Plot
The movie opens in live action Denmark. From there, a narrator explains to us how Denmark is a popular destination for tourists. He also states that many storytellers were born in Denmark, and the most famous one is Hans Christian Andersen. After explaining how this man wrote beautiful stories, the narrator finishes the explanations by mentioning that Andersen's most famous story, "The Little Mermaid," originated in Denmark. 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 anime.
Marina, the youngest and most beautiful mermaid in the royal family, is curious about the human world. So much so that she always tries to go up to the surface with her older sisters, but is forbidden because she has not come of age yet. One day, while exploring inside a sunken ship, she discovers a statue of a human boy and starts to daydream. She decides she is ready to see the world above and, ignoring her family's wishes, she sneaks away with her best friend (Fritz, a dolphin). Moments after emerging from the depths, she sees a handsome prince on a ship, the very same boy from the statue. Suddenly, a storm comes up, throwing him into the sea. Marina saves her handsome prince and swims with him to the seashore. She must leave him on the shore when the sun rises and people arrive. Marina falls deeply in love and wants desperately to become a human. Seeking help from the sea witch, Marina gives up her life as mermaid and her voice to gain legs. She is informed that if the prince marries someone else, she will turn into sea foam the very next morning. Despite the hazards, she is willing to risk all for love. The sea witch takes Marina's voice in exchange for legs. Tearfully bidding farewell to her family and to Fritz, she goes on to the surface. The following morning, she is discovered by the prince.
Marina lives with the prince for a month, in that time their bond grows strong. The Prince calls her "Princess Mermaid" because she came to him from the sea and cannot tell him her own name as she is now mute. The Prince tells her how his parents want him marry a princess from another kingdom. However, the only girl he wants to marry is the one who saved his life. Unfortunately, the prince does not know Marina is the one who saved him. He mistakenly believes it to be the raven-haired girl who discovered him on the beach after Marina had rescued him. Since he cannot find her, he wishes to marry Marina. However, when forced to meet the princess his parents want him to marry, he discovers that the foreign princess is the raven-haired girl. Filled with joy, he arranges to marry her immediately, breaking Marina's heart.
The night before she is to die, her sisters visit her. They present a knife they have bought by cutting off their beautiful hair and giving it to the sea witch. Her sisters tell her that if she stabs the prince through the heart, she will turn into a mermaid again and can go back to her old life. Marina accepts the knife. However, as she goes to stab the prince, she finds that she cannot bring herself to kill him. She goes to the stern of the ship they are on, having decided that the prince's happiness is her happiness, and that as sea foam she can always be around him. As she throws the magic knife into the sea, it shines a blood red, which wakes the prince. He runs onto the deck and sees Marina, about to jump off of the ship. He calls her name, and runs to her, but she jumps off the ship. As he calls her name a final time, he looks to see that she has left behind her pearl hairpin and a scale from her tail. He grabs them both, and looks confused into the sea. As the sun rises, Marina's body slowly turns to foam and ascends into the sky. The prince remembers now that she was, in fact, the one who saved him. Marina's soul goes on to Heaven for her sacrifice, as Fritz calls out her name.
The narrator then speaks again, explaining to the audience that the mermaid's soul went to Heaven and the scene then dissolves back to live action Denmark. As the movie's final shot shows us The Little Mermaid statue, the narrator finishes the movie by assuring us that the little mermaid, with her courage, bravery, and story, will continue to guide mankind now and forever more.
Read more about this topic: Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid
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