One thing I love about the original, is that Sebastian doesn’t notice Ariel’s gone because HE’S gotten carried away by the song, it’s THAT fun, that hectic, and most of all? It speaks to his character. He LOVES the sea, and everything in it, he genuinely cannot understand why Ariel would ever want to go to the surface. It’s not just the voice actor convincing you that this crab loves what he does, it’s so convincing you BELIEVE that Sebastian adores his surroundings and way of life. That’s acting.
Not just the sea, but he's a passionate artist that loves his music, he didn't notice Ariel also because he was at the zone where you very much lose yourself in the flow, and his reaction after realizing Ariel is gone is he feeling insulted she left while he was dedicating that song to her, yet he can't quite blame her, because she's got a history of skipping his sessions and even main events he's conducting, so if anything he feels like a fool for trying to persuade Ariel with something he forgot she may not care that much about, and he got carried away and let the music overtake him as soon as he noticed Ariel was seemingly enjoying the vibes, but little did he know she actually wasn't, she was just getting tickled and was trying to distract herself while the party's going, she was sitting at the corner while everyone else where having their fun, hence why as soon as Flounder arrives asking her if she wants to go check something cool at her grotto, heck it, to Ariel that heavily outweights Sebastian's party, and she already gave them a chance to make her change her mind, and all they did was sit her and mock her dream, so she just left with no hesitation
The worst thing about this to me isn't having Ariel sing. That could have potentially worked if they had tweaked the scene a bit. The worst thing for me is having her sing and stick around for the last verse, then _still having her absent on the last note_ and keeping the "somebody needs to nail that girl's fins to the floor" line. If you want her to sing, don't make her disappear. If you want her to disappear, don't make her sing. You can't have both.
Ariel singing probably could work if they made her sound disinterested (you can still sound nice while sounding apathetic). And, like you said, not there for the last part.
@@newbiegamelover4767Like John Lennon in Yellow Submarine. He's singing along in the chorus but his voice clearly says he felt the song was beneath him, he was just doing this because he had to. It cracks me up how bored he sounds compared to everything else in the chipper, whimsical song. Disney could have even included a broken yellow submarine in the background as an Easter egg. Her voice is beautiful in this song. But it makes no sense that she's singing about the place she yearns to escape. This isn't her being Belle singing about her dreams for something more than her predictable simple, little town. Instead, it's like the actors and directors got things backwards. Sebastian sounds bored while Ariel sounds excited.
In the live action she enjoys being under the sea but wants to know more about humans, she doesn’t hate being trapped under the water, she just wants to know more about humans and be like them. That’s why she sings along with enjoyment.
This song wasn’t just a fun little jingle to pad runtime. It was what made Ariel realize that no one was going to listen to her. Sebastian wasn’t trying to convince her. He doesn’t respect her like that. He was trying to scold her, invalidating her desire to leave. Live action Sebastian simpers and wheedles “the human world is a meeeesss… stay heeere..” Animated Sebastian sings in rapid staccato, punctuated with strong percussion. He’s stating a fact. “The human world sucks, we got nothing there, don’t be stupid kid.”
I was thinking it would be cool if they included the sisters in the song. Maybe have them harmonize or playing instruments instead of just having them sitting on turtles, especially since music seemed almost part of mermaid culture in the original. Plus it gives them something more to do, and it helps sell dolls since that’s all Disney really cares about
True!! Also a scene with her sisters would give more context to why Ariel gets so emotional at the very end of the movie when she's saying farewell to her sisters and all the other mermaids. In the movie they spend literally no time together so it doesn't make any sense why she would be sad to leave them ahaha
@@willowlavYou could also argue that’s also a flaw in the original. We never see Ariel spending time socializing with her sisters in the animated version (and no, I’m not counting the direct-to-video prequel “The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning” where the sisters had more of larger role and more interaction with Ariel), so the ending where she also says goodbye is less emotionally impactful as well.
@@hunterolaughlin Thing is, there at least seems to be genuine affection between Ariel and Triton in the OG, even if they do butt heads. I didn’t get much of that in this movie.
Im no expert by ANY means but like. When my highschool did little mermaid and i played Sebastian, it was hammered into our heads OVER and OVER and OVER again just how important it was that this song be energetic and FUN and colorful. We would have whole days of rehearsal where we'd just do under the sea over and over again until every single person in the cast was breathing as much life into is as they could, until every move and line felt fresh and exciting and just. Putting all that work in and knowing what you need to make under the sea so good even in a highschool production and then turning around and seeing DISNEYS OFFICIAL REMAKE version be so devoid of color and excitement makes me so upset 😭
The guy who played Sebastian in my high school performance lost his voice from belting the song out but he was having the time of his life ❤ and then there's this.
the original little mermaid had such gorgeous colors and the remake's are all bland and muted and muddy! barbie had much better colors and it cost half the budget!
I wasn’t in my high school’s musical when they did The Little Mermaid, but if I’m remembering right, the person who played Sebastian got a special mention at one point (same with the person who played Ursula). I didn’t get a chance to watch the full musical, but I saw part of it before I had to get on the bus (since it was at the end of the day and my bus came earlier than other buses), and Under the Sea was part of the bit I saw. I could tell the crew put their heart and soul into every last bit, and that’s what big companies’ producers need to do. If a bunch of high school students can do a better job than a multibillion dollar company, something needs to change.
@@Kawaiitwothey already put their heart and soul into the original animated movies. These remakes are just a soulless cash grab, even though I can bet they would probably make more money if they just released the original movies. Or they made them different interpretations like ever after. Or better yet, adapt other fairytales and folklore from other countries. You don’t need to use the same European stories.
Yeah it's the same case like what Will Smith did as a genie in Aladdin. I think he should bring the songs and the character by himself instead of struggling to imitate Robin William because Robin's personality is so unique and no one can does the same performance as a genie the same as he did. Im not judging his style because I mostly prefer someone who bring the og song with their own style instead of trying to imitate the og. But Idk man maybe because as a disney nerd/historian, Im too in love with all of Howard's legacy. If you ask me which Part of Your World version is better between Jodi or Halle then I mostly prefer the demo version sung by Howard himself.
@@nut4kuI think that was Alan Menken singing Part of Your World. Alan has the soft voice while the late Howard Ashman’s was deeper, especially listening to his performances of Ursula and Gaston in the demos of “Poor Unfortunate Souls” and “Gaston”.
Ariel enjoying the song DRIVES ME INSANE. She's irritated at the beginning and then leaves entirely, which also neuters the end of the song in the new version. Original crescendo and BAM Ariel's gone is a shocking reveal that is emphasized by the song. Also, one thing that really changes the feel of the song is also the editing. Except for the very end, most of the editing in the new version is very slow compared to the pace of the song. The original, the editing almost goes along with the beat to increase the excitement of the song. Also, for most of the song, it really feels like a lineup of sea creatures - turtles come on, turtles go off, jellyfish on, jellyfish off. The original made it feel like they were all there in the same place together and Sebastian was focusing on groups of them, WHILE THE OTHERS WERE THERE. Also, something about the desire for realism also apparently meant the colors were all washed out looking - the original's colors are AMAZING and the remake feels beige, even though there was a way to do a realistic ocean and color.
When you're exclusively using CGI for everything but the most mundane objects and characters, every object costs thousands of dollars. So you get rid of them or Copy-Paste them.
@@IsomerMashupsthat's one of the main issues I personally have with the "live action" remakes. They could have done a 3D animated movie and stylized Ariel to look like Halle, and any other characters you'd like to switch up. I can't get past the eye-paining imagery of the layers of CGI to enjoy it. It takes me very much out of the movie; this makes it hard to "suspend disbelief" even for the most fantastical story. For example, seeing all of the practical effects and locations on Barbie literally made me excited because it's been so rarely done in major cinema over the past like, idk 2 decades.
@@IsomerMashups then don’t make a cgi adaptation if you can’t make it look good, or can’t pay the money to make it look good. Why is that so hard to understand.
Man putting it side by side really shows you how far Disney has fallen. I’m glad my daughter is 2. When she’s old enough, I plan on just showing her the originals.
My son is 10 and when disney+ started, we watched all the originals together. He has so far HATED all of the live action ones 😂😂 this one he didn't even want to see it in theater 😅
@@cormacbowman6595 Nope VHS lol 😂 But I also bought them through iTunes back before streaming became a thing. I always try to buy a copy of my favorite movies because I never fully trusted streaming services to just have them indefinitely. Especially the older the movie gets.
I've always loved Disney and these golden movies, but I never even realized how genius they actually were. These little, subtle details, bold decisions and outstanding performances. A true inspiration, rest in peace, dear Disney company, thanks for making our childhood a brighther time.
I totally agree. Mad respect for Howard! He is a true disney legend. Disney always had "I want" songs since Snow White but it's only after The Little Mermaid and "Part of Your World" that that's been the formula ever since, thanks to Howard Ashman. The little mermaid, beauty and the beast and Aladdin's songs was written by Howard Ashman. Alan Menken is the one who composed the music. It's a shame that just few of disney fans that recognize and talked about him. He is literally the reason why disney is still exist now. Howard Ashman is a legendary lyricist who made Disney rise from its downfall and started the renaissance era of Disney, who recently returned from his huge career in musical broadway theater world that time. He is the one who directing Jodi Benson to sing Part of Your World. We all know that the original Part of Your World will always be the best "I Want" song in the entire disney universe. Not just because the nostalgia vibe but also Jodi Benson was really well and carefully directed by Howard Ashman, that even her breaths, stress and pause on each syllable are really well and gently cared for. When he directed Jodi, he always said "don't focus to the song, now you're telling a story". Howard isn't focusing of the song and what makes the song sounds good or what makes it a song but how it tells a story. That's why there are many imperfections in his song, because it's the main part of it. An important part of maintaining that type of reserved passion is also that Part of Your World does not change key. In the worlds of pop music and musical theater finishing off with a key change is a helpful tool for bringing songs to a heightened emotional level and when covering Part of Your World, some people have done exactly that but I don't really think that a key change is necessary because that wasn't the intent of the songwriters. Howard said that intensity is better than enormous in this song. In fact I think that's staying in the same key the whole time is what makes it work so well having it push and pull and eventually bring Ariel back down to where she started tells a story effectively it even ends with the same motif it began with showing the audience the life that she wants but then going back to the life that she has. You can know that Howard Ashman was a great lyricist that he can even tell a story from a song. He also made the song dynamically switching from singing to talking and vice versa but the transition between them is still unnoticeable. And it didn't happen once, literally he directed every songs in those 3 films. If you really search on youtube, there are many videos that show behind the scene of the songs making. Like in beauty and the beast, he directed Paige O'Hara the same way too. Just search "Howard Ashman demo" on youtube, you can see how may songs he sung really containt much emotion than current disney songs. Also this is how Jodi's said to him ua-cam.com/video/itaEZeJoqK0/v-deo.html Hard to believe that this beautiful song, Part of Your World, was almost cut from the movie. Jeffrey Katzenberg hated it and thought that it not only slowed down the movie but was boring. Howard fought hard to convince Katzenberg that this song belonged in the movie. And I'm glad he did. Disney renaissance is mostly known by their songs. Before the little mermaid project, Howard gathered the whole disney crew for a meeting. He tell about broadway history to all the crew and they all were impressed at him. Fun fact: Howard did much more than write the songs on this movie, he also brought on board Jodi Benson, directed her during this song, changed an English butler crab named Clarence to be a Jamaican crab named Sebastien, wrote the dialog in the scene where Triton gives Ariel her legs, and also produced the movie with John Musker. After The Little Mermaid released and became a biggest success in box office, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken was going to make movie called Aladdin. They've come up with several of ideas and musical numbers but Jeffrey Katzenberg then dragging them to a new project, Beauty and The Beast. Unfortunately, Ashman passed away 6 month before beauty and the beast was released and that movie was dedicated to him that even in the credit scene you can see that they gaved him credit to honor him because of how important he was. After beauty and the beast released, Jeffrey then took away all of Ashman's idea and script, almost 99% of them. But sadly some of the songs were removed in the final film He is the one who bring the new element broadway musical to the movie. This is the bright spot where everyone started to watching to animated movies again, previously no one was at all interested in animated movies. That's why every single disney movie now has a song in it. Disney keep using this formula until now (but not as effective as in the renaissance) because it's Howard's legacy. You can tell how they respect Ashman that even in Beauty and The Beast credit scene, there's a statement to honor him "To our friend, Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful." Howard Ashman 1950-1991 No wonder why The Little Mermaid be the first disney animated classic who get an oscar nomination. Also Beauty and the Beast is Disney's 30th animated motion picture, a dedication to Howard Ashman before he had passed away and the only classic movie to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and Best Picture. He was the one who brought “I Want” song to another level! I Want song is literally every disney movies now. "In almost every musical ever written... the leading lady usually sits down on something... and sings about what she wants in life, and the audience falls in love with her and roots for her to get for the rest of the night." - Howard Ashman. He and his partner, Alan Menken, is the greatest duo that anyone have ever recognized in animated movie history. Also gain respect to Alan Menken, The little mermaid is actually his first score yet he can bring the magic with that scores. You can said that Part of Your World orchestra in the opening scene is the best choir you have ever seen and heard. Have you ever heard about the quote "There are three kinds of pianists: Jewish pianists, homosexual pianists, and bad pianists." -Vladimir Horowitz That quote actually referring to Ashman because he was Jewish and gay but still doesnt changed the fact that he really putted his care and love to the movies It's hard not to hear the parallels to his own life. To be a gay man in that day and age (and to be literally dying of AIDS) and to wrestle with that kind of longing, that kind of loneliness, that kind of confusion, that kind of self-hatred... The message comes loud and clear even when it's not sung by a mermaid. Tremendous achievement, brilliant man. RIP. I can't imagine how much more greater and better Disney would have been doing today if this great man was still alive. It hurts to actually wonder.
