"Up where they walk, up where they run, up where they stay all day in the sun."

[nausicaa83]

I finally got The Little Mermaid bluray! The Little Mermaid was the first movie I ever saw in a cinema, back when I was 6. I still remember that afternoon as it was yesterday. My father cried all through the ending, and when we bought the VHS he made us watch it thousands of times. We had the soundtrack on tape, the sticker album, the dolls. When he set a dolby surround system in our living room the seagulls were the first sound we ever heard on those beloved, enormous speakers. Hope this intro can give you a glimpse of what that movie means to me.



So this afternoon I grabbed a bowl of yogurt, sat on my favourite armchair, and proceeded to be completely blown away. Besides the obvious (the original aspect ratio, instead of the VHS one, the soundtrack loud and clear in every scene), I wasn't expecting all those details, the raindrops, the grains of sand, the paintings in the castle. There was a lot of crying, obviously, but also such a warm feeling, like meeting a part of me that I had long forgotten.

And now, on to That Scene. In case you haven't heard, this bluray version comes with an 'error'. At the end of Part of Your World, in the cave, two shots are inverted. Here's a video to show you the difference:

Now, I read about this a few days ago. At first, judging from everyone's anger and the scandalized reviews, I thought the entire scene was mirrored, or something crazy like that. Then I found the video. I saw the error, it was weird, but not as tragic as I thought. I thought I would just cringe for a moment, and then go on with the movie. There was one thing, though: ever since I was a kid, that shot of Flounder bothered me. I thought it ruined the scene, that was supposed to be all about Ariel. Yes, I noticed that kind of stuff when I was a kid. Details were everything to me - don't get me started on continuity errors or dubbing mistakes, I was a nitpicking nightmare.

Anyway! When I sat down and watched the scene, I held my breath the whole time. I knew it was coming, I was worried. And then the scene happened, and it was better than the original. There, I said it. I know, I'm a purist, I should be horrified too, but I can't lie here, the scene flows better this way. It just does. I have no idea why they decided to wait so long to change that detail, but it doesn't bother me at all, if anything I like it. It's crazy, I know.

Anyway, my advice is, BUY IT. Definitely buy it. The quality is amazing, just like it was back in 1989, it's like time-travelling to our childhood. And if that little change bothers you, it's so minor you won't actually notice it at all. You'll be too busy marvelling at all the details in Ariel's cave anyway. ;)

E per gli amici italiani, il doppiaggio è quello originale, del cinema e della prima versione vhs. Niente ridoppiaggi cretini con la voce della serie tv, grazie al cielo. *____*

Comments

[sunshine1112.livejournal.com]

I love the little mermaid. I saw it at the cinema, I think it came out 1989, which makes me 9. The first film I saw at the cinema is the jungle book. I have to but the DVD of the little mermaid. Now.

[frozen_delight]

I know just how you feel - though my first cinema experience was The Lion King a couple of years later. Those Disney films from our childhood are just so good, aren't they? I think I need to buy that DVD, too. :)

Oh, and I simply love your Robin Hood icon! :)

[tati81.livejournal.com]

Mah ti dirò, è strano, averlo visto sempre in un modo e poi confrontarlo...però non è sto gran cambiamento... quello della scena invertita intendo.

[7veilsphaedra.livejournal.com]

The Little Mermaid marked a huge and welcome change for Disney, although it was part of the stream of changes that had been gradually evolving with Don Bluth's work and The Adventurers Down Under, which is to say, a lot more casual and connected to modern times, a lot less slavish about classic depictions of fairy tales. Later on, I found the adult subtext and modern-era sensibilities started outweighing the important point of providing innocent delight to children in some of the later movies, and of course, I never knew about Sea-Witch Ursula being a cypher for drag queens, since I had no idea she had been portrayed by Divine. But for one brief shining moment ....

[stardust-made.livejournal.com]

Oh God, that looks so amazing on your (awesome) TV! I cannot WAIT to finally have my flat's expenses sorted out one day, so I can start saving for glorious things such as this. For me, it's a bit of a reverse experience to yours, but only in one sense: I was the 'grown up' in the equation, watching all of these with my little sister who is a year younger than you. Much like for you, it's an intensely rich emotional memory of both the films and the shared experience.:)

I now want to buy ALL of them on Bluray - having the player and my own awesome TV, I think it'll be like a major journey of re-discovery and re-connection to the past. 'Ariel' and 'Aladdin' are the two films I remember we watched the most and there were books, dolls and stickers involved.:)