The Princess and the Frog – Blu-ray Review

The Film:

When Disney announced that they were returning to cell animation, it felt like they were going to make a quaint homage to their classics of yesteryear. For the past decade, cell animation has been regulated to TV shows, and for the theatrical films, computer animation has been the medium of choice. To think, a whole generation of kids growing up on computer animated films. I imagine they would initially think that what we call traditional animation, 2-D cell animation, is some old relic that Disney dusted off for a second. That’s a shame, because it’s not that styles die, it’s that film makers forget how to use them properly. Leave it to Disney to show why they are the once and future kings of cell animation. The Princess and the Frog is not just a return to glory days for the studio, but a superb, borderline masterpiece.

It always comes down to storytelling. No matter the style or medium, if your story isn’t that interesting, then your film isn’t going to succeed. I think that’s what happened to Disney in the late 1990s, after delivering classic after classic with The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and Lion King, their films lost a little heart, and were just average stories without much hoopla to them. Don’t get me wrong, I think Brother Bear is a bit under appreciated, yet something like Atlantis felt too un-Disney for a lot of us. Then came Pixar. The whole game changed, because those last few cell animated films flopped, and Pixar’s use of computer animated films delivered at the box office, signaling an unfair death toll for cell animation. But it came down to stories. Pixar understood the formula of great storytelling, and those latter films did not.

The Princess and the Frog is a warm-hearted, play on the Disney Princess story archetype, as well as the classic story of a prince who became a frog. Tiana is a unique female character in the Disney universe, and I’m not saying that because of her race, the much talked about first Disney Princess that is African-American. I think it’s unfair to really comment on that. For one, anything mentioned about her race, or the fact that it has taken this long for Disney to have a character like her, is shortsightedness, and maybe a little bit ignorant. I don’t doubt a post-Obama world helped, but in the end, the simple mention of this feels outdated and besides the point. She is a smart, independent woman, who believes in hard work and the power of the self. While more progressive, than she should be, a woman in the ’20s, it’s a powerful statement, and a source of inspiration.

The constant play on the traditional Walt Disney formula for the so-called Princess films here in The Princess and the Frog makes the film feel smart and alive. The New Orleans, Depression Era setting has some flavor to formula, as well as housing some great secondary characters, a Disney trademark. But aspect of these films, seemingly now forgotten in our animated world of today, is the songs. Songs return, and they are electric, catchy, and wholesome. When I first visited New Orleans, the warmth of the people and their great food, felt like going to Grandma’s house for welcomed visit. The Princess and the Frog is a return to form, not in style or medium, but in terms of great Disney film making.

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: Is there anyone better than Disney (Criterion aside) about releasing films on Blu? This transfer is perhaps more vibrant and gorgeous on high-def than when I saw it theatrically. Each color pops and is vivid. The film is naturally a colorful film, but the transfer really showcases this aspect. Color is the showcase of the transfer and the mastering was really up to the task. The black levels are thick as ink, a plus, and this is, all things considered, a flawless presentation. The audio is as alive as it is on Bourbon Street, with a blitz of sound effects and music coming in from all channels, bass is rich, and despite all of the noise, it never hampers the dialogue or overall track. Well done, again, by the Mouse House.

Commentary: The co-directors and producer are featured on this great, focused, informative track. They never tire on chatting about the film, but it’s never aimless chit-chat. Thoroughly involved and engaging, making it a mandatory listen.

Work in Progress Track: Here’s an extra just for animation fans and students. It’s basically a picture-in-picture track, showing the finished film along side storyboards, rough animated sequences, all here to give you the developmental process of the film.

Magic in the Bayou: In HD, this is a pretty candid little behind-the-scenes piece, giving us insight into the film’s production (without repeating too much from the commentary) and about Disney’s return to cell animation.

Bringing Animation to Life: This 8-minute HD piece shows us how he animators used real actors to help out in two difficult scenes.

Deleted Scenes that are in rough animated shape with a discussion on why they were deleted, EPK pieces The Return to Hand Drawn Animation and The Disney Legacy are okay at best, A Return to the Animated Musical and Disney’s Newest Princess are average looks at each, Princess and the Animator and Conjuring the Villain briefly look at the art side of the characters, with Galleries, Trailers, Music Video, and an interactive game rounding out the slew of extras.

Look for a second disc that is a DVD and a third that is the Digital Copy of the film in Disney’s neat packaging idea.

Conclusion: A near masterpiece, a vailant return to cell animation, and perhaps a film better that their Best Picture nominee in Up, all on a superb Blu-ray. Own it.

The Film: Rating:

The Blu-ray: Rating: