Jodi Benson, Samuel E. Wright, Jim Cummings, Sally Field, Parker Goris, Tara Strong, Jennifer Hale, Grey DeLisle, Jeff Bennett, Kari Wahlgren, Lorelei...
Runtime:
-
MPAA Rating:
-
In Theaters:
26 August 2008 USA
Distribution:
Audio Visual Enterprises, Buena Vista International, Gativideo, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Every Story Has a Beginning, But Only One Begins Under the Sea.
King Triton and his wife, Queen Athena, rule over the underwater kingdom of Atlantica, which is filled with music and laughter. They have seven young daughters, the youngest of whom is Ariel. The merfolk are shown relaxing in a lagoon above water, and Triton gives Athena a music box. Suddenly, a pirate ship approaches. Everyone escapes except Athena, who is crushed by the ship when she tries to save the music box. Devastated by Athena's death, Triton throws the music box into the ocean and bans music from the kingdom.
Ten years later, Triton's daughters live under a strict routine maintained by their governess, Marina Del Rey and her assistant Benjamin. Marina hates her job and longs to be Triton's attaché, a job currently filled by Sebastian the crab. Ariel is frustrated by their current lifestyle, which brings her into conflict with Triton. One day, Ariel encounters Flounder, a fish, whom she later follows to an underground music club. She is overjoyed by the presence of music, and is shocked when she sees Sebastian performing there. When her presence is revealed, the entire band stops playing and hides, believing Ariel will tell her father about them. Ariel sings a song explaining her love of music and the remembrance of her mother and she joins the club with an oath.
Ariel returns to the palace, and her sisters confront her over her disappearance.