Movies for Little Princesses- The Little Mermaid

Another movie for parents of girls who love princesses.

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The Little Mermaid by Disney

I am probably going to shock you. (Maybe not, if you watch movies with your daughters.)

As a parent, I don't really like this movie. I can still enjoy it for the music and fun and beautiful drawings. In my opinion, the music in Little Mermaid is some of the best Disney music out there- think "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl". The mermaid world is stunningly lovely. Ariel is delightful. The relationships with Scuttle, Sebastian, and Flouder are delightful.

However, the movie portrays a girl who disobeys her father and a father who is unreasonably angry at a people group. Until you see the more recent movie, Ariel's New Beginning there is no context for her father's hatred of humans.

He destroys some of her most prized possessions with little or no reason and no apology. He is violently angry, and then completely wishy-washy when he sees her so happy... Weird. I'd much rather he be a little more consistent and a lot more reasonable. Not someone I want the girls to see as a father figure. I hate the idea of them connecting Poseidon with Jake or God.

She disobeys him, plays with evil and nearly destroys her entire family. Yet, in the end, it all works out. She gets her way. Evil is destroyed and her relationship with her dad is restored... Not someone I want the girls to see as an appropriate role model.

Sebastian, Ariel's teacher and music leader, is portrayed as a helpless victim to Ariel's schemes and dreams. Not someone she can trust. Someone who will lie to her father because it makes her happy.

Not really a movie I want my kids to take to heart! Disobey your dad on something really big and you'll get your wish. Elders will lie so you can be happy. Play with the dark side and get your wish.

One Good Thing- I can encourage the girls to look at the relationship between Flounder and Ariel as a positive role model for friendships.

Sum up: I like the movie as long as I don't think about my girls watching it and loving it.