Yms did a good incisive take on the comparison of og and remake. Everything in the og is connected, from songs, intonation, colors, script. But the remakes just changed things up while trying to copy the skeleton without realizing the flesh doesn't match with it
80s and 90s kids were spoiled by brilliance and we didn't even know it. Disney was awesome then, we also had Don Bluth as a worthy competitor, Jim Henson, and every TV show had memorable intros and outros. ...though I do appreciate Disney tried to keep the Duck Tales intro mostly the same as the original. Credit where credit is due. That being said, while the female singer of the remake is talented, the song just doesn't slap the same without a male singer. Brendon Urie did an amazing performance of it once; lots of energy and enthusiasm, cute little dance moves, he brought the hype! Why didn't they just have him do the actual theme song for the remake? Anyways, my generation truly did have the best of Disney and other such entertainment.
It's actually fantastic when you watch videos of people involved in these original animated movie and the work, passion and dedication that went into what they were creating. How they animated, acted, composed etc
You know, having Ariel sing to it might have worked if it was shown somehow that she was trying to fool Sebastian into thinking that she was wavering, but there's nothing to indicate this, so it doesn't work. Her voice is lovely, but like you, I found it baffling.
but that’s just what happens. if you notice throughout the whole song sebastien is hovering over her until she finally sits down and starts jammin with him, which is when he finally takes his eyes off her and she bolts
@@tmills7374 We don’t see her bolt. We see the camera move away from her, and then she’s not in the final shot. If that was the intention, they should have made it more obvious (as per the original, where she clearly swims away with Flounder). All they had to do was add a quick shot of her sneakily swimming off, and the problem would be solved. But they apparently couldn’t be bothered.
@@godrules311 i’ll admit that it is brief but we do see her demeanor change once she realizes sebastian isn’t paying attention anymore and she looks away and prepares herself to swim off. it’s something small but it is something easily inferrable based off her trying to leave throughout the song
@@tmills7374 I don’t think it’s as obvious as you say (I can’t tell if she’s being devious or just enjoying herself), but even if I agreed, it was poorly directed. Particularly if you’re trying to get it across to kids. Kids are smarter than adults often give them credit for, but even adults would have a hard time picking up on something that subtle and unclear.
@@godrules311Halle’s Ariel doesn’t hate her home underwater but just wants to explore more above. There’s no reason why she can’t indulge in the song for the moment since she’s a young excitable individual. Not everything has to be exactly like the original.
Ariels voice in the remake honestly clashes with the reggae sound of the song. Its not just that its out of character, but it also doesnt blend with the song itself which is very offputting
@@ButterFlyGardenBlossom I think it's a directional issue. Because Ariel isn't supposed to sing in this song AT ALL because the whole point is that she hates sea life. In the original, she's barely paying attention but the remake director decided that Ariel should be jamming with everyone. Not only that but the music director is telling Halle to sing that way and not correcting her. She does fine with Part of Your World.
Huh, no wonder I was feeling a bad chill around my neck. It was a clash of 'vocal genre' (Can't find a better term for it). Just hearing Hailey sing Under the Sea too was just out of place and cringe. She has talent, but it's being wasted in the movie and misused.
I think that part of it is the fact she holds the notes (Which could be the directors or whoever wanting to show off her voice but idk) so that, instead of a quick ‘Under the sea!’ from the original it’s ‘Uuunderr the seaaaa~’ and it kind of overpowers everything else so that she’s no longer a backup singer but instead the main one as Sebastian becomes lost in the mixup. The fact she’s louder here does not help. I’m not a musician or anything so something like this may not even matter, but it was just something I noticed 😅
I thought Daveed Diggs’ portrayal of Sebastian was flat altogether. I was really disappointed that they left out Sebastian being the kingdom’s grand musical conductor. Also, I agree Ariel singing along defeats the purpose of the song. I felt it was unnecessary
Ariel singing along with Sebastian seems to be inspired by Kingdom Hearts II, where the same happens. The problem is that the KHII scene has a completely different context from the original movie: in the game, the song is meant to be part of a big concert which Ariel is supposed to take part in, so she's just singing her part, and she gets into it just because Sora, who's a big friend of hers in this universe, is there to cheer her up. The part towards the end, where Sora and Ariel dance together, is very wholesome.
@@peterrealar2.067 they changed EVERYTHING!!! The concert got changed to a council, taking away the spirit of the beginning, takes away Sebastian’s role as the orchestra’s conductor, took away the song introducing the sisters, changed the sisters, and took away the very part that states that Ariel has the best voice, which adds to the drama of her losing her voice! They really should have just made a new movie for crying out loud! “Oh they added new songs to get the nomination” then PUT EFFORT INTO NEW PROJECTS instead of half assing two separate projects (Little Mermaid/Wish). Instead of getting a fantastic new POC character we have an Ariel without her iconic hair that was cartoon hair porn for 30+ years and a new princess that no one seems to like because she’s the same Disney princess from the last three Disney princess movies but different appearance wise. If I could flip a table I would!!! Such money grubbing plays from Disney, the fans should start writing letters to the executives in power, because they’ve lost the magic we all grew up with! They were doing so well too, Jasmine, Mulan, Kida, Esmeralda, Nani and Lilo, Mirabel, Tiana! Pocahontas (though she’s controversial, out of all of the Disney Princess movies to remake and change drastically to make more realistic it’s hers, make the relationship platonic between her and Smith, same ish story but without the romance and a dark foreshadowing of what is to come to the natives at the end. If they can make Maleficent dark, gritty, and adult they could do the same for Pocahontas and save the sugar coating)… Oh look, a rant (I’m sorry, it’s just ugh, I’m not going to like something just because it’s popular, just like I won’t not like something just because it’s “cringe”)
@fuzzywuzzy8679 I grew with you! If they must remake anything, they should focus on the movies that weren't well received or is very problematic. Cinderella, Mulan, Lion King and the Little Mermaid are not controversial and are still very beloved. Pocahontas is a CLEARLY bad movie when it comes to representation and actually telling a bit of history (not in visuals or in music. Just to clarify). They could have remade Frozen, even, because that movie is really dull if you ignore the ice powers and everyone in Frozen feel artificially inserted because they did so many rewrites. Anna and Elsa work fine, but everything else is a mess. My point is just that Disney doesn't care about actually making something good, they just want to keep banking on specific movies/characters and it's msot likely too keep copyright at this point
Good Spot. How did they miss that? The most REALISTIC part of making a live-action film, its like they googled any random crab image, put it into the movie, and did no research what so ever.
Still don't get why Sebastian is a land-dwelling ghost crab with the swimming legs of a different crab family attached to his rear end, singing about being under the water where he cannot survive. The ghost crab is a obligate land crab which may help him in the land scenes, but he would not be a fan of the water
Same. I can remember exactly where I was and becoming mesmerized upon first hearing that xylophone riff.. it may have even sealed forever my love for Caribbean music.. and I’m not even a big Disney person….
I went to see this movie at the theater with some classmates and we ended up being late and walking right into this number. It felt so boring and devoid of life compared to my memory of what the original (latinomerican version) sounded like that made me feel numb for the rest of the movie
It’s a shame that Halle Bailey will likely be forever associated mainly with this remake. I don’t know much about her other than that she has a really nice singing voice, but I’m certain she deserves a better reputation.
Eh she got a deal with her sister for some perfume that’s constantly advertised with her singing so I’d say she’s not doing too bad. Almost as bad as Emma Watson directing a prada commercial. Halle shouldn’t have been cast as Ariel, she would’ve been a cute tiana or moana imo
The obsession with "realism" in a FANTASTICAL MOVIE drives me absolutely insane. It's like the people making these movies don't understand how MOVIES WORK. I'm so done with Disney at this point.
...How tf did they manage to make the live action scene look SO empty, as well??? Also live action Sebastian is F tier compared to original Sebastian 💀💀💀. Edit: The colors just also fall flat for me in the live action 😂💀 it feels somehow more dull. They dropped the ball so hard.
My guess is they didn't want to animate it so made it gloomy and empty. There's no way anyone who animated this and had a say in how it was made has ever actually seen a coral reef before.
@pixelpudding3914 I hadn't even thought of that! That's crazy. Especially with these "remakes" where everything has to be "realistic". Like, we're talking about a mermaid who has fish friends that talk to her and a seagull voiced by Awkwafina, I don't think realism is what we're expecting lol.
Daveed Diggs’ whole performance felt like a very poor impression of Samuel Wright’s without any of the charm of the original Sebastian. There were several times it sounded like he was just reading off of the script for the first time. Though honestly they should have cast an older actor to voice Sebastian to add the maturity Samuel Wright had.
Daveed Diggs is fine as a voice; if they let him be himself, not imitating the animated Sebastian. It's the same with Will Smith in Aladdin, they made him imitate Robin, a performance that was so unnatural to Smith because it doesn't fit him. Will has his own version of "Friend like Me" in the Credits - and it sounds amazing. if they had that in the movie, it would have been great. but they didn't. I don't know how daveeds own version would have sounded like, but perhaps interesting.
My gripe with his performance is that he’s singing this fun energetic song… and he sounds bored the entire time. This is the song you’re supposed to ham up, and he brings no energy, which is made worse by the bizarre, lifeless animatronic he’s voicing. Idk what that thing is supposed to be, but it doesn’t look like a crab. He also can’t do a Jamaican accent, but I can forgive that.
ARIEL has a history When it comes to her role in this song. And almost all of them she has disdain. In the Cravalho ABC Broadway musical, she does sing but she sings her disdain. (Don't wanna be under the sea, (x2) and even lines like Under the See ya), the Kingdom Hearts 2 version has her disdain at first but she's won over (that's actually the aim of the game to win her over) but after the song ends Ariel has an idea of performing a musical that brings both land and sea appreciation together (the game was odd that way) but it still had the general purpose portraying Ariel's dissatisfaction with the sea (at least the sea alone).
The live action version sounds like a really good school play version of the song. Like they don't have the budget or all the right equipment, and the music teacher wants to show off they're the best singers in a song that they don't actually sing in because it's the most well known one. Like it's serviceable, but needs work, but you can tell it's not a professional performance. Which is the worst thing you can say about a multi-million dollar company
One of my absolute favorite lines from the original is still “what do they got, a lot of sand? We’ve got a hot crustacean band!” Asheman and Menken are/were legends and it’s such a shame to see their legacy be replaced with pop music….I’m getting tired of the modern musical trend of every show having pop songs instead of more traditional Broadway numbers.
