THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG: 2D animation returns to Disney

In 1934, Walt Disney – an optimistic 34 year old – finally presented the world with something he’d been dreaming about for years.  A feature length animated film.  The result as we all know, was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  Snow White marked the true beginning of the Disney Empire, its huge success allowing Walt to continue doing what he loved, entertaining people, expanding his brand name not only to animated works, but to live action films, theme parks and television shows.  It’s almost impossible to separate the man from the corporate machine that we’re so used to seeing and hearing these days, but once upon a time, that’s all he was;  A man with a love for animation, and a dream to share it.
This dream lived on for decades, well passed Walt’s death in 1966 and although there were a few hiccups along the way – in the 80s, Walt Disney animation were producing a series of financial disasters.  This was fixed by the string of hits in the early 90s however – the studio continued to create films that inspired people around the world.

All of this somewhat came to a stop in 1995, when the first fully computer animated feature was released; Pixar Animation Studios Toy Story. As we all know, the film was a critical and financial success, throwing Pixar into the spotlight and allowing them to continue working on features.
This is it!  The new way to make animated films! Cried the press, Computers are the future! Every man and his dog now wanted to have a piece of the CGI pie, including the executives at Disney.  Very few seemed to realize that Toy Story’s success and staying power was not really the result of the new technology, bur rather, the brilliant storytelling and characters that Pixar were able to develop.  John Lasseter – director of Toy Story and Chief Creative Officer at Pixar – has always stood by this notion;

“From the beginning, I kept saying it’s not the technology that’s going to entertain audiences, it’s the story. When you go and see a really great live-action film, you don’t walk out and say ‘that new Panavision camera was staggering, it made the film so good’. The computer is a tool, and it’s in the service of the story”

Unfortunately, animation executives didn’t seem to notice this.  CGI was earning them millions of dollars, they weren’t about to slow down its production.  Fair enough, from a certain point of view, but ultimately 2D features started to suffer.  For the most part, they stopped receiving funding (or had budgets cut severely) .  Most studios shut down their 2D departments, favoring 3D instead.  Disney continued to try throughout the 90s, offering films like Hercules, Tarzan and Lilo and Stitch – some of these were decent films, but none of them seemed to capture the magic, or heart, of their earlier counterparts.  Ultimately, after the financial and critical flop of Home on the Range in 2004, for the first time ever since Walt released Snow White in 1934, the 2D department of Disney Animation was shut down.
People up high (the important men in suits) blamed 3D; thinking that the world had moved on.  No one wanted to see 2D features anymore, not from Disney.

So what’s the point of this history lesson?
Well, The Princess and the Frog is currently screening in theatres, and it’s the first 2D animated feature to come out of Disney in 5 years.  Ironically, it was John Lasseter who helped to resurrect 2D animation at the studio.  In 2006, he was appointed chief creative officer at both Pixar and Disney, one of his first decisions (never forgetting where his inspiration came from) was to re-open the 2D department.  The Princess and the Frog is the first film to be released since the reopening, and it doesn’t disappoint.

The story (based loosely on E.D Baker’s novel The Frog Princess) is set in a 1930s New Orleans and centers around a hard working waitress named Tiana, who is saving her money furiously in an effort to create her own restaurant; a dream that started with her father, now deceased.  Unfortunately, this dream is cut short when she runs into Prince Naveen, who just so happens to be a frog.  Following the rules of all good fairytales, Tiana kisses the frog, hoping to turn him back into his handsome self, and get a nice reward for her efforts.  The kiss has the opposite effect however, with Tiana finding herself transformed into a frog.  Together, the pair travel deep into the New Orleans wilderness to find Mama Odie, an expert in voodoo, in the hopes that she can turn them back to human.
They discover some new friends along the way, a jazz loving Alligator named Louis, and Ray, a Cajun firefly, while learning some valuable lessons (of course!) about what it really means to be human.

The story is quite typical for a Disney fairytale, and you can probably guess how the film turns out just from reading a synopsis.  Where this film really strong – in terms of narrative – is with the characters.  None of them feel like they were placed into the story simply for marketing purposes, all of them have been well written, with their own arch’s, to push the story forward.    Tiana herself is far removed from the rather helpless Snow White of decades ago, she’s an extremely independent woman, focusing her entire life (almost to a fault) on her desire to own a restaurant.
Thankfully the script does not enter into ‘pop culture reference’ territory, which is usually a sign that the writers are going for a cheap laugh *cough* I’m looking at YOU Dreamworks *cough*.  The story never feels rushed, it takes time to develop characters.  This is a welcome change to the usual bang-bang-bang pace of most family fare these days.
The second act of the film doesn’t quite match up to the first and third, it’s a little too slow in parts and will no doubt leave the younger audience members squirming in their seats.  It never gets boring though, and by the time the little ones are about to ask you ‘what’s happening?’ it kicks into gear again.

So the narrative, although somewhat formulaic, is strong nonetheless.  Where The Princess and the Frog really shines though, is the animation.  From beginning to end, it’s a brilliant celebration of 2D animation and no doubt one of the most beautiful films to come out within the past year, hands down.  It’s most likely just the geek in me, but I was so happy just to be watching a 2D feature from Disney again.  Sure, it’s nostalgia. But I think it’s also more than that, there’s something almost tangible about 2D animation that you simply don’t get with 3D – the same can be said for stop motion.  You can almost feel the artist drawing each frame, and it’s so nice to sit back and watch these guys at work.  There are digital effects present, of course, but these are used simply to enhance the atmosphere and never to say Look!  We can use a computer! Weeeee!

The music and songs, both composed and written by Randy Newman (you’d no doubt recognize his work from the Toy Story films) are celebrations of Jazz.  The songs are fast, energetic and very catchy.  While they never quite reach the inspirational levels of something from The Lion King, they fit the atmosphere of The Princess and the Frog quite well.  The score is likewise, with a lot of brass and catchy bass to help drive the action, coupled with the usual string and piano for the emotional aspects.  Randy Newman never disappoints and this score is no exception, even if it isn’t his best work.

I do not wish to seem biased, because although it is the return 2D animation, it could have just as easily been terrible.  There is a lot resting on this film. If it doesn’t succeed financially, then it will be harder for executives to justify more 2D features.  Thankfully, it delivers.  As with all good family films, there is something for everyone to enjoy here and while it may not reach the inspirational heights of something like Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King.  It sits nicely near them.  A perfect film for the summer holidays here in Australia, and a solid return for Disney Animation.  Let’s just make the wait a little shorter next time, eh guys?

THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
score: 70/100

[Note:  I’m well aware that 2D features have been made by other studios in recent years, but this piece is focused only on Disney]