The 1995 arrival on the movie scene of Pixar and their premiere film, Toy Story was a watershed event in the world of animation; at once a blessing and a curse. While the revolutionary animation brought cartoons to a whole new level of realism, it also quickly put several nails in the coffin of the 2-D animation those born before 1990 were raised on. Gone were the days of onscreen watercolor masterpieces like Sleeping Beauty or The Little Mermaid or The Lion King. Now, 15 years later, Disney has decided to give their old-fashioned animation one more try with the New Orleans-set The Princess and The Frog. And they succeed admirably at bringing that old Disney feeling back to the silver screen.

The Princess and The Frog is a play on the old fairytale, "The Frog Prince". This time, our princess is actually a struggling waitress named Tianna (Anika Noni Rose) who dreams not of romance, but of opening the restaurant her beloved father always dreamed of owning. The prince is a Casanova of questionable origin named Naveen (Bruno Campos) who is interested in being a wild and crazy guy, but is being forced into a marriage with the richest girl in the French Quarter (the hysterical Jennifer Cody). Naveen makes the mistake of going for a tarot card reading with a "shadow man" (Keith David) who has a hankering for a rich man’s blood. And before Naveen can say "gribbet," he’s been transformed into a frog while his man servant poses as the real prince. When Tianna runs into the frog-Naveen, she thinks kissing a frog may be her last chance to make her restaurant a reality. But instead, their quick peck turns Tianna into a frog, too. And whether they like it or not, this mismatched pair of new froggies will have to work together to become human again.

This is the first time in Disney’s nearly 75 year history that an animated film has featured a primarily African-American cast, and those that still cringe at the thought of their last attempt at such an outing, The Song of the South, might have worried at a similar fate for this story. Thankfully, Disney has avoided many worrisome potholes of accidental racism with The Princess and The Frog. In particular, Tianna, a strong, independent woman is an excellent role model, free of all stereotypes, both of the amphibian and human variety.  

This is not to say there aren’t so worrisome characters to be found throughout the swamps of this story. The proprietors of voodoo in the story, the "shadow man" and Mama Odie (Jenifer Lewis) toe the line between comic relief and bad representation. And a firefly named Ray who speaks with a heavy Cajun accent could possibly be considered insulting if he weren’t so darned cute.

Worries about stereotypes are sidestepped easily in this film, most because The Princess and The Frog isn’t really about the characters onscreen. Like most of the Disney movies, the protagonists walk a very straight romantic comedy line and we’re not really meant to question how they get from one end to the other. The audience is mostly meant to just sit back and enjoy the ride. And there is much to enjoy here.

There are several moments within this movie that are laugh-out-loud funny. In particular, the antics of Tianna’s friend, Charlotte and her newly acquired alligator pal, Louis, provide non-stop giggles sure to please even the squirmiest of young viewers.

While I personally still miss the scores of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, Randy Newman does a more than admirable job here, blending the worlds of Broadway, Jazz and Zydeco with ease. There’s more than one hummable tune and at least in the screening this reviewer attended, several numbers received deserved rounds of applause at their finish.

And while it can be a bit jarring to see a return to 2-D animation after years of being spoiled by the photo-realism of CGI, there is something utterly charming and comforting about seeing a (albeit computer simulated) hand-drawn Disney film once again. The Princess and The Frog looks like a Disney movie from the '80s, complete with a few shaky lines and characters that don’t always seem in sync.  

The Princess and The Frog isn’t a perfect Disney film. It won’t be ranked with Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King as a classic for our time. But it is a reminder of every film you remember loving as a child. It’s catchy. It’s funny. It’s beautiful from start to finish. It’s a good film for the entire family to enjoy. And that's a wonderful treat at the theaters these days.