I've been waiting for this breakdown😍 I gotcha for the note on "mistake," it's a G but slightly flat (which is why it sounds out of key even though G is in the scale). I think they were going for that technique where speech is mixed with singing so it wasn't necessarily meant to sound on-key, but from my understanding that technique is usually used for dramatic emphasis on lyrics (such as "wandering free" from "Part of Your World") so I'm not sure what the point was here. I love your analysis of the instrumentation. I didn't even realize how many instruments were left out and you're right that the strings sound out-of-place, making the texture sound like, for lack of a better analogy, smooth butter rather than crunchy popcorn.😂 But I agree that the worst part was Ariel singing along, as it contextually made no sense. In the theater I was sitting there like "Uhhh so Sebastian's convinced her?🤨" lol
Daveed isn’t off key in any of the parts mentioned in this video; he is not following the original melody, but it ‘works’. I couldn’t bring myself to watch the live-action remake. Yikes
The reason why the G sounds off is because the chord he’s talking over when he says “-stake” is a Bb Major Triad, which G is not a part of. The line feels like it’s supposed to resolve to the tonic chord of the key, but it doesn’t, and the VI note is not supported by any of the instrumentation (to make, for example, a vi min7 chord). It makes the whole thing sound like… well, “a big mistake.”
This song, and Ariel engaging positively with it so much, just shows the farther flaw in the changed message/tone of the movie. In this version, Ariel DOESN'T want to leave the ocean. She doesn't have that LONGING to leave and integrate into the above world, discover a place where she doesn't feel so stifled and disconnected. ("Bright young women, sick of swimin', ready to stand.") This Ariel wants to integrate the two communities _together,_ ("we don't have to be enemies") more as an act of civil service rather than her personal dreams and desires. You could say the original Ariel is more _selfish_ in the rejection of her beautiful and magical home life and being ungreatful as a princess under the sea, but it speaks more to her longing and motivation in the original Hans Christian Anderson tale. Ariel joining in breaks the meaning and purpose of the song... but the movie as a whole shifted the purpose and meaning of itself little by little too.
totally agree. the new ariel is robbed of so much, well, character, because they have to make her 'nice' and palatable for people who found her too bratty or whatever in the original. it misunderstands the entire point, much like every decision every disney remake has ever made. ugh.
Thing is og Ariel didn't hate the sea, she was just tired of seeing the same thing over and over, and aspired to experience something new and visit a brand new land, something that resonates better with her and gave her the freedom she wanted And yet another reason why she wasn't that fond of Under the Sea tracks back to when we're introduced to the sea itself, where its said Ariel is very prone of skipping the musical practice sessions, showing how she would rather do whatever else over being part of Sebastian's musicals, so he trying to convince her to drop her dream and stick to the sea like everyone with a song, that was guaranteed to fail, no matter how energetic he made the song, Ariel just wasn't engaging with it and was more excited to the little things around the little rock she was sitting on, and if anything, it was probably a similar vibe she's so used to hearing at home, so while to us it's awesome and hype, to her it was more like listening to the school national himn for the 274942th time Which adds yet another bad change the live action made, they turned the musical of the beginning into a serious reunion of sorts, that took that foreshadowing away, and makes Ariel all the more rude for leaving Sebastian after the song, unlike the original were there's a background behind Ariel's behavior and actions in Under the Sea, and Sebastian was the fool for trying using his music on someone that already showed she ain't that into it from the start
@@dustymcwari4468I don't think she was tired of the same thing per se. We see that the difference between humans and merpeople is that the former is innovative and creative while the latter focuses only on living in harmony with nature. Ariel is all for harmony, but she wants more than that. She's more of an individualist who seeks to be greater than herself.
As someone who barely understands how music production works (all I do is sing) I find it fascinating how you break down these songs and see how they compare to the original. Great video overall
I think something that also explains why these two sound different is like you said, the characters’ personalities shining through in their singing. With the 1989 Little Mermaid, Sebastian at first is desperately trying to do what King Triton wants and trying to convince Ariel to stay. Kind of in that parental, “It’ll be fun!” kind of way. And you can hear that in the beginning. As the song goes on though, you can hear his pride and passion as a composer taking over as he starts to genuinely enjoy the song and directing all the creatures in participating in it with him. It brings not just memorability to the song, but also more meaning as well. In the live action remake, this is all absolutely devoid in this version. Honestly, while listening to the song, I couldn’t help but be reminded of when pop stars cover Disney songs. And to me, that’s the crux of the whole issue. This isn’t the character’s own song. At this point, it’s just a cover of a well-known song, fittingly devoid of passion and artistry, just trying to make a quick buck. That’s what separates these two ultimately: one was birthed from creativity; the other was birthed from a board room.
I agree, and I also think Sebastian getting swept up in conducting gave his character a little more depth since it shows his own passion for music and his connection to the underwater community. Plus, it's a lot more believable that he wouldn't notice Ariel sneaking away since he would be distracted. But in the remake, not only does Sebastian have less personality, but it is also baffling to the think that he wouldn't notice Ariel sneaking away when he was literally singing with her ten seconds ago.
The one thing that's obvious with the remake is that their songs and the visuals of the musical don't harmonize as well as the original. They forgot that WHAT the characters do DURING the song is just as important to the story telling. Unlike most musicals, the movie doesn't PAUSE while the music number happens. For the Renissance films, the movies are STILL telling the story even WHILE the musical is happening. You can sense this more with their new songs. they feel like fillers. Stopping the movie with these musical segments JUST so they can say that the film is longer than the original. without them truly justifying it's length.
I think for this one it's especially in part to "prove" their casting as the correct choice. I don't like Hallie, but she is a good singer, and they had to shove as much of her singing in as possible to make up for the incredibly amateur acting. Imo, they should've just brought in one of the Broadway crews, since they're extremely well versed in acting AND singing.
Samuel E Wright had such conviction in his voice with Sebastian. And he's loud for Under The Sea. Towards the end of the song when he's singing quickly it's as if he's about to run out of breath. You don't get that same feeling with Daveed Diggs. He kind of sounds like he's on downers or something. There's less annunciation with his words and way less conviction when he sings. Like he's just going through the motions but not putting the feeling into it.
the song triggered nostalgia in the movie theater but i was caught off guard when Ariel started singing along. There also wasnt a shot of Flounder telling her to get out of there and her swimming away so when Ariel was missing at the last beat, it felt off and Sebastian's "oh somebody ought to nail her fins to the floor" line lost it's power
You comparing the two made me realize just how… amazing and wonderful the original is, and it almost made me cry. Nothing will compare to the absolute magic that Disney used to capture in animation and music.
Daveed Diggs was going for a talk-sing thing a couple times. But because it was only one or two words it sounds flat. Also, why is she grabbing a jellyfish by its stingers?!
@@avacadotoast5571 jellyfish stings, realistically, activate on a trigger impulse simply by brushing against it. its involuntary reaction. so she shouldve been stung there, but movie logic dictates otherwise
I was thinking the EXACT same thing when I was in theaters while watching Ariel SING ALONG to the song!!! I makes absolutely no sense because she’s all into the song and singing along like she’s been convinced, and then poof! She’s gone!
Something I dislike with a lot of remakes and modern music is something that ariel does. She flourishes so much. in the original the backing is short and choppy, which fits, but she sings these long notes. I’m not sure if it was the actresses decision or not but regardless. I know when many people are singing it’s nice to exaggerate but sometimes less is more. It’s a lesson I often have to teach myself but it needs to be taught. Her long notes further take away from the short, choppy, catchy energy in the original.
Yes this. Everyone's like the remake Ariel sings so much better and has such a good voice etc. Thing is, the vocals have to match the song and narrative. The worst culprit for this is part of your world where instead of it being a clear, simple song conveying the emotion of a 16 year old girl longing to get out onto the land, it becomes this overdone mess to show off the fancy vocals of the actress instead and loses what it was meant to be. (Hated the remake of that song no matter how good a singer Halle is.)
Think the new Little Mermaid wasn't as ridiculously bad as for example the Mulan or Pinochio remakes It was just the definition of mediocrity. A bland version of the original
Halle’s performance alone makes it better than the original imo. Better characterization for Eric was great too. I don’t understand why people prefer the original in terms of narrative exploration. The remake literally improves on the short falls of the original while also showcasing amazing performances from the lead
@@christopherreeder1679 Hale sings well. Thats what I can say about her performance. Now why I think the original is better...Ignoring the CGI vs Animation thing, it's the little details. How the original flows naturally, while the new one always feels forced. I would compare it to watching the Little Shop of Horrors movie vs watching a play about the movie. The play might be amusing and all, but it just aint as good as the movie. The remake feels like the play
@@yurilouback6331 I agree that the first act is a bit formulaic (mostly just shot by shot remakes) but the second act is far more organic than the original. The majority of the movie is essentially a romance which isn’t even fully explored in the original. There are little nitpicks here and there but the remake is written in a way that lets us fully watch them genuinely fall for each other (which is the entire point of the movie lol). Ursula’s desperation to become Vanessa only makes sense when the audience can feel that Ariel and Eric genuinely have a connection and could actually complete the deal fairly
Honestly I've liked none of the remakes so far. Most of them have just been...okay, I suppose? The remake of TLK in particular felt like The Beyoncé Movie, With Supporting Cast.
@@christopherreeder1679 yes Eric was gave more motivations and lore but they literally always trying to kill Eric's character in every chances in the remake. Idk why they choose to add a minor song instead of improving his character and make him more important to the story
Honestly the biggest difference is that's the original sounds like a party. A fun and inviting party, a party that Ariel and by extension the audience can and should want be a part of. It works to both show that Ariel is disinterested in the ocean and how much she cares about land. If the ocean is this fun why wouldn't you wanna stay. The live action feels like a family gathering. Like it's fun to see everyone but like I wouldn't wanna stay longer than necessary either.
They should have definitely planned Ariel and Flounder's exit from the scene better. It didn’t make sense the way that she disappeared without any visual indication. In the original Flounder whispered in her ear.
You put it correctly: Small things make the difference between Oscar worthy or mediocre. I‘m just no music professional , so all I can „feel“ here is: I don’t like it.
Wow, that was so on point! From the lack of enthusiasm of the voice (I even felt like Arielles really weird chiming in was more like "lalala I sing along" and didn't add anything despite feeling wrong) to the finale not feeling "earned". That's exactly what I felt. The muted instruments, the flat mix, the strings, basically everything you said was very well analyzed. I felt like they decided to let her sing along to say "hey, Arielle loves the ocean and appreciates everything here and still she wants something else. She can't have a bad character trait, because that's how we treat women at Disney now, they have to be strong, inclusive and perfect in every way!" 😊
Excellent analysis! I’d like to add that there’s another, subtle reason why Ariel should become disinterested in the song instead of singing along near the end. Sebastian begins singing about the problems of the human world in terms that she would interested in - “Out in the sun, they slave away.” But - because Howard Ashman is a master - Sebastian slowly transitions to topics that interest HIM - “One day, when the boss get hungry, guess who gon’ be on the plate?” Nobody on shore is going to be eating a mermaid, so that shouldn’t matter to Ariel at all. No wonder that she wanders away.
Other than Ariel singing along with the song, something else that confused me was the other animals. Even if it wasn't realistic for animals to play instruments, they could make still made it fantastical. Like having the animals play shells instead of actual horns. They also could've shown the animals singing. In the remake it doesn’t feel like the other animals can even though they're the chorus. It makes it feel like only the 3 main animal companions can talk and not the rest of the ocean which feels less realistic given the film.
