prince into a frog.

Then, Tiana tries to kiss him back into human form, only to have the reverse happen. They become frogs trying to survive in the Louisiana bayou.

Along the way, they encounter a musical gator and a Cajun firefly plus a two-hundred-year-old voodoo priestess.

Since the movie's setting is New Orleans, Cajun cuisine and jazz music play a significant role.

The entirety of The Princess and the Frog plays out as a love letter to N'awlins.

The Cast: The Leads

As the first African-American Disney Princess, the character of Tiana is of fundamental importance.

Disney pulled off a masterstroke in hiring Anika Noni Rose, who had recently starred in Dreamgirls, which had won two Academy Awards.

Photo by Emile Wamsteker/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Rose was only 36 at the time, but she'd already won a Tony by this point.

As Tiana, Rose somehow imbues the character with grace and virtue but also fire and steel.

Tiana isn't a passive Disney Princess; she's a go-getter who will do whatever it takes to make her dreams come true.

Disney executives were so thrilled with her performance that she became a Disney Legend in 2011, less than two years after the film's release.

The more questionable choice in hindsight was Bruno Campos as Prince Naveen.

Our society is currently reconsidering the idea of voice actors portraying characters of different nationalities. So, this article merits some thought.

However, I must admit that I find Campos delightful in the role. He's somehow utterly inept but charming in his incompetence.

The Cast: Supporting Characters

Comic relief characters are often crucial to animated classics, and this title has three terrific ones.

Michael Leon-Wooley turns a trumpet-playing gator into the most plausible outcast imaginable, while voice legend Jim Cummings charms as Ray the firefly.

Then, there's Jenifer Lewis as Mama Odie, the blind voodoo priestess who is seemingly all-knowing.

This character is my favorite in the movie, as Lewis sounds like she's having the time of her life.

Of course, the other star of the film is Keith David as the nefarious Shadow Man.

David's voice has always worked perfectly in menacing roles, but Dr. Facilier represents the pinnacle of his career.

When Walt Disney World operated Club Villain a few years ago, the Shadow Man was the host.

Park officials chose him due to his popularity as arguably the best 21^st century Disney bad guy.

Finally, you know that the movie is good if I can say this much about the voicework without mentioning John Goodman and Oprah Winfrey, both of whom appear.

The Review

"You know the thing about good food? It brings folks together from all walks of life. It warms them right up, and it puts little smiles on their faces."

This quote from early in the film sets the tone. At its core, The Princess and the Frog's story embraces community, acceptance, and drive.

Tiana embodies a more empowered kind of Disney Princess. She forces the action rather than reacting to others.

Prince Naveen, on the other hand, is kind of a bimbo. What kind of prince follows a stranger into a dark alley? An idiot, that's who.

I mean, it's Mardi Gras during the film! The regular streets have plenty of entertainment!

From a meta-perspective, the movie delivers everything you'd expect from an animated Disney classic.

The songs are outlandish, especially the devilish Friends on the Other Side. And Rose's singing gift is on full display in Almost There.

Even Dig a Little Deeper is a thematically fitting toe-tapper that may have added importance in future years.

Disney will re-theme Splash Mountain to this movie. While re-watching The Princess and the Frog, I found myself debating the best good-bye song for the ride.

Currently, Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah sends splashed sailors off with a smile.

Dig a Little Deeper would be a fitting replacement, although Down in New Orleans is probably the leader in the clubhouse.

Final Thoughts

Beyond the music, the animated version of New Orleans is stunning. Disney has announced the intent to create Tiana's Restaurant at an upcoming resort.

Toward the end of the movie, Dr. Facilier offers our heroine a way to bring her dream to life.

At this moment, Tiana's Restaurant is real, and I audibly gasped in realizing how beautiful a real-world version of the place would be.

I wanted to eat there. Specifically, I wanted a table on the second-floor balcony overlooking the dance floor.

(Photo illustration, Disney)

That level of detail is something we take for granted with Disney animation, but it seems especially laudable with The Princess and the Frog.

Animators have embraced the old-world elegance of New Orleans while bringing to life its voodoo realm, too.

The storyline of The Princess and the Frog is impeccably satisfying. There's even a death, a noble sacrifice, in the film, a rarity for Disney films.

Also, Edwards' script avoids any clichés about female friends fighting or class issues dividing Tiana and the La Bouffs.

They're family, and Lottie demonstrates this with a selfless act at the end.

Virtually everyone in this movie demonstrates high character and innate decency.

That's what I expect from Disney cinema, and it's why I consider The Princess and the Frog to be one of the most underrated Disney animated movies of the past half-century.

This is an A+ movie that will bring you happiness and warmth on a day when you need escapist entertainment.

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Disney the Princess and the Frog Script

Source: https://mickeyblog.com/2020/07/06/a-riveting-look-back-at-the-princess-and-the-frog/

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