The Little Mermaid.Photo: DisneyCritics are overwhelmingly aligned onHalle Bailey’s star-making performance inThe Little Mermaid.The 23-year-old singer/actress takes over the big screen this Friday as Ariel in Disney’s live-action reimagining of the 1989 animated musical. Her casting causedracist backlash from some onlinewhen it was announced back in 2019. Now that the reviews are out, Bailey is earning praise for her “perfect” standout performance as the iconic Disney princess.Coleman Spildewrote in a Daily Beast reviewthat the movie is “so good, thanks to Halle Bailey’s perfect Ariel.” Spilde added, “Even when its pacing stumbles,The Little Mermaidremains magical, thanks largely to the brilliance of Bailey, who is destined to bring this iconic role to a new generation.“Variety’s Peter Debruge comparedBailey’s “Part of Your World” scenetoJennifer Hudson’s show-stopping (and Oscar-winning) performance in 2006’sDreamgirls.“Halle Bailey is all the reason that any audience should need to justify Disney revisiting this classic,“wroteDebruge. “Director Rob Marshall found his Ariel, and together, they’ve made a keeper. Just wait till you hear her sing ‘Part of Your World,’ delivered with all the conviction of Jennifer Hudson’s career-making rendition of ‘And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.’ “Halle Bailey.Matt Winkelmeyer/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via GettyNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Maureen Lee Lenker, in a review forEntertainment Weekly, said Bailey is “breathtaking as Ariel”: “Her rendition of ‘Part of Your World’ … transmogrifies the already classic tune into something as otherworldly as undiscovered sea life. But it’s her altogether human performance that makes it impossible not to fall in love with her.“While some critics may have been lukewarm on the film as a whole, they agreed Bailey shines in the lead role.Lovia Gyarkye ofThe Hollywood Reportersaid the actress “doesn’t disappoint as Ariel” and added that “her performance adds edge to what is ultimately a serviceable film” and “her charisma radiates off the screen.“IndieWire’s Kate Erblandwrotethat Bailey’s casting “makes the best case for why this classic Disney tale needed to be made into a live-action affair.“RELATED VIDEO: Halle Bailey Ignored Naysayers to Take on Her Dream Role: ‘I Just Think About the People Who Lift Me Up’Added Erbland, “Just look at herface, so expressive and so open, so deeply and wonderfully human and alive. There are some things even the most lovingly rendered pieces of hand-drawn animation just can’t match, and Bailey’s emotive skill is one of them. (And her stunning singing? Further icing on the ‘this young woman is a movie star’ cake.)“Ellen E. Jones echoed that sentiment in areview for The Guardian: “It’s ironic that her casting as the titular Ariel was ever thought controversial. Bailey is both the finished film’s only unmitigated triumph and the best argument for this whole live-action remake enterprise in oneshimmering mermaidcore package.“TheLittle Mermaid— which also stars Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Jonah Hauer-King, Awkwafina, Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay and more — swims into theaters Friday.
The Little Mermaid.Photo: Disney
Critics are overwhelmingly aligned onHalle Bailey’s star-making performance inThe Little Mermaid.The 23-year-old singer/actress takes over the big screen this Friday as Ariel in Disney’s live-action reimagining of the 1989 animated musical. Her casting causedracist backlash from some onlinewhen it was announced back in 2019. Now that the reviews are out, Bailey is earning praise for her “perfect” standout performance as the iconic Disney princess.Coleman Spildewrote in a Daily Beast reviewthat the movie is “so good, thanks to Halle Bailey’s perfect Ariel.” Spilde added, “Even when its pacing stumbles,The Little Mermaidremains magical, thanks largely to the brilliance of Bailey, who is destined to bring this iconic role to a new generation.“Variety’s Peter Debruge comparedBailey’s “Part of Your World” scenetoJennifer Hudson’s show-stopping (and Oscar-winning) performance in 2006’sDreamgirls.“Halle Bailey is all the reason that any audience should need to justify Disney revisiting this classic,“wroteDebruge. “Director Rob Marshall found his Ariel, and together, they’ve made a keeper. Just wait till you hear her sing ‘Part of Your World,’ delivered with all the conviction of Jennifer Hudson’s career-making rendition of ‘And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.’ “Halle Bailey.Matt Winkelmeyer/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via GettyNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Maureen Lee Lenker, in a review forEntertainment Weekly, said Bailey is “breathtaking as Ariel”: “Her rendition of ‘Part of Your World’ … transmogrifies the already classic tune into something as otherworldly as undiscovered sea life. But it’s her altogether human performance that makes it impossible not to fall in love with her.