I played flute in jr high and high school, and despite I don’t really play it anymore, I really appreciate your dissection of this song. Overall I feel all the songs except for Part of Your World were ruined. Especially Kiss the Girl. I don’t understand Disney’s choice to make the movie more “realistic” by excluding singing fish and birds, but have no problems keeping Sebastian, Scuttle and Flounder singing. Having all the different animals sing made the Little Mermaid more enchanting and entertaining, like why does Ariel want to be a human so badly when the underwater world is so much more beautiful and exciting? It adds more charm and fun to the movie, while this movie in a way tried making it more depressing to make the human world more interesting and showing why Ariel wants to be a human instead
I must've been so young when i watched the little mermaid that i didn't even notice all the little differences between renditions, BUT it was extremely distracting when Ariel sung along with Sebastian. I was expecting the large chorus of sea creatures to join in and make it feel bigger so i was a little disappointed. Halle bailey was amazing though, honestly has such a beautiful voice. Still, i feel the need to rewatch all the Disney classics to truly appreciate them as an adult
I haven't seen the new movie but I just watched the full clip of under the sea, and I'm wondering if there is more context in the movie that explains why Ariel is like....rockin out to this song and getting super into it? In the original she is barely paying attention and she secretly ditches him before the song is even over. The whole point is that HE is so into his song that he fails to babysit her. Is there an explanation for this change in the movie or did the filmmakers just not pay attention to the point of this scene? The animals playing instruments lyrics also sound super awkward because....the things he is explaining literally aren't happening? There's just a bunch of uncanny realistic animals copied and pasted in rows.
I know you said this video would be your last about the songs for a while, but I'm super glad you've covered what you have. I'm musically illiterate but because of another YT channel called Sideways, I was first introduced to the idea of music actually being used in movies to convey storytelling and have been excited to learn more about this topic ever since and try to pay attention to the music of the movies I love. Having someone with a musical education break things down for me with knowledge and details is wonderful, and I just want you to know I deeply appreciate it.
Honestly it feels like this was like first time Daveed Diggs did the song and disney was like: Nah this good thanks. Like we know Daveed is talented and it feels like they did him dirty
Sebastian in the remake just sounds high. If I hadn’t seen the original and no idea what the little mermaid is about, the remade song sounds like Sebastian is flirting with Ariel. Take “kiss the girl” vibes but a crab not wanting to let the mermaid go because _he_ has more to offer under the sea.
I... The live action version of this song makes me want to cry. I loved "Under the Sea"! It felt so alive! I heard that the live action version felt lifeless but I had no idea!
To think that there was a fight that broke out when "Under The Sea" is played in the cinema, it just shows how disinterested the audience were at the movie lmao
@@astorrhymemaster yup there's a video recorded about it, can't share the link tho, since yt deletes comments with links. The title is "The Battle at the Little Mermaid"
Something I did like about the new one was that crinoids and platyhelminthes (flatworms) were featured. They are two animals that in the eyes of Hollywood may as well not exist, even though personally I am a huge crinoid fan. But yeah I was definitely put off by Ariel having a jam with this song. A key part as you said is that by this point Ariel could care less about the ocean.
What I find dumb is that Disney already DID do a performance of Under The Sea with Ariel singing and it was handled so much better! They changed the “Undet the sea” harmonization to Ariel singing “Don’t wanna be.” They also added “But if still love to take a look” after “We what the land folks like to cook” Ariel would eventually be Moana’s voice actor btw, so at least 1 person at Disney would know about this?
LOVE your videos, so smart and thought out. Only thing I wanted to mention otherwise is that when you’ve mentioned Diggs vocalizing “out of key”, I believe those moments were intentional, basically spoken expressions. Characterized moments jumping out of the melody on purpose. You rock, thank you for these!!!
2:48 Honestly, I don't mind the way he says "big mistake"? He switches from singing to talking to try and hammer it into Ariel that she Should Not Do That, so it makes sense that it doesn't exactly mesh with the rest of the song, to get her attention. And it still actually sounds pretty nice to me. I think it's a nice little departure to give this song something different from the original without /losing/ anything that the original had over it (like the rest of the changes discussed here do... :/).
4:16 your response is funny 😂 I too thought Sebastian sound bored. Combined with the fact we can't see his expression I was lost on what he was feeling. This remake feels lifeless..
it frustrates me that she was there until the end cause the whole point was that Sebastian got so into it he didn't realize she had left. so it was funny cause this whole performance was for "nothing" when it comes to convincing ariel but shows us how much Sebastian loves his home and performing
When daveed diggs goes offbeat to sing "but that is a big mistake", I don't think he's trying to sing those words, I think he's just saying them normally to emphasize them.
Finaly the youtube alghorytm blessed me with a great creator. I love you breakdown, I'm a music noob, but you make it realy easy to understand where they went wrong.
I just discovered your channel, and I'm loving these videos. As a vehement hater of how they've massacred the movies we grew up with, it's very, VERY satisfying and validating to see it broken down like this.
YES! I’ve been saying this about all the music since the first live action remake and most people think I’m just hating because it’s a remake. Do I hate them? Yes, but I DO have reasons I swear it’s not just blind. All of the music (and usually the singing performances too) sound so dead and muted in all of the remakes and honestly it’s just sad.
2:18 This reminds me of how one of the ways Disney butchered the music in The Lion King 2019 remake was by changing the percussion - taking out the triangle altogether, changing how loud the drums are in one song, etc. I mean, they did a lot more to ruin the music, but I find it interesting how a consistent problem in these Disney remakes is the decision to remove specific & important instruments entirely, plus changing the percussion resulting in even more empty space & an overall worse song as well. _Like, seriously, I never appreciated the triangle until The Lion King 2019!_
I don’t know how to explain it. But in the original the ocean floor feels alive, almost like a massive party or smth. But in the new one it just seems like every creature came in to make their seperate spectacle and then leave until that final chorus, and even then it doesn’t feel right. Especially that little montage of flashing fish on the last note. This is a lot more of a visual problem then a song problem
Oh damn this is the last one? I was waiting for your thoughts on Kiss the Girl because I feel like that song along with this were most drastically changed just because. If you do cover Kiss the Girl, I'll be here for it. Otherwise yeah why market the sisters so much and then they appear so little? Like instead of Ariel doing the ad libs, have her sisters sing the harmony. But no that's too creative I guess.
I think he should've gone a little lower though to fit within the scale. She said he was on an E which isn't in the Bb scale, so it sounds..strange. He could still speak the line, but his tone and note could have still fit. It's a small detail but it sounded weird when he said it.
I once complained on Twitter about the fact they focused so much on realism and how the visuals don't match what is going on onscreen, and people told me shit like "Why would the animals try to be more like humans and use instruments?" or "It would be creepy", basically everything that shows that going with Realism was giving themselves concrete shoes and then jumping down into the ocean. I still don't get why some people think the original is garbage compared to this film... And yes, there ARE people who believe this is miles better than the original. Which I don't understand.
I feel so bad for Hallee because she is *not* the reason this movie sucks. People latched on to her because shes black, but honestly its just another soulless cashgrab and she clearly gave her all to her performance, the directors and producers just werent doing the same
@@l_ifeefi_l1998that's the problem. Despite her voice being sublime, her acting does not make up for the raceswappibg (remember, a practice that it is inherently racist)
EXACTLY I didn't mind the color and as I said over and over "Halley did amazing and nailed it but Disney is the ones that made the movie look so dam bad."
Now I love Daveed Diggs. I’m a huge Hamilton fan and think he’s very talented. But he does not showcase that talent here. The worst thing you can do to Daveed is make him boring and that’s EXACTLY what they did. And that’s not even mentioning all the butchered animation and orchestrations for this song.
8:18 The broadway version sounds so powerful! It sounds strange but this clip makes me want to check it out if there's a full filmed version of the Broadway showing.
Honestly Ariel singing could’ve worked if they made it clear that Ariel was just pretending to be enjoying things so Sebastian would leave her alone. Honestly it could’ve even implied that this song was a common thing to happen.
It sounds like Daveed Diggs is struggling with the Caribbean accent and it gives a hesitant quality to his performance. This sounds like a rehearsal take.
The way I could see her singing working is if she sees a way out and starts singing to distract Sebastian enough to get where she can sneak away. Have her not sing along, then notice her escape route, sing along as she moves toward it, then at the end she's gone.
After watching your video of Under the Sea, 1 thing I was thinking on of the remake version, in the 2nd half of the song just when the sea creatures start making an appearance and even start dancing, I’m wondering whether Disney was originally going to go down the route of realism until the halfway point. It just looks so empty from the 1st part to the 2nd. It didn’t even feel like a build up to the final part with everyone just gathering together all at once.
Daveed doesn’t go out of tune, he’s using sprechstimme, or talk-singing, which is a common technique used in musical theatre. It sounds bad because of the flatness of the instrumentation that you pointed out before. I just started watching your videos and I’m enjoying them a lot!
I feel they nailed the song. They wanted to sell the live action remake as the lifeless cash grab it was, and I feel they really nailed that essence of it!
One thing I love about the original, is that Sebastian doesn’t notice Ariel’s gone because HE’S gotten carried away by the song, it’s THAT fun, that hectic, and most of all? It speaks to his character. He LOVES the sea, and everything in it, he genuinely cannot understand why Ariel would ever want to go to the surface. It’s not just the voice actor convincing you that this crab loves what he does, it’s so convincing you BELIEVE that Sebastian adores his surroundings and way of life. That’s acting.
Not just the sea, but he's a passionate artist that loves his music, he didn't notice Ariel also because he was at the zone where you very much lose yourself in the flow, and his reaction after realizing Ariel is gone is he feeling insulted she left while he was dedicating that song to her, yet he can't quite blame her, because she's got a history of skipping his sessions and even main events he's conducting, so if anything he feels like a fool for trying to persuade Ariel with something he forgot she may not care that much about, and he got carried away and let the music overtake him as soon as he noticed Ariel was seemingly enjoying the vibes, but little did he know she actually wasn't, she was just getting tickled and was trying to distract herself while the party's going, she was sitting at the corner while everyone else where having their fun, hence why as soon as Flounder arrives asking her if she wants to go check something cool at her grotto, heck it, to Ariel that heavily outweights Sebastian's party, and she already gave them a chance to make her change her mind, and all they did was sit her and mock her dream, so she just left with no hesitation
@dustymcwari4468 I agreee but please put a period in there somewhere 😭😭 lol
@@hanli2042 sorry x,d
The worst thing about this to me isn't having Ariel sing. That could have potentially worked if they had tweaked the scene a bit. The worst thing for me is having her sing and stick around for the last verse, then _still having her absent on the last note_ and keeping the "somebody needs to nail that girl's fins to the floor" line. If you want her to sing, don't make her disappear. If you want her to disappear, don't make her sing. You can't have both.
Ariel singing probably could work if they made her sound disinterested (you can still sound nice while sounding apathetic). And, like you said, not there for the last part.
@@newbiegamelover4767Like John Lennon in Yellow Submarine. He's singing along in the chorus but his voice clearly says he felt the song was beneath him, he was just doing this because he had to. It cracks me up how bored he sounds compared to everything else in the chipper, whimsical song.
Disney could have even included a broken yellow submarine in the background as an Easter egg.
Her voice is beautiful in this song. But it makes no sense that she's singing about the place she yearns to escape. This isn't her being Belle singing about her dreams for something more than her predictable simple, little town.
Instead, it's like the actors and directors got things backwards. Sebastian sounds bored while Ariel sounds excited.
Kingdom hearts did this and it sounded so much better.
In the live action she enjoys being under the sea but wants to know more about humans, she doesn’t hate being trapped under the water, she just wants to know more about humans and be like them. That’s why she sings along with enjoyment.
@@miah6267 In that case, why does she still inexplicably disappear at the end of the song?
This song wasn’t just a fun little jingle to pad runtime. It was what made Ariel realize that no one was going to listen to her. Sebastian wasn’t trying to convince her. He doesn’t respect her like that. He was trying to scold her, invalidating her desire to leave.
Live action Sebastian simpers and wheedles “the human world is a meeeesss… stay heeere..”
Animated Sebastian sings in rapid staccato, punctuated with strong percussion. He’s stating a fact. “The human world sucks, we got nothing there, don’t be stupid kid.”
Exactly. He even outright calls her something similar to a “stupid kid” after getting scolded by King Triton. He’s annoyed at her and it shows.
Lmao 🤣 🤣 🤣
I actually played this in marching band for a season and … I can verify that at least to me the music changes sound wrong.
I was thinking it would be cool if they included the sisters in the song. Maybe have them harmonize or playing instruments instead of just having them sitting on turtles, especially since music seemed almost part of mermaid culture in the original. Plus it gives them something more to do, and it helps sell dolls since that’s all Disney really cares about
I was surprised the sisters weren't there, honestly.
