Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid (1975 film)

This article is about the 1975 Japanese film. For the fairy tale on which it is based, see The Little Mermaid. For other uses, see The Little Mermaid (disambiguation).
Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid
Directed by Tomoharu Katsumata
Tim Reid
Written by Hans Christian Andersen (tale)
Mieko Koyamauchi
Ikuko Oyabu
Based on The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen
Starring Fumie Kashiyama
Mariko Miyagi
Taro Shigaki
Music by Takekuni Hirayoshi
Distributed by Toei Animation
Release dates
 March 21, 1975 (Japan)
Running time
 68 minutes
Language Japanese

Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid (アンデルセン童話 にんぎょ姫 Anderusen Dōwa Ningyo Hime, lit. "Andersen's Fairy Tales: Princess Mermaid") is a Japanese anime film based on Hans Christian Andersen's eponymous fairy tale, released in 1975 by Toei Animation. Unlike the Disney adaptation released 14 years later, this film is closer to Andersen's story, notably in its preservation of the original and tragic ending. The two main protagonists are the youngest daughter of the royal Merman family, Marina, and her best friend Fritz, an Atlantic dolphin calf. In Japan, this film was shown in the Toei Manga Matsuri (Toei Cartoon Festival) in 1975. The film was later released in the United States, dubbed into English by G. G. Communications, Inc. and Prima Film, Inc., on September 8, 1979.[1]

Plot

The movie opens in live action Denmark. A narrator talks about Hans Christian Andersen and his authorship of the original story. After a brief shot of a live action ocean and the opening title card (with a mermaid song in the background), the scene dissolves to 2D hand-drawn anime.

Princess Marina is playing with her best friend Fritz, a dolphin. On her way home, the Sea Witch conjures a powerful storm. Marina's older sisters scold her for being late, reminding her that their grandmother won't give her the pearl hair-pin that signifies adulthood unless she is responsible.

The following day, Marina's sisters go to the surface. Marina is curious, but she is forbidden to go because of her age. While exploring a ship destroyed by the storm, she discovers a statue of a human boy. Deciding she is ready to see the world above, she and Fritz sneak away to the surface. There, she sees the handsome young prince from the statue on a ship.

Suddenly, another storm throws the prince into the sea. Marina saves him and carries him to shore, leaving him there to be found. A raven-haired young woman arrives and cares for him. Marina's father scolds her upon returning home, but her grandmother tells the king of the rescue. The next morning, she receives her pearl hair-pin.

Desperate to see the prince again, Marina obtains a potion from the Sea Witch which allows her to exchange her tail and voice for human form. She is warned that if Prince Fjord marries another, she will die and turn into sea foam the next morning. Marina drinks the potion and is transformed.

The following morning, she is discovered by the prince on the shore. Marina lives with the prince for one month and they become very close. One day, Fritz visits and informs Marina that if she needs him, she can signal him by raising her pearl hair-pin up.

The prince takes Marina horse-back riding the next morning. While riding, the prince's jealous cat Jemmy pounces on Marina's horse, spooking the horse into throwing Marina off. Marina is surrounded and chased by wolves. The prince comes to her rescue and kills the wolves, enraging Jemmy who then vows to get rid of Marina.

The prince tells her that his parents want him to marry a foreign princess. He wants to marry the girl who saved him. Since he cannot find her, he wishes to marry Marina. Jemmy reports the conversation to his parents, and the queen suspects that Marina has bewitched her son.

When the ship arrives carrying the princess his parents intend for him, the prince's father orders Marina's arrest for treason. The next morning, the prince meets the foreign princess and finds that she is the raven-haired girl. He arranges to marry her immediately.

Heartbroken, Marina calls Fritz so she can say goodbye. Fritz vows to find a way to save her. Hours later, her sisters present her with a magic knife. Her sisters tell her that if she stabs the prince through the heart, she will turn into a mermaid again. Marina accepts the knife. After sneaking into the prince's room, she finds that she cannot bring herself to kill him. Marina kisses him goodbye as he sleeps.

As she throws the knife into the sea, the reflection wakes the prince. He runs onto the deck, calling after her, but she jumps before he can reach her. As he calls her name one last time, he sees that she has left behind her pearl hair-pin and a scale from her tail. As the sun rises, Marina's body slowly turns to foam and ascends into the sky. The prince suddenly realizes that she was the girl who had saved his life. He grieves her death as Marina's spirit goes on to Heaven for her self-sacrifice, while a devastated Fritz calls out her name.

Main characters

Princess Marina (マリーナ Mariina Hime)
Sixteen years old. Princess of the undersea kingdom and the youngest of six daughters. She is a blonde, sweet and beautiful mermaid and is known for having the most beautiful voice in the kingdom. She is curious about the human world and likes collecting items that come from the surface.
Fritz (フリッツ Furittsu)
A blue Atlantic dolphin calf, and Marina's best friend.
Prince Fjord (フィヨルド王子 Fiyorudo Ouji)
He is brave and well-trained in the military arts. Fjord dislikes the idea of an arranged marriage.
The Sea Witch (魔女 Witch)
Unlike other versions of the story, the sea witch is not evil. She is shrewd. She has no specific interest in harming anyone, but can be very destructive in creating storms that sink ships. She is a gigantic devil ray.
Princess Cecilia (スオミの姫 Suomi no Hime)
The raven-haired princess of the Kingdom of Finland. Her personal name is not given in Japanese.
Jemmy the Cat (ジェミー Jemy)
The main antagonist of the story, despite being Fjord's loyal cat. She tries to get rid of Marina, first by killing her and then by accusing her of manipulating the prince.

Music

Opening Theme

"Yearning" (あこがれ Akogare)

Sung by Kumiko Osugi, Lyrics by Tokiko Iwatani, Music and Arrangement by Takekuni Hirayoshi.
Inserted Song

"The One I've Waited For" (待っていた人 Matteita Hito) Marina's Song in the English version.

Sung by Kumiko Osugi and People, Lyrics by Tokiko Iwatani, Music and Arrangement by Takekuni Hirayoshi.

Cast

Japanese Voices

English Voices

Movie title for VHS

Home Releases

It was initially available on region 1 (USA and Canada) DVD, released by UAV Corporation under the name "The Little Mermaid: Based on Hans Christian Andersen's Classic Tale".[2] The cover art [3] is significantly different from the cover art from the original US VHS release of the film (released by Starmaker under the title "Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid")[4] or the film animation style.[5] However, multiple reviewers on Amazon.com state that the actual film on the DVD is the same as the Starmaker release (albeit somewhat censored). The customer images aside from the cover art also depict images from the original 1975 Toei film. The UAV version is not to be confused with the GoodTimes Entertainment/Golden Films version. The film is now licensed by Discotek Media. Discotek Media released the full, uncut film on Region 1 DVD, making it the first time the full film has been available in the United States since the original VHS release. The DVD includes the original Japanese audio with English subtitles and the English dub, and presents the film in its original aspect ratio.

Internet release

The Japanese version can be viewed on several media websites including Yahoo! Japan, but IP addresses not based in Japan are blocked from viewing it.

References

  1. ↑ Andasen dōwa ningyo hime on IMDB
  2. ↑ UAV release on Amazon.com
  3. ↑ UAV release cover art
  4. ↑ Starmaker cover art
  5. ↑ Screen capture from 1975 film
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