The Little Mermaid

1989, US, directed by Ron Clements and John Musker

I suspect that 2014 is the year when there will be a significant increase in children's fare in this space: Shay now has the attention span to watch shorter features, sometimes chopped in two, and on those evenings when everyone is a little frazzled, 45 minutes together on the couch is quite a welcome respite. We watch virtually everything with him rather than leaving him to his own devices so I figure I might as well choose something with a decent advance reputation: I'd never seen this Disney entry, which marked a revival in the company's animated fortunes, although it lacks the all-star vocal talent that's characteristic of 1990s output like Aladdin and Toy Story. Shay was quite alarmed at the sea witch scenes -- no great surprise, since they are spookily atmospheric and sometimes quite abstract, with a Miyazaki vibe as much as a Disney sensibility, particularly the artwork of the witch herself.