True!! Also a scene with her sisters would give more context to why Ariel gets so emotional at the very end of the movie when she's saying farewell to her sisters and all the other mermaids. In the movie they spend literally no time together so it doesn't make any sense why she would be sad to leave them ahaha
@@willowlavYou could also argue that’s also a flaw in the original. We never see Ariel spending time socializing with her sisters in the animated version (and no, I’m not counting the direct-to-video prequel “The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning” where the sisters had more of larger role and more interaction with Ariel), so the ending where she also says goodbye is less emotionally impactful as well.
@@hunterolaughlin Thing is, there at least seems to be genuine affection between Ariel and Triton in the OG, even if they do butt heads. I didn’t get much of that in this movie.
Omg this would have made this actually good!
Im no expert by ANY means but like. When my highschool did little mermaid and i played Sebastian, it was hammered into our heads OVER and OVER and OVER again just how important it was that this song be energetic and FUN and colorful. We would have whole days of rehearsal where we'd just do under the sea over and over again until every single person in the cast was breathing as much life into is as they could, until every move and line felt fresh and exciting and just. Putting all that work in and knowing what you need to make under the sea so good even in a highschool production and then turning around and seeing DISNEYS OFFICIAL REMAKE version be so devoid of color and excitement makes me so upset 😭
this comment made my day😭😭aint no way a high school musical production had 100x more passion put into it than an official remake
The guy who played Sebastian in my high school performance lost his voice from belting the song out but he was having the time of his life ❤ and then there's this.
the original little mermaid had such gorgeous colors and the remake's are all bland and muted and muddy! barbie had much better colors and it cost half the budget!
I wasn’t in my high school’s musical when they did The Little Mermaid, but if I’m remembering right, the person who played Sebastian got a special mention at one point (same with the person who played Ursula). I didn’t get a chance to watch the full musical, but I saw part of it before I had to get on the bus (since it was at the end of the day and my bus came earlier than other buses), and Under the Sea was part of the bit I saw. I could tell the crew put their heart and soul into every last bit, and that’s what big companies’ producers need to do. If a bunch of high school students can do a better job than a multibillion dollar company, something needs to change.
@@Kawaiitwothey already put their heart and soul into the original animated movies. These remakes are just a soulless cash grab, even though I can bet they would probably make more money if they just released the original movies. Or they made them different interpretations like ever after. Or better yet, adapt other fairytales and folklore from other countries. You don’t need to use the same European stories.
OG Ariel: Visibly pissed off and disappointed that nobody cared about anything she has to say.
Remake Ariel: Gaslit herself into singing along.
Samuel E Wright absolutely SLAYED Under the Sea in the original film! Daveed Diggs just doesn't have the same energy.
Yeah it's the same case like what Will Smith did as a genie in Aladdin. I think he should bring the songs and the character by himself instead of struggling to imitate Robin William because Robin's personality is so unique and no one can does the same performance as a genie the same as he did. Im not judging his style because I mostly prefer someone who bring the og song with their own style instead of trying to imitate the og. But Idk man maybe because as a disney nerd/historian, Im too in love with all of Howard's legacy. If you ask me which Part of Your World version is better between Jodi or Halle then I mostly prefer the demo version sung by Howard himself.
He just sounds like a really bored Jamaican man.
Daveed is a really good singer. This is so sad. I would say this is the direction 😢
@@nut4kuI think that was Alan Menken singing Part of Your World. Alan has the soft voice while the late Howard Ashman’s was deeper, especially listening to his performances of Ursula and Gaston in the demos of “Poor Unfortunate Souls” and “Gaston”.
@@hunterolaughlin ua-cam.com/video/rcigTBXaNyY/v-deo.html
Ariel enjoying the song DRIVES ME INSANE. She's irritated at the beginning and then leaves entirely, which also neuters the end of the song in the new version. Original crescendo and BAM Ariel's gone is a shocking reveal that is emphasized by the song.
Also, one thing that really changes the feel of the song is also the editing. Except for the very end, most of the editing in the new version is very slow compared to the pace of the song. The original, the editing almost goes along with the beat to increase the excitement of the song. Also, for most of the song, it really feels like a lineup of sea creatures - turtles come on, turtles go off, jellyfish on, jellyfish off. The original made it feel like they were all there in the same place together and Sebastian was focusing on groups of them, WHILE THE OTHERS WERE THERE.
Also, something about the desire for realism also apparently meant the colors were all washed out looking - the original's colors are AMAZING and the remake feels beige, even though there was a way to do a realistic ocean and color.
When you're exclusively using CGI for everything but the most mundane objects and characters, every object costs thousands of dollars. So you get rid of them or Copy-Paste them.
Ariel won the idgaf war when she left the scene lol
But Ariel looks happy with the seahorses and stuff in the original.
@@IsomerMashupsthat's one of the main issues I personally have with the "live action" remakes. They could have done a 3D animated movie and stylized Ariel to look like Halle, and any other characters you'd like to switch up. I can't get past the eye-paining imagery of the layers of CGI to enjoy it. It takes me very much out of the movie; this makes it hard to "suspend disbelief" even for the most fantastical story. For example, seeing all of the practical effects and locations on Barbie literally made me excited because it's been so rarely done in major cinema over the past like, idk 2 decades.
@@IsomerMashups then don’t make a cgi adaptation if you can’t make it look good, or can’t pay the money to make it look good. Why is that so hard to understand.
Man putting it side by side really shows you how far Disney has fallen. I’m glad my daughter is 2. When she’s old enough, I plan on just showing her the originals.
My son is 10 and when disney+ started, we watched all the originals together. He has so far HATED all of the live action ones 😂😂 this one he didn't even want to see it in theater 😅
me too girl
@@lauriechan1426 your son will grow up into a great man.
Do you still own the DVD’s
@@cormacbowman6595 Nope VHS lol 😂 But I also bought them through iTunes back before streaming became a thing. I always try to buy a copy of my favorite movies because I never fully trusted streaming services to just have them indefinitely. Especially the older the movie gets.
I've always loved Disney and these golden movies, but I never even realized how genius they actually were. These little, subtle details, bold decisions and outstanding performances. A true inspiration, rest in peace, dear Disney company, thanks for making our childhood a brighther time.
I totally agree. Mad respect for Howard! He is a true disney legend. Disney always had "I want" songs since Snow White but it's only after The Little Mermaid and "Part of Your World" that that's been the formula ever since, thanks to Howard Ashman. The little mermaid, beauty and the beast and Aladdin's songs was written by Howard Ashman. Alan Menken is the one who composed the music. It's a shame that just few of disney fans that recognize and talked about him. He is literally the reason why disney is still exist now. Howard Ashman is a legendary lyricist who made Disney rise from its downfall and started the renaissance era of Disney, who recently returned from his huge career in musical broadway theater world that time. He is the one who directing Jodi Benson to sing Part of Your World. We all know that the original Part of Your World will always be the best "I Want" song in the entire disney universe. Not just because the nostalgia vibe but also Jodi Benson was really well and carefully directed by Howard Ashman, that even her breaths, stress and pause on each syllable are really well and gently cared for. When he directed Jodi, he always said "don't focus to the song, now you're telling a story". Howard isn't focusing of the song and what makes the song sounds good or what makes it a song but how it tells a story. That's why there are many imperfections in his song, because it's the main part of it. An important part of maintaining that type of reserved passion is also that Part of Your World does not change key. In the worlds of pop music and musical theater finishing off with a key change is a helpful tool for bringing songs to a heightened emotional level and when covering Part of Your World, some people have done exactly that but I don't really think that a key change is necessary because that wasn't the intent of the songwriters. Howard said that intensity is better than enormous in this song. In fact I think that's staying in the same key the whole time is what makes it work so well having it push and pull and eventually bring Ariel back down to where she started tells a story effectively it even ends with the same motif it began with showing the audience the life that she wants but then going back to the life that she has. You can know that Howard Ashman was a great lyricist that he can even tell a story from a song. He also made the song dynamically switching from singing to talking and vice versa but the transition between them is still unnoticeable. And it didn't happen once, literally he directed every songs in those 3 films. If you really search on youtube, there are many videos that show behind the scene of the songs making. Like in beauty and the beast, he directed Paige O'Hara the same way too. Just search "Howard Ashman demo" on youtube, you can see how may songs he sung really containt much emotion than current disney songs.
Also this is how Jodi's said to him
ua-cam.com/video/itaEZeJoqK0/v-deo.html
Hard to believe that this beautiful song, Part of Your World, was almost cut from the movie. Jeffrey Katzenberg hated it and thought that it not only slowed down the movie but was boring. Howard fought hard to convince Katzenberg that this song belonged in the movie. And I'm glad he did. Disney renaissance is mostly known by their songs. Before the little mermaid project, Howard gathered the whole disney crew for a meeting. He tell about broadway history to all the crew and they all were impressed at him. Fun fact: Howard did much more than write the songs on this movie, he also brought on board Jodi Benson, directed her during this song, changed an English butler crab named Clarence to be a Jamaican crab named Sebastien, wrote the dialog in the scene where Triton gives Ariel her legs, and also produced the movie with John Musker.
After The Little Mermaid released and became a biggest success in box office, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken was going to make movie called Aladdin. They've come up with several of ideas and musical numbers but Jeffrey Katzenberg then dragging them to a new project, Beauty and The Beast. Unfortunately, Ashman passed away 6 month before beauty and the beast was released and that movie was dedicated to him that even in the credit scene you can see that they gaved him credit to honor him because of how important he was. After beauty and the beast released, Jeffrey then took away all of Ashman's idea and script, almost 99% of them. But sadly some of the songs were removed in the final film
He is the one who bring the new element broadway musical to the movie. This is the bright spot where everyone started to watching to animated movies again, previously no one was at all interested in animated movies. That's why every single disney movie now has a song in it. Disney keep using this formula until now (but not as effective as in the renaissance) because it's Howard's legacy. You can tell how they respect Ashman that even in Beauty and The Beast credit scene, there's a statement to honor him
"To our friend, Howard,
who gave a mermaid her voice
and a beast his soul,
we will be forever grateful."
Howard Ashman
1950-1991
No wonder why The Little Mermaid be the first disney animated classic who get an oscar nomination. Also Beauty and the Beast is Disney's 30th animated motion picture, a dedication to Howard Ashman before he had passed away and the only classic movie to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and Best Picture.
He was the one who brought “I Want” song to another level! I Want song is literally every disney movies now. "In almost every musical ever written... the leading lady usually sits down on something... and sings about what she wants in life, and the audience falls in love with her and roots for her to get for the rest of the night." - Howard Ashman.
He and his partner, Alan Menken, is the greatest duo that anyone have ever recognized in animated movie history. Also gain respect to Alan Menken, The little mermaid is actually his first score yet he can bring the magic with that scores. You can said that Part of Your World orchestra in the opening scene is the best choir you have ever seen and heard.
Have you ever heard about the quote
"There are three kinds of pianists: Jewish pianists, homosexual pianists, and bad pianists."
-Vladimir Horowitz
That quote actually referring to Ashman because he was Jewish and gay but still doesnt changed the fact that he really putted his care and love to the movies
It's hard not to hear the parallels to his own life. To be a gay man in that day and age (and to be literally dying of AIDS) and to wrestle with that kind of longing, that kind of loneliness, that kind of confusion, that kind of self-hatred... The message comes loud and clear even when it's not sung by a mermaid. Tremendous achievement, brilliant man. RIP.
I can't imagine how much more greater and better Disney would have been doing today if this great man was still alive. It hurts to actually wonder.
There's a reason the originals were masterpieces that allowed Disney to become a giant, and these soulless remakes are dragging it down
Yms did a good incisive take on the comparison of og and remake. Everything in the og is connected, from songs, intonation, colors, script. But the remakes just changed things up while trying to copy the skeleton without realizing the flesh doesn't match with it
80s and 90s kids were spoiled by brilliance and we didn't even know it. Disney was awesome then, we also had Don Bluth as a worthy competitor, Jim Henson, and every TV show had memorable intros and outros.
...though I do appreciate Disney tried to keep the Duck Tales intro mostly the same as the original. Credit where credit is due. That being said, while the female singer of the remake is talented, the song just doesn't slap the same without a male singer. Brendon Urie did an amazing performance of it once; lots of energy and enthusiasm, cute little dance moves, he brought the hype! Why didn't they just have him do the actual theme song for the remake?
