THE LITTLE MERMAID: THE DISNEY CLASSIC RETURNS IN LIVE ACTION VERSION, NOW IN THEATERS

The year was 1989, and Ariel the Little Red-haired Mermaid was breaking the hearts of all little girls and boys around the world. In January 1990 The Little Mermaid earned three Oscar nominations, making it the first Disney animated film to earn an Oscar nomination since The Adventures of Bianca and Bernie in 1977. The film won two of the awards, for best song “Bottom of the Sea” and best score. In short, a title that in its live-action remake left with a big load of responsibility. And so in theaters from today Ariel, played by Halle Bailey, returns in the live action directed by Rob Marshall. The plot is nearly identical to the animated Disney classic, Ariel is a beautiful and vivacious young mermaid who loves adventure and has an irrepressible curiosity about the surface world. Ariel, the youngest daughter of King Triton and the most rebellious, desires to discover more about the world beyond the sea and, while exploring the surface, falls in love with the handsome Prince Eric. Mermaids are forbidden to interact with humans, but Ariel must follow her heart and makes a pact with the evil sea witch, Ursula, who offers her a chance to experience life on land, but puts her life and her father’s crown in danger.

The film stars singer and actress Halle Bailey (grown-ish) as Ariel; Jonah Hauer-King (A Four-legged Journey) as Prince Eric; Noma Dumezweni (The Return of Mary Poppins) as Queen; Art Malik (Homeland – Spy Hunt) as Sir Grimsby; with Academy Award winner Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men) as King Triton; and with two-time Academy Award nominee Melissa McCarthy (Original Copy, The Bride’s Friends) as Ursula. In the Italian version of the film, singer Yana_C and voice actress Sara Labidi lend their voices in song and dialogue, respectively, to the beautiful and vivacious young mermaid Ariel; while actress, singer, voice actor and dubbing teacher Simona Patitucci, who had voiced the protagonist in the animated classic, is the voice of the evil sea witch Ursula. Also among the Italian voices in the film is the author and singer respected in the Italian and international scene Mahmood, in the role of the iconic character of Sebastian.

The Little Mermaid is directed by Oscar nominee Rob Marshall (Chicago, The Return of Mary Poppins), with a screenplay by two-time Oscar nominee David Magee (Life of Pi, Neverland – A Dream for Life). Song music is composed by multiple Academy Award winner Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin), with lyrics by Howard Ashman and new lyrics by three-time Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton, In the Heights). The film is produced by two-time Emmy® winner Marc Platt (Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, Grease: Live!), Lin-Manuel Miranda, two-time Emmy winner John DeLuca (Tony Bennett: An American Classic) and Rob Marshall, while Jeffrey Silver (The Lion King) is the executive producer.

L’anteprima italiana

The Italian premiere of Disney’s film The Little Mermaid, a live-action reimagining of the animated classic, took place last night in Milan at Palazzo Spinola, and the Italian voices of the film Mahmood, Yana_C and Simona Patitucci, who play Sebastian, Ariel (songs) and Ursula, respectively, as well as voice actors Sara Labidi and Ciro Clarizio who lend their voices to Ariel (dialogue) and Flounder, respectively, and numerous other guests from the world of entertainment, music, sports and the web. Directed by visionary director Rob Marshall, The Little Mermaid will arrive in Italian theaters on May 24. Guests were able to immerse themselves in the magical atmosphere of the film and were enchanted by Yana_C and Simona Patitucci’s wonderful performances of the songs “The Little Mermaid” and “Ursula’s Song.”

Also present were representatives of the Sardinia Film Commission. In fact, Sardinia was chosen for most of the film’s location scenes: locations in Sardinia included Castelsardo, which was used as part of the setting for Eric’s castle, and the unforgettable Rena Majore beach in Aglientu, which was chosen as the location for Ariel’s beach: this is where the iconic scenes where Ariel rescues Eric and emerges from the water to climb onto the rock were filmed. The rock was built especially for the film and was transported to Sardinia and placed in the water on location before the cast arrived. The carriage ride scenes with Ariel and Eric were filmed on the rugged coastline of Rena di Matteu in Aglientu while Cala Moresca, a beach on the northeast coast with a fishing pier and bay, is where the scenes set in the fishing village and around the castle pier were filmed.