MovieChat Forums > Anderusen dôwa ningyo-hime (1978) Discussion > This Little Mermaid Vs Disney

This Little Mermaid Vs Disney

posted 17 years ago by cosmolu
14 replies | jump to latest

I can’t believe that Disney would remake such a beautiful story into such rubbish. I am being absolutely serious as well.

Where most people find that The Little Mermaid is a violent story, not intended for children, I have to disagree. Han’s Christian Anderson’s fairy tales are beautiful for what they are. Let me give an example. For everyone who has also read the fairy tales of the Grimm Brothers as well, then this will all make sense. For the story of Cinderella, the Grimm brothers wrote about a girl who was abused at the hands of cruel stepfamily. Later this same family, trying to fit into the glass slipper of Cinderella’s, cut off part’s of their foot to actually fit in the slipper, only later to be given away by the birds in the tree’s singing about the pool of blood at the stepsisters feet. Though it is a very gruesome tale when you analyze it, it is something of a beautiful tale of good prevailing over evil.

A lot of fairy tales of the time period are just that way. Unlike most, The Little Mermaid is a story of unrequited love and anguish, but that is just one way of seeing it. It is a very beautiful tale the way it is, and should not have been tampered with. Disney makes it into a cruel joke, completely changing the anguish the little mermaid feels and giving her a happy ending. Shouldn’t they be ashamed of themselves?

[–] countess_D84 17 years ago

We're talkin' about DISNEY, who doesn't care about the actual story of the little mermaid, because that's business to them.

But I HIGHLY agree with what you're saying. The anime version of the little mermaid was WAY better, changed a little bit, but more faithful to the story, unlike Disney who's so hell bent to put a happy-ending to a tragic story.

[–] bwtwilightman 17 years ago

What most people don't understand is Disney's version is an INTERPRETATION of the story. They took some of the elements of the story and worked it to fit their needs and their version turned out really nice and resurrected their animation division. I find both stories fantastic.

PS one thing I find that most people don't grasp is that different writers come up with stories to pitch to Disney Ron Clements and John Musker read the story and pitched it to Disney and made their own changes and presented that to Disney. So don't put the blame if there is any on the company itself but it's the writers of each film that come up with their version of a story.

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] baleful_beauty 16 years ago

I'm not upset with how the Disney one ended. It was nice that the mermaid got her man in one version of the story....

I watched this again and I really do love it, but they're both great.

"You have me. And I have you." Hyde
http://www.petitiononline.com/setoshow/

[–] chaconmcfly 17 years ago

Couldn't agree more, I love the original version, the beauty of what real love is willing to do.
The Han's story is poetry, tragedy that inspires, walt disney is just that, a selling machine, unfortunally this world isn't ready to accept that there is good in bad, and bad in good. Meaning when a wise man points to the moon, the stupid looks a the finger.

[–] fantasyescapist 17 years ago

I like both versions, but I prefer the Disney one more, mainly for the character Ariel herself and others, the plot and the songs, sorry.

The dolphin in the one annoyed me alot! Argh, as soon as he starts talking in scenes I'm can't wait for him to shutup, while I never think that with Flounder or Sebastian or even Scuttle.

Also in this version, the Prince just seems so ... heartless. Oh well, maybe it's like that in the original fairy tale, I wouldn't know.

"The only thing Bond will be fighting is HIV" - Frankie Boyle, Mock The Week.

[–] baleful_beauty 17 years ago

The Prince was more...clueless to me. But that's like he is in the original fairy tale.

Well, I just saw this the other day, and I've got to say, I love both this and the Disney version. I think both are beautiful. However, I like how this was more faithful to the fairy tale. But I do love the music in the Disney one...

SIGN THIS NOW!!! *please*
http://www.petitiononline.com/setoshow/

[–] dbzgal04 16 years ago

I was 13 when I first read the original Little Mermaid. So although I wasn't a small child, it still traumatized me. I guess both this one and the Disney version have their ups and downs. I think the main thing I like about this one is that it turns out the sea witch really isn't all that bad after all.

Gunner of Team Captain Jack Sparrow. Savvy?

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] wanderingseth 15 years ago

Bravo. I concur heartily. I grew up on Disney's Little Mermaid and they were only continuing the longstanding tradition of slowly sanitizing brutal folktales into family friendly fairy-tales to belong in a society that is supposedly founded less on a brutal system of survival and poetic justice. The original tale is special to me, but each stands as excellent in its own right.

[–] sarbear82 14 years ago

Disney makes great musical cartoons, and they are entertaining...but they suck the fiber out of these age old tales. Granted they may need to be toned down a bit but fairy tales are intended to entertain and in some instances, scare the crap out of kids in order to teach valuable lessons. I'm sorry but the Disney mermaid making a deal with the devil, trying to renege on the deal, and then getting everything she wants in the end teaches kids nothing. The moral of H.C.A. mermaid is that she accepts the consequences of her actions, because a cursed life was more liveable than the life of guilt without her prince. I'm sorry but kids need some morals and life lessons. It would be nice if there could always a happy ending but that's just not how life is...

[–] mowglidavid 12 years ago

All of you shut it. Disney made fairy tales populer while I like this movie alot it isn't in the same class as the Disney version which is far supiror alright beauty and the beast was better but come on Disney is associated with fairytales

[–] 12 years ago

[deleted]