Anyways, my generation truly did have the best of Disney and other such entertainment.
It's actually fantastic when you watch videos of people involved in these original animated movie and the work, passion and dedication that went into what they were creating. How they animated, acted, composed etc
You know, having Ariel sing to it might have worked if it was shown somehow that she was trying to fool Sebastian into thinking that she was wavering, but there's nothing to indicate this, so it doesn't work. Her voice is lovely, but like you, I found it baffling.
but that’s just what happens. if you notice throughout the whole song sebastien is hovering over her until she finally sits down and starts jammin with him, which is when he finally takes his eyes off her and she bolts
@@tmills7374 We don’t see her bolt. We see the camera move away from her, and then she’s not in the final shot. If that was the intention, they should have made it more obvious (as per the original, where she clearly swims away with Flounder). All they had to do was add a quick shot of her sneakily swimming off, and the problem would be solved. But they apparently couldn’t be bothered.
@@godrules311 i’ll admit that it is brief but we do see her demeanor change once she realizes sebastian isn’t paying attention anymore and she looks away and prepares herself to swim off. it’s something small but it is something easily inferrable based off her trying to leave throughout the song
@@tmills7374 I don’t think it’s as obvious as you say (I can’t tell if she’s being devious or just enjoying herself), but even if I agreed, it was poorly directed. Particularly if you’re trying to get it across to kids. Kids are smarter than adults often give them credit for, but even adults would have a hard time picking up on something that subtle and unclear.
@@godrules311Halle’s Ariel doesn’t hate her home underwater but just wants to explore more above. There’s no reason why she can’t indulge in the song for the moment since she’s a young excitable individual. Not everything has to be exactly like the original.
Ariels voice in the remake honestly clashes with the reggae sound of the song. Its not just that its out of character, but it also doesnt blend with the song itself which is very offputting
Exactly!
Part of why I felt Halle was miscast. I don’t think she’s bad, I’m sure she’s a great singer outside of this just… I don’t think she fits as Ariel
@@ButterFlyGardenBlossom I think it's a directional issue. Because Ariel isn't supposed to sing in this song AT ALL because the whole point is that she hates sea life. In the original, she's barely paying attention but the remake director decided that Ariel should be jamming with everyone. Not only that but the music director is telling Halle to sing that way and not correcting her. She does fine with Part of Your World.
Huh, no wonder I was feeling a bad chill around my neck. It was a clash of 'vocal genre' (Can't find a better term for it). Just hearing Hailey sing Under the Sea too was just out of place and cringe. She has talent, but it's being wasted in the movie and misused.
I think that part of it is the fact she holds the notes (Which could be the directors or whoever wanting to show off her voice but idk) so that, instead of a quick ‘Under the sea!’ from the original it’s ‘Uuunderr the seaaaa~’ and it kind of overpowers everything else so that she’s no longer a backup singer but instead the main one as Sebastian becomes lost in the mixup. The fact she’s louder here does not help. I’m not a musician or anything so something like this may not even matter, but it was just something I noticed 😅
I thought Daveed Diggs’ portrayal of Sebastian was flat altogether. I was really disappointed that they left out Sebastian being the kingdom’s grand musical conductor. Also, I agree Ariel singing along defeats the purpose of the song. I felt it was unnecessary
It sounds like he’s trying to phone in a Caribbean accent, but he just sounds like a white guy emitting a Jamaican accent
@@abbs__stainable234 i totally agree. It was lackluster and generic
She just wasn’t Ariel-not even close
@@kathybrem880umm what does this have to do with the comment
One of Sebastian's main character traits is that he's the royal composer. The og literally starts off with that. Why tf did they ditch that 😭
Ariel singing along with Sebastian seems to be inspired by Kingdom Hearts II, where the same happens. The problem is that the KHII scene has a completely different context from the original movie: in the game, the song is meant to be part of a big concert which Ariel is supposed to take part in, so she's just singing her part, and she gets into it just because Sora, who's a big friend of hers in this universe, is there to cheer her up. The part towards the end, where Sora and Ariel dance together, is very wholesome.
I was kinda hoping they gave giant Ursula a villain song at the end inspired by KH 2! I dunno if it woulda been good, but it woulda been fun haha
That's the issue, they completely changed Sebastian's JOB in this movie. He's not even a conductor. It's a stab in the back to the original.
@@peterrealar2.067 they changed EVERYTHING!!! The concert got changed to a council, taking away the spirit of the beginning, takes away Sebastian’s role as the orchestra’s conductor, took away the song introducing the sisters, changed the sisters, and took away the very part that states that Ariel has the best voice, which adds to the drama of her losing her voice! They really should have just made a new movie for crying out loud! “Oh they added new songs to get the nomination” then PUT EFFORT INTO NEW PROJECTS instead of half assing two separate projects (Little Mermaid/Wish). Instead of getting a fantastic new POC character we have an Ariel without her iconic hair that was cartoon hair porn for 30+ years and a new princess that no one seems to like because she’s the same Disney princess from the last three Disney princess movies but different appearance wise. If I could flip a table I would!!! Such money grubbing plays from Disney, the fans should start writing letters to the executives in power, because they’ve lost the magic we all grew up with! They were doing so well too, Jasmine, Mulan, Kida, Esmeralda, Nani and Lilo, Mirabel, Tiana! Pocahontas (though she’s controversial, out of all of the Disney Princess movies to remake and change drastically to make more realistic it’s hers, make the relationship platonic between her and Smith, same ish story but without the romance and a dark foreshadowing of what is to come to the natives at the end. If they can make Maleficent dark, gritty, and adult they could do the same for Pocahontas and save the sugar coating)…
Oh look, a rant (I’m sorry, it’s just ugh, I’m not going to like something just because it’s popular, just like I won’t not like something just because it’s “cringe”)
@fuzzywuzzy8679 I grew with you! If they must remake anything, they should focus on the movies that weren't well received or is very problematic. Cinderella, Mulan, Lion King and the Little Mermaid are not controversial and are still very beloved.
Pocahontas is a CLEARLY bad movie when it comes to representation and actually telling a bit of history (not in visuals or in music. Just to clarify).
They could have remade Frozen, even, because that movie is really dull if you ignore the ice powers and everyone in Frozen feel artificially inserted because they did so many rewrites. Anna and Elsa work fine, but everything else is a mess.
My point is just that Disney doesn't care about actually making something good, they just want to keep banking on specific movies/characters and it's msot likely too keep copyright at this point
It sucked
4:47 Wtf why this scene is so horror ngl. Imagine a CGI photo-realistic crab approached you and wanted to pounce on you
My god, these eyes are like dead fish
💀
fun fact: sabastian in the remake is a crab that'd die underwater
Good Spot. How did they miss that? The most REALISTIC part of making a live-action film, its like they googled any random crab image, put it into the movie, and did no research what so ever.
Ghost crab moment
They’re also mainly nocturnal too lol
Can the type of crab at least hold its breath for a while? Please let that be the case
@@SuperDestroyerFoxnope lmao
Still don't get why Sebastian is a land-dwelling ghost crab with the swimming legs of a different crab family attached to his rear end, singing about being under the water where he cannot survive. The ghost crab is a obligate land crab which may help him in the land scenes, but he would not be a fan of the water
He loves the water. He cannot survive there but he LOVES it. That is his character.
The original one gives me chills.. something about the animated movie is PURE MAGIC
I think it's because the og was made with a lot of passion something a lot of these live action remakes are missing
Same. I can remember exactly where I was and becoming mesmerized upon first hearing that xylophone riff.. it may have even sealed forever my love for Caribbean music.. and I’m not even a big Disney person….
This number was so awkward in theaters
I went to see this movie at the theater with some classmates and we ended up being late and walking right into this number. It felt so boring and devoid of life compared to my memory of what the original (latinomerican version) sounded like that made me feel numb for the rest of the movie
I bet everyone was feeling cringe all at once
@@DoingStuffWithDiana yeah but not as bad as Scuttlebutt at least
Uncharted waters is crap too
@@nut4kuimagine if they walked in during THAT part🙄🤦♀️😂
2:46 also because I’ve seen nobody talk about this. How on earth is this tiny crab holding back a full grown mermaid!?!!?!?!
OH YEA 😂😂😂
Maybe it hurts, I mean she is being pinched by a crab. 🦀
That's not realistic. Isn't that what Disney *want* in their movie? I'm so lost!!
It's kinda scary, if the crab can hold back a fully grown mermaid in this world well I guess it's time to stay away from the beach
He goes to the gym
It’s a shame that Halle Bailey will likely be forever associated mainly with this remake. I don’t know much about her other than that she has a really nice singing voice, but I’m certain she deserves a better reputation.
This movie shouldn’t have existed to begin with, I feel bad for anyone that has been in one of these displeasures
She should not have been cast
Eh she got a deal with her sister for some perfume that’s constantly advertised with her singing so I’d say she’s not doing too bad. Almost as bad as Emma Watson directing a prada commercial. Halle shouldn’t have been cast as Ariel, she would’ve been a cute tiana or moana imo
The obsession with "realism" in a FANTASTICAL MOVIE drives me absolutely insane. It's like the people making these movies don't understand how MOVIES WORK. I'm so done with Disney at this point.
...How tf did they manage to make the live action scene look SO empty, as well???
Also live action Sebastian is F tier compared to original Sebastian 💀💀💀.
Edit: The colors just also fall flat for me in the live action 😂💀 it feels somehow more dull. They dropped the ball so hard.
Thank you! That’s exactly what I said when I watched this scene I said “How can there be so much stuff going on and still feel/look empty”
My guess is they didn't want to animate it so made it gloomy and empty. There's no way anyone who animated this and had a say in how it was made has ever actually seen a coral reef before.
The lack of color is so weird to me bc Barbie cost like half of this and yet every scene is so vibrant! Like is color grading not movie making 101?
@pixelpudding3914 I hadn't even thought of that! That's crazy. Especially with these "remakes" where everything has to be "realistic". Like, we're talking about a mermaid who has fish friends that talk to her and a seagull voiced by Awkwafina, I don't think realism is what we're expecting lol.
Her hair looks brown too which is so boring
Daveed Diggs’ whole performance felt like a very poor impression of Samuel Wright’s without any of the charm of the original Sebastian. There were several times it sounded like he was just reading off of the script for the first time. Though honestly they should have cast an older actor to voice Sebastian to add the maturity Samuel Wright had.
You would you have in mind to voice Sebastian?
@@hunterolaughlin bro i thought i was tweaking when i read your comment 😭. did you mean “who would you have in mind to voice Sebastian”? 😭
@@veriveryluvr Oops. Pardon my grammar.
Daveed Diggs is fine as a voice; if they let him be himself, not imitating the animated Sebastian. It's the same with Will Smith in Aladdin, they made him imitate Robin, a performance that was so unnatural to Smith because it doesn't fit him.
Will has his own version of "Friend like Me" in the Credits - and it sounds amazing. if they had that in the movie, it would have been great. but they didn't.
I don't know how daveeds own version would have sounded like, but perhaps interesting.
My gripe with his performance is that he’s singing this fun energetic song… and he sounds bored the entire time. This is the song you’re supposed to ham up, and he brings no energy, which is made worse by the bizarre, lifeless animatronic he’s voicing. Idk what that thing is supposed to be, but it doesn’t look like a crab.
He also can’t do a Jamaican accent, but I can forgive that.
ARIEL has a history When it comes to her role in this song. And almost all of them she has disdain. In the Cravalho ABC Broadway musical, she does sing but she sings her disdain. (Don't wanna be under the sea, (x2) and even lines like Under the See ya), the Kingdom Hearts 2 version has her disdain at first but she's won over (that's actually the aim of the game to win her over) but after the song ends Ariel has an idea of performing a musical that brings both land and sea appreciation together (the game was odd that way) but it still had the general purpose portraying Ariel's dissatisfaction with the sea (at least the sea alone).
The live action version sounds like a really good school play version of the song.
Like they don't have the budget or all the right equipment, and the music teacher wants to show off they're the best singers in a song that they don't actually sing in because it's the most well known one.