“While some critics may have been lukewarm on the film as a whole, they agreed Bailey shines in the lead role.Lovia Gyarkye ofThe Hollywood Reportersaid the actress “doesn’t disappoint as Ariel” and added that “her performance adds edge to what is ultimately a serviceable film” and “her charisma radiates off the screen.“IndieWire’s Kate Erblandwrotethat Bailey’s casting “makes the best case for why this classic Disney tale needed to be made into a live-action affair.“RELATED VIDEO: Halle Bailey Ignored Naysayers to Take on Her Dream Role: ‘I Just Think About the People Who Lift Me Up’Added Erbland, “Just look at herface, so expressive and so open, so deeply and wonderfully human and alive. There are some things even the most lovingly rendered pieces of hand-drawn animation just can’t match, and Bailey’s emotive skill is one of them. (And her stunning singing? Further icing on the ‘this young woman is a movie star’ cake.)“Ellen E. Jones echoed that sentiment in areview for The Guardian: “It’s ironic that her casting as the titular Ariel was ever thought controversial. Bailey is both the finished film’s only unmitigated triumph and the best argument for this whole live-action remake enterprise in oneshimmering mermaidcore package.“TheLittle Mermaid— which also stars Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Jonah Hauer-King, Awkwafina, Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay and more — swims into theaters Friday.
Critics are overwhelmingly aligned onHalle Bailey’s star-making performance inThe Little Mermaid.
The 23-year-old singer/actress takes over the big screen this Friday as Ariel in Disney’s live-action reimagining of the 1989 animated musical. Her casting causedracist backlash from some onlinewhen it was announced back in 2019. Now that the reviews are out, Bailey is earning praise for her “perfect” standout performance as the iconic Disney princess.
Coleman Spildewrote in a Daily Beast reviewthat the movie is “so good, thanks to Halle Bailey’s perfect Ariel.” Spilde added, “Even when its pacing stumbles,The Little Mermaidremains magical, thanks largely to the brilliance of Bailey, who is destined to bring this iconic role to a new generation.”
Variety’s Peter Debruge comparedBailey’s “Part of Your World” scenetoJennifer Hudson’s show-stopping (and Oscar-winning) performance in 2006’sDreamgirls.
“Halle Bailey is all the reason that any audience should need to justify Disney revisiting this classic,“wroteDebruge. “Director Rob Marshall found his Ariel, and together, they’ve made a keeper. Just wait till you hear her sing ‘Part of Your World,’ delivered with all the conviction of Jennifer Hudson’s career-making rendition of ‘And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.’ "
Halle Bailey.Matt Winkelmeyer/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Maureen Lee Lenker, in a review forEntertainment Weekly, said Bailey is “breathtaking as Ariel”: “Her rendition of ‘Part of Your World’ … transmogrifies the already classic tune into something as otherworldly as undiscovered sea life. But it’s her altogether human performance that makes it impossible not to fall in love with her.”
While some critics may have been lukewarm on the film as a whole, they agreed Bailey shines in the lead role.
Lovia Gyarkye ofThe Hollywood Reportersaid the actress “doesn’t disappoint as Ariel” and added that “her performance adds edge to what is ultimately a serviceable film” and “her charisma radiates off the screen.”
IndieWire’s Kate Erblandwrotethat Bailey’s casting “makes the best case for why this classic Disney tale needed to be made into a live-action affair.”
RELATED VIDEO: Halle Bailey Ignored Naysayers to Take on Her Dream Role: ‘I Just Think About the People Who Lift Me Up’
Added Erbland, “Just look at herface, so expressive and so open, so deeply and wonderfully human and alive. There are some things even the most lovingly rendered pieces of hand-drawn animation just can’t match, and Bailey’s emotive skill is one of them. (And her stunning singing? Further icing on the ‘this young woman is a movie star’ cake.)”
Ellen E. Jones echoed that sentiment in areview for The Guardian: “It’s ironic that her casting as the titular Ariel was ever thought controversial. Bailey is both the finished film’s only unmitigated triumph and the best argument for this whole live-action remake enterprise in oneshimmering mermaidcore package.”
TheLittle Mermaid— which also stars Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Jonah Hauer-King, Awkwafina, Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay and more — swims into theaters Friday.
source: people.com
