The Little Mermaid
Detailed parental analysis
The Little Mermaid, 2023 version, is a fantastical musical film with a contrasting atmosphere, oscillating between wonder and moments of genuine unease. The story follows Ariel, a young mermaid fascinated by the human world, who strikes a dangerous pact with an abyssal sorceress to reach the surface and the man she has fallen in love with. The film aims at a broad family audience, but its sustained pace, runtime of over two hours, and several frightening sequences make it considerably more suited to children aged 7 and over than to very young children.
Violence
The film contains several sequences of notable intensity. The chase of Ariel and Flounder by a great shark in a shipyard graveyard generates authentic fear, with pronounced jump scares. The storm at sea, accompanied by a shipwreck and sailors jumping overboard, creates sustained tension. The death of the sorceress Ursula, impaled by a ship's bow, is treated without blood but with striking visual realism. These moments are not gratuitous: they are rooted in the logic of the tale, where danger is the narrative counterpart to adventure. They are nonetheless sufficiently intense for children under 6 or 7 years old to react strongly.
Underlying Values
The narrative is structured around a conflict between the desire for autonomy and parental authority, and it sides clearly with the young girl who follows her instinct against her father's wishes. This message of emancipation is positive in its thrust but merits discussion, as Ariel takes considerable risks in signing a contract with a manipulative figure, and the film does not truly question the impulsiveness of this choice. Moreover, part of Ariel's motivation rests on a fascination for a man she has never met, which anchors the story in a rather traditional romantic register, tempered by the fact that Ariel also demonstrates genuine intellectual and cultural curiosity about the human world, independent of the prince.
Parental and Family Portrayals
Ariel's father, King Triton, is an authoritarian figure whose distrust of humans is explicitly linked to the murder of Ariel's mother by mortals. This unresolved grief is the driving force behind his overprotective behaviour and his outbursts of anger. The father-daughter relationship constitutes one of the film's richest emotional arcs: Triton evolves towards a difficult form of letting go. It is an excellent starting point for talking with a child about the origins of parental fear and the difference between protection and control.
Social Themes
The film raises implicitly the question of mistrust between two worlds that ignore and fear each other, the merfolk and humans, each carrying prejudices inherited from trauma. This tension echoes dynamics of separation and reconciliation between communities, without ever making it explicit as political allegory. It is a point of reading accessible to older children and teenagers, who may see in it a stylised representation of xenophobia or cultural insularity.
Strengths
The film offers several visually striking sequences, notably the underwater scenes which give the ocean floor a depth and texture absent from the animated version. The rewriting of certain supporting characters, particularly Ariel's father whose psychology is more developed, brings greater emotional substance to the narrative. The original songs retain their melodic strength and are performed with convincing vocal power. The film merits recognition for treating the father-daughter relationship with a sincerity that goes beyond the expected manichaeism of the fairy tale.
Age recommendation and discussion points
The film is recommended from age 7 onwards, though some sensitive children may be distressed by the horror sequences and the mother's death evoked in the background. For the 7-10 age group, two subjects merit conversation after viewing: why does Ariel take such a great risk in trusting Ursula, and what drives King Triton to be so severe despite his love for his daughter?
Synopsis
The youngest of King Triton’s daughters, and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea, and while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. With mermaids forbidden to interact with humans, Ariel makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, which gives her a chance to experience life on land, but ultimately places her life – and her father’s crown – in jeopardy.
About this title
- Format
- Feature film
- Year
- 2023
- Runtime
- 2h 20m
- Countries
- United States of America
- Original language
- EN
- Directed by
- Rob Marshall
- Main cast
- Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Noma Dumezweni, Art Malik, Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay, Awkwafina, Jessica Alexander
- Studios
- Walt Disney Pictures, Lucamar Productions, Marc Platt Productions
Content barometer
- Violence3/5Notable
- Fear3/5Notable tension
- Sexuality1/5Allusions
- Language0/5None
- Narrative complexity2/5Moderate
- Adult themes0/5None
Values conveyed
- Courage
- Perseverance
- Autonomy
- curiosity
- friendship