Like it's serviceable, but needs work, but you can tell it's not a professional performance.
Which is the worst thing you can say about a multi-million dollar company
One of my absolute favorite lines from the original is still “what do they got, a lot of sand? We’ve got a hot crustacean band!” Asheman and Menken are/were legends and it’s such a shame to see their legacy be replaced with pop music….I’m getting tired of the modern musical trend of every show having pop songs instead of more traditional Broadway numbers.
I've been waiting for this breakdown😍 I gotcha for the note on "mistake," it's a G but slightly flat (which is why it sounds out of key even though G is in the scale). I think they were going for that technique where speech is mixed with singing so it wasn't necessarily meant to sound on-key, but from my understanding that technique is usually used for dramatic emphasis on lyrics (such as "wandering free" from "Part of Your World") so I'm not sure what the point was here. I love your analysis of the instrumentation. I didn't even realize how many instruments were left out and you're right that the strings sound out-of-place, making the texture sound like, for lack of a better analogy, smooth butter rather than crunchy popcorn.😂 But I agree that the worst part was Ariel singing along, as it contextually made no sense. In the theater I was sitting there like "Uhhh so Sebastian's convinced her?🤨" lol
Daveed isn’t off key in any of the parts mentioned in this video; he is not following the original melody, but it ‘works’. I couldn’t bring myself to watch the live-action remake. Yikes
I thought it sounded more like a Bb imo, and I think in the sheet music, Sebastian was supposed to sing an F on ”mis” and a D on “take”.
The reason why the G sounds off is because the chord he’s talking over when he says “-stake” is a Bb Major Triad, which G is not a part of. The line feels like it’s supposed to resolve to the tonic chord of the key, but it doesn’t, and the VI note is not supported by any of the instrumentation (to make, for example, a vi min7 chord). It makes the whole thing sound like… well, “a big mistake.”
Pretty sure he’s just speaking mistake
This song, and Ariel engaging positively with it so much, just shows the farther flaw in the changed message/tone of the movie. In this version, Ariel DOESN'T want to leave the ocean. She doesn't have that LONGING to leave and integrate into the above world, discover a place where she doesn't feel so stifled and disconnected. ("Bright young women, sick of swimin', ready to stand.") This Ariel wants to integrate the two communities _together,_ ("we don't have to be enemies") more as an act of civil service rather than her personal dreams and desires.
You could say the original Ariel is more _selfish_ in the rejection of her beautiful and magical home life and being ungreatful as a princess under the sea, but it speaks more to her longing and motivation in the original Hans Christian Anderson tale.
Ariel joining in breaks the meaning and purpose of the song... but the movie as a whole shifted the purpose and meaning of itself little by little too.
totally agree. the new ariel is robbed of so much, well, character, because they have to make her 'nice' and palatable for people who found her too bratty or whatever in the original. it misunderstands the entire point, much like every decision every disney remake has ever made. ugh.
Thing is og Ariel didn't hate the sea, she was just tired of seeing the same thing over and over, and aspired to experience something new and visit a brand new land, something that resonates better with her and gave her the freedom she wanted
And yet another reason why she wasn't that fond of Under the Sea tracks back to when we're introduced to the sea itself, where its said Ariel is very prone of skipping the musical practice sessions, showing how she would rather do whatever else over being part of Sebastian's musicals, so he trying to convince her to drop her dream and stick to the sea like everyone with a song, that was guaranteed to fail, no matter how energetic he made the song, Ariel just wasn't engaging with it and was more excited to the little things around the little rock she was sitting on, and if anything, it was probably a similar vibe she's so used to hearing at home, so while to us it's awesome and hype, to her it was more like listening to the school national himn for the 274942th time
Which adds yet another bad change the live action made, they turned the musical of the beginning into a serious reunion of sorts, that took that foreshadowing away, and makes Ariel all the more rude for leaving Sebastian after the song, unlike the original were there's a background behind Ariel's behavior and actions in Under the Sea, and Sebastian was the fool for trying using his music on someone that already showed she ain't that into it from the start
@@dustymcwari4468I don't think she was tired of the same thing per se. We see that the difference between humans and merpeople is that the former is innovative and creative while the latter focuses only on living in harmony with nature. Ariel is all for harmony, but she wants more than that. She's more of an individualist who seeks to be greater than herself.
As someone who barely understands how music production works (all I do is sing) I find it fascinating how you break down these songs and see how they compare to the original. Great video overall
I think something that also explains why these two sound different is like you said, the characters’ personalities shining through in their singing. With the 1989 Little Mermaid, Sebastian at first is desperately trying to do what King Triton wants and trying to convince Ariel to stay. Kind of in that parental, “It’ll be fun!” kind of way. And you can hear that in the beginning. As the song goes on though, you can hear his pride and passion as a composer taking over as he starts to genuinely enjoy the song and directing all the creatures in participating in it with him. It brings not just memorability to the song, but also more meaning as well.
In the live action remake, this is all absolutely devoid in this version. Honestly, while listening to the song, I couldn’t help but be reminded of when pop stars cover Disney songs. And to me, that’s the crux of the whole issue. This isn’t the character’s own song. At this point, it’s just a cover of a well-known song, fittingly devoid of passion and artistry, just trying to make a quick buck. That’s what separates these two ultimately: one was birthed from creativity; the other was birthed from a board room.
I agree, and I also think Sebastian getting swept up in conducting gave his character a little more depth since it shows his own passion for music and his connection to the underwater community. Plus, it's a lot more believable that he wouldn't notice Ariel sneaking away since he would be distracted. But in the remake, not only does Sebastian have less personality, but it is also baffling to the think that he wouldn't notice Ariel sneaking away when he was literally singing with her ten seconds ago.
The one thing that's obvious with the remake is that their songs and the visuals of the musical don't harmonize as well as the original.
They forgot that WHAT the characters do DURING the song is just as important to the story telling. Unlike most musicals, the movie doesn't PAUSE while the music number happens. For the Renissance films, the movies are STILL telling the story even WHILE the musical is happening.
You can sense this more with their new songs. they feel like fillers. Stopping the movie with these musical segments JUST so they can say that the film is longer than the original. without them truly justifying it's length.
I think for this one it's especially in part to "prove" their casting as the correct choice. I don't like Hallie, but she is a good singer, and they had to shove as much of her singing in as possible to make up for the incredibly amateur acting. Imo, they should've just brought in one of the Broadway crews, since they're extremely well versed in acting AND singing.
Samuel E Wright had such conviction in his voice with Sebastian. And he's loud for Under The Sea. Towards the end of the song when he's singing quickly it's as if he's about to run out of breath.
You don't get that same feeling with Daveed Diggs. He kind of sounds like he's on downers or something. There's less annunciation with his words and way less conviction when he sings. Like he's just going through the motions but not putting the feeling into it.
The fact that all the fish joining in have no eyes or faces doesnt help it feeling more like plants or items than actual animals with sentience.
the song triggered nostalgia in the movie theater but i was caught off guard when Ariel started singing along. There also wasnt a shot of Flounder telling her to get out of there and her swimming away so when Ariel was missing at the last beat, it felt off and Sebastian's "oh somebody ought to nail her fins to the floor" line lost it's power
how did they manage to make the ocean look so empty in a song FILLED with underwater life????
You comparing the two made me realize just how… amazing and wonderful the original is, and it almost made me cry. Nothing will compare to the absolute magic that Disney used to capture in animation and music.
The first set of dancing starfish are more unsettling than anything else they could have done.
Daveed Diggs was going for a talk-sing thing a couple times. But because it was only one or two words it sounds flat.
Also, why is she grabbing a jellyfish by its stingers?!
So much for realism
Just because she is a mermaid doesnt mean that jellyfish doesnt stung
I guess the implication is that the likely sentient jellyfish can withhold its stings so its safe for Ariel to grab? Idk I'm really trying here
@@avacadotoast5571 jellyfish stings, realistically, activate on a trigger impulse simply by brushing against it. its involuntary reaction. so she shouldve been stung there, but movie logic dictates otherwise
I was thinking the EXACT same thing when I was in theaters while watching Ariel SING ALONG to the song!!! I makes absolutely no sense because she’s all into the song and singing along like she’s been convinced, and then poof! She’s gone!
Something I dislike with a lot of remakes and modern music is something that ariel does. She flourishes so much. in the original the backing is short and choppy, which fits, but she sings these long notes. I’m not sure if it was the actresses decision or not but regardless. I know when many people are singing it’s nice to exaggerate but sometimes less is more. It’s a lesson I often have to teach myself but it needs to be taught. Her long notes further take away from the short, choppy, catchy energy in the original.
Yes this. Everyone's like the remake Ariel sings so much better and has such a good voice etc. Thing is, the vocals have to match the song and narrative. The worst culprit for this is part of your world where instead of it being a clear, simple song conveying the emotion of a 16 year old girl longing to get out onto the land, it becomes this overdone mess to show off the fancy vocals of the actress instead and loses what it was meant to be. (Hated the remake of that song no matter how good a singer Halle is.)
Think the new Little Mermaid wasn't as ridiculously bad as for example the Mulan or Pinochio remakes
It was just the definition of mediocrity. A bland version of the original
Halle’s performance alone makes it better than the original imo. Better characterization for Eric was great too.
I don’t understand why people prefer the original in terms of narrative exploration. The remake literally improves on the short falls of the original while also showcasing amazing performances from the lead
@@christopherreeder1679 Hale sings well. Thats what I can say about her performance.
Now why I think the original is better...Ignoring the CGI vs Animation thing, it's the little details. How the original flows naturally, while the new one always feels forced.
I would compare it to watching the Little Shop of Horrors movie vs watching a play about the movie. The play might be amusing and all, but it just aint as good as the movie. The remake feels like the play
@@yurilouback6331 I agree that the first act is a bit formulaic (mostly just shot by shot remakes) but the second act is far more organic than the original. The majority of the movie is essentially a romance which isn’t even fully explored in the original. There are little nitpicks here and there but the remake is written in a way that lets us fully watch them genuinely fall for each other (which is the entire point of the movie lol). Ursula’s desperation to become Vanessa only makes sense when the audience can feel that Ariel and Eric genuinely have a connection and could actually complete the deal fairly
Honestly I've liked none of the remakes so far. Most of them have just been...okay, I suppose? The remake of TLK in particular felt like The Beyoncé Movie, With Supporting Cast.
@@christopherreeder1679 yes Eric was gave more motivations and lore but they literally always trying to kill Eric's character in every chances in the remake. Idk why they choose to add a minor song instead of improving his character and make him more important to the story
Honestly the biggest difference is that's the original sounds like a party. A fun and inviting party, a party that Ariel and by extension the audience can and should want be a part of. It works to both show that Ariel is disinterested in the ocean and how much she cares about land. If the ocean is this fun why wouldn't you wanna stay.
The live action feels like a family gathering. Like it's fun to see everyone but like I wouldn't wanna stay longer than necessary either.
They should have definitely planned Ariel and Flounder's exit from the scene better. It didn’t make sense the way that she disappeared without any visual indication. In the original Flounder whispered in her ear.
1:13 "Okeh, listen to mee~. The Human world is a Mmmehs."
😂😂😂
You put it correctly: Small things make the difference between Oscar worthy or mediocre.
I‘m just no music professional , so all I can „feel“ here is: I don’t like it.
Same.
Also, original Sebastian is actually SINGING. I don’t know what this new guy is doing.
Wow, that was so on point! From the lack of enthusiasm of the voice (I even felt like Arielles really weird chiming in was more like "lalala I sing along" and didn't add anything despite feeling wrong) to the finale not feeling "earned". That's exactly what I felt. The muted instruments, the flat mix, the strings, basically everything you said was very well analyzed.
