The Princess and the Frog Review

I enjoyed the movie The Princess and the Frog even though it was the second time I saw it. At the forefront it is a feel good movie with a lot of music, romance and culture. My all-time favorite characters from this movie are Ray the firefly and Louis the alligator because they are both fun-loving and cute. :) Besides the point, there are some likes and dislike that I have from the film. One aspect that I found enjoyable was the setting of the film. There are not many, if any, Disney films that are set in New Orleans or a Bayou. Even the way the animators included the lights from the fireflies was very upbeat and joyful. Along with the setting of New Orleans comes a rich culture filled with music and community. The way that jazz was implemented throughout the movie acted as a reminder of the bonded community, as an influencer to the romance and as a way of life. Another aspect of the movie that I enjoyed was the representation of dreams and goals. Tiana, from the time she was little, had the dream of having a restaurant in the sugar mill, and she does whatever it takes to achieve that dream. 

Although Tiana does whatever she can to achieve her dream, there is some controversy with gender roles. Tiana, being the woman, is portrayed as the character who works all day and all night to raise pennies for her restaurant. Her character is contrasted with Prince Naveen who hasn't worked a day in his life, is a prince and doesn't have any knowledge of how to take care of himself. Even at the end of the movie, Prince Naveen promises to marry Charlotte La Bouff for Tiana's restaurant in return. This portrays women as having to work for everything they want (even if unachievable) and portrays men as getting many things handed to them on a silver platter. Another dislike I have about the movie is the portrays of different races. The two main white characters, "Big Daddy' and Charlotte La Bouff are very wealthy, and have fancy clothing, large houses and extravagant parties. On the other hand, the African American characters are shown as being poor and needy. They are dressed in "street" clothing, they always seem to be working, and they have smaller, shack like homes. There is one scene in the film where Tiana and her mother are riding home on the bus from the La Bouff's house, and as she looks out the window she sees the houses go from large mansions to worn down homes. The worn down home is in fact where she lives. What does this say to the children watching the film? That only Caucasian people can live in mansions and only African American's can live in tiny, run-down homes? Personally, I believe that is not the right image to be showing children. 

There are many racial and gender geared points that could be made about this animation, since it is the first African American princess, but the ones I have mentioned were the most obvious to me. There were some major issues with this film, but there were also many perks and developments. I enjoyed watching this upbeat, lively movie and I will absolutely be watching it again.



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