I felt like they decided to let her sing along to say "hey, Arielle loves the ocean and appreciates everything here and still she wants something else. She can't have a bad character trait, because that's how we treat women at Disney now, they have to be strong, inclusive and perfect in every way!" 😊
Excellent analysis! I’d like to add that there’s another, subtle reason why Ariel should become disinterested in the song instead of singing along near the end. Sebastian begins singing about the problems of the human world in terms that she would interested in - “Out in the sun, they slave away.” But - because Howard Ashman is a master - Sebastian slowly transitions to topics that interest HIM - “One day, when the boss get hungry, guess who gon’ be on the plate?” Nobody on shore is going to be eating a mermaid, so that shouldn’t matter to Ariel at all. No wonder that she wanders away.
no i definitely agree that that "big mistake" line is off-key.
its on purpose, Its a character choice
Other than Ariel singing along with the song, something else that confused me was the other animals. Even if it wasn't realistic for animals to play instruments, they could make still made it fantastical. Like having the animals play shells instead of actual horns. They also could've shown the animals singing. In the remake it doesn’t feel like the other animals can even though they're the chorus. It makes it feel like only the 3 main animal companions can talk and not the rest of the ocean which feels less realistic given the film.
I played flute in jr high and high school, and despite I don’t really play it anymore, I really appreciate your dissection of this song. Overall I feel all the songs except for Part of Your World were ruined. Especially Kiss the Girl. I don’t understand Disney’s choice to make the movie more “realistic” by excluding singing fish and birds, but have no problems keeping Sebastian, Scuttle and Flounder singing. Having all the different animals sing made the Little Mermaid more enchanting and entertaining, like why does Ariel want to be a human so badly when the underwater world is so much more beautiful and exciting? It adds more charm and fun to the movie, while this movie in a way tried making it more depressing to make the human world more interesting and showing why Ariel wants to be a human instead
I must've been so young when i watched the little mermaid that i didn't even notice all the little differences between renditions, BUT it was extremely distracting when Ariel sung along with Sebastian. I was expecting the large chorus of sea creatures to join in and make it feel bigger so i was a little disappointed. Halle bailey was amazing though, honestly has such a beautiful voice. Still, i feel the need to rewatch all the Disney classics to truly appreciate them as an adult
She's a great actor in a dreadful film.
The one thing I missed from this was the choir part from the original
I haven't seen the new movie but I just watched the full clip of under the sea, and I'm wondering if there is more context in the movie that explains why Ariel is like....rockin out to this song and getting super into it? In the original she is barely paying attention and she secretly ditches him before the song is even over. The whole point is that HE is so into his song that he fails to babysit her. Is there an explanation for this change in the movie or did the filmmakers just not pay attention to the point of this scene?
The animals playing instruments lyrics also sound super awkward because....the things he is explaining literally aren't happening? There's just a bunch of uncanny realistic animals copied and pasted in rows.
So glad I didn't waste my time seeing this in the theater.
I know you said this video would be your last about the songs for a while, but I'm super glad you've covered what you have. I'm musically illiterate but because of another YT channel called Sideways, I was first introduced to the idea of music actually being used in movies to convey storytelling and have been excited to learn more about this topic ever since and try to pay attention to the music of the movies I love. Having someone with a musical education break things down for me with knowledge and details is wonderful, and I just want you to know I deeply appreciate it.
Honestly it feels like this was like first time Daveed Diggs did the song and disney was like: Nah this good thanks.
Like we know Daveed is talented and it feels like they did him dirty
Sebastian in the remake just sounds high.
If I hadn’t seen the original and no idea what the little mermaid is about, the remade song sounds like Sebastian is flirting with Ariel. Take “kiss the girl” vibes but a crab not wanting to let the mermaid go because _he_ has more to offer under the sea.
I... The live action version of this song makes me want to cry. I loved "Under the Sea"! It felt so alive! I heard that the live action version felt lifeless but I had no idea!
To think that there was a fight that broke out when "Under The Sea" is played in the cinema, it just shows how disinterested the audience were at the movie lmao
Wait a fight broke out?
@@astorrhymemaster yup there's a video recorded about it, can't share the link tho, since yt deletes comments with links. The title is "The Battle at the Little Mermaid"
Something I did like about the new one was that crinoids and platyhelminthes (flatworms) were featured. They are two animals that in the eyes of Hollywood may as well not exist, even though personally I am a huge crinoid fan.
But yeah I was definitely put off by Ariel having a jam with this song. A key part as you said is that by this point Ariel could care less about the ocean.
This is such a cute comment. I admire your love of crinoids, they are quite beautiful little creatures
What I find dumb is that Disney already DID do a performance of Under The Sea with Ariel singing and it was handled so much better! They changed the “Undet the sea” harmonization to Ariel singing “Don’t wanna be.” They also added “But if still love to take a look” after “We what the land folks like to cook” Ariel would eventually be Moana’s voice actor btw, so at least 1 person at Disney would know about this?
Sebastian was like royal conductor. But in the new version I don't know what's his job was. Some kind of spy may be.
Not to mention the fact that Sebastian in this version is a ghost crab, aka, a crab that CANNOT LIVE UNDER THE SEA or it will literally drown.
LOVE your videos, so smart and thought out. Only thing I wanted to mention otherwise is that when you’ve mentioned Diggs vocalizing “out of key”, I believe those moments were intentional, basically spoken expressions. Characterized moments jumping out of the melody on purpose. You rock, thank you for these!!!
2:48 Honestly, I don't mind the way he says "big mistake"? He switches from singing to talking to try and hammer it into Ariel that she Should Not Do That, so it makes sense that it doesn't exactly mesh with the rest of the song, to get her attention. And it still actually sounds pretty nice to me. I think it's a nice little departure to give this song something different from the original without /losing/ anything that the original had over it (like the rest of the changes discussed here do... :/).
4:16 your response is funny 😂
I too thought Sebastian sound bored. Combined with the fact we can't see his expression I was lost on what he was feeling.
This remake feels lifeless..
it frustrates me that she was there until the end cause the whole point was that Sebastian got so into it he didn't realize she had left. so it was funny cause this whole performance was for "nothing" when it comes to convincing ariel but shows us how much Sebastian loves his home and performing
The original actor did a perfect roll for Sebastian. Thomas Jefferson on the other hand did not try at all. He didn’t care.
Thomas Jefferson 😂😂
When daveed diggs goes offbeat to sing "but that is a big mistake", I don't think he's trying to sing those words, I think he's just saying them normally to emphasize them.
yeah it was a character choice rather than an accident
@@charlieneedshelp989 That said, it was not a good choice
@@llewelynshingler2173 that’s subjective
Finaly the youtube alghorytm blessed me with a great creator. I love you breakdown, I'm a music noob, but you make it realy easy to understand where they went wrong.
When Ariel began singing I cringed so hard that it reminded of Scuttle's interference in Kiss the girl! 😂
I just discovered your channel, and I'm loving these videos. As a vehement hater of how they've massacred the movies we grew up with, it's very, VERY satisfying and validating to see it broken down like this.
im fully convinced diggs isnt to blame for anything wrong in this song. we all saw hamilton. im quite sure this comes down to direction he was given
I don’t doubt that for a second.
Remakes can throw in great actors & singers, but the producers & directors just don’t care enough to make them shine
The visuals in the remake feels more like a Mac screensaver than dancing fish.
YES! I’ve been saying this about all the music since the first live action remake and most people think I’m just hating because it’s a remake. Do I hate them? Yes, but I DO have reasons I swear it’s not just blind. All of the music (and usually the singing performances too) sound so dead and muted in all of the remakes and honestly it’s just sad.
2:18 This reminds me of how one of the ways Disney butchered the music in The Lion King 2019 remake was by changing the percussion - taking out the triangle altogether, changing how loud the drums are in one song, etc.
I mean, they did a lot more to ruin the music, but I find it interesting how a consistent problem in these Disney remakes is the decision to remove specific & important instruments entirely, plus changing the percussion resulting in even more empty space & an overall worse song as well.
_Like, seriously, I never appreciated the triangle until The Lion King 2019!_
I don’t know how to explain it. But in the original the ocean floor feels alive, almost like a massive party or smth. But in the new one it just seems like every creature came in to make their seperate spectacle and then leave until that final chorus, and even then it doesn’t feel right. Especially that little montage of flashing fish on the last note. This is a lot more of a visual problem then a song problem
Like Daveed Diggs from Hamilton? I'm pretty sure he didn't even really wanna act, Lin just asked his friend to be a part of it so he did.
Oh damn this is the last one? I was waiting for your thoughts on Kiss the Girl because I feel like that song along with this were most drastically changed just because. If you do cover Kiss the Girl, I'll be here for it. Otherwise yeah why market the sisters so much and then they appear so little? Like instead of Ariel doing the ad libs, have her sisters sing the harmony. But no that's too creative I guess.
2:58 this is actually a technique in musical theatre in which you speak-sing a line to add emphasis! He’s not unintentionally going off key
It’s not appropriate in fucking Under the Sea, this isn’t Hamilton!!!!
Yeah this was pretty obvious to me and made such a scathing critique lose some credibility
I think he should've gone a little lower though to fit within the scale. She said he was on an E which isn't in the Bb scale, so it sounds..strange. He could still speak the line, but his tone and note could have still fit. It's a small detail but it sounded weird when he said it.
I once complained on Twitter about the fact they focused so much on realism and how the visuals don't match what is going on onscreen, and people told me shit like "Why would the animals try to be more like humans and use instruments?" or "It would be creepy", basically everything that shows that going with Realism was giving themselves concrete shoes and then jumping down into the ocean.
I still don't get why some people think the original is garbage compared to this film... And yes, there ARE people who believe this is miles better than the original. Which I don't understand.
I feel so bad for Hallee because she is *not* the reason this movie sucks. People latched on to her because shes black, but honestly its just another soulless cashgrab and she clearly gave her all to her performance, the directors and producers just werent doing the same
Her acting is as good as the fishes in this movie
@@l_ifeefi_l1998that's the problem. Despite her voice being sublime, her acting does not make up for the raceswappibg (remember, a practice that it is inherently racist)
@@Gabry4777 Apparently just having a voice is sufficient to land u a role in disney nowadays if u are poc.
EXACTLY I didn't mind the color and as I said over and over "Halley did amazing and nailed it but Disney is the ones that made the movie look so dam bad."
She is one of the reasons
Now I love Daveed Diggs. I’m a huge Hamilton fan and think he’s very talented.
But he does not showcase that talent here. The worst thing you can do to Daveed is make him boring and that’s EXACTLY what they did. And that’s not even mentioning all the butchered animation and orchestrations for this song.
Hell yeah I've been waiting for this
8:18 The broadway version sounds so powerful! It sounds strange but this clip makes me want to check it out if there's a full filmed version of the Broadway showing.
ME TOO!
I also thought it was so wrong that Ariel sang along! It makes it seem like she's agreeing with Sebastian!
I don't know who needed to see this in the comments: DOLPHINS AREN'T FISH
Honestly Ariel singing could’ve worked if they made it clear that Ariel was just pretending to be enjoying things so Sebastian would leave her alone. Honestly it could’ve even implied that this song was a common thing to happen.
daveed isn’t off key, he’s speak-singing those lines for emphasis which is a pretty common technique by musical theatre actors
It sounds like Daveed Diggs is struggling with the Caribbean accent and it gives a hesitant quality to his performance. This sounds like a rehearsal take.
It's crazy to me how this video could easily have been one hour long. It's. Just. Too. Much.
It seems that more thought and effort was placed into making this critique about one song than was into making the entire movie.
The way they had Ariel sing along and somehow made the song Worse. Even Halle's talent couldn't uplift it
The way I could see her singing working is if she sees a way out and starts singing to distract Sebastian enough to get where she can sneak away. Have her not sing along, then notice her escape route, sing along as she moves toward it, then at the end she's gone.
After watching your video of Under the Sea, 1 thing I was thinking on of the remake version, in the 2nd half of the song just when the sea creatures start making an appearance and even start dancing, I’m wondering whether Disney was originally going to go down the route of realism until the halfway point. It just looks so empty from the 1st part to the 2nd. It didn’t even feel like a build up to the final part with everyone just gathering together all at once.
Daveed doesn’t go out of tune, he’s using sprechstimme, or talk-singing, which is a common technique used in musical theatre. It sounds bad because of the flatness of the instrumentation that you pointed out before. I just started watching your videos and I’m enjoying them a lot!
Gotta respect Daveed for getting his paycheck and putting zero effort into the role, that's that hustler mentality
I feel they nailed the song. They wanted to sell the live action remake as the lifeless cash grab it was, and I feel they really nailed that essence of it!