Everyone has their favorite Disney princess. I can understand why some people love Belle’s intelligence or Ariel’s adventurous spirit or Mulan’s bravery. But Princess Tiana is by far my favorite.
I admire Tiana’s work ethic, street smarts and no-nonsense attitude. My affinity for the film “The Princess and the Frog” is larger than just the female protagonist. The music, animation style, color palate and plot are all amazing. To me, Tiana and Naveen’s love story is one of the best parts.
First of all, they have the sweetest and funniest meet-cute. At a costume party, Naveen, despite being a frog at this point in time, sees a beautiful princess and decides to ask her for a kiss.
If you’re familiar with the movie, you know that after they kiss, Tiana too turns into a frog. This adds a layer of humor to the situation.
Tiana is understandably annoyed about being a frog.
Her annoyance and Naveen’s disappointment at Tiana’s kiss not turning him human creates a playful banter between the two characters that persists throughout the film. Tiana views Naveen as a spoiled brat and he views her as a “stick in the mud.”
The pair ultimately falls in love. Naveen realizes that he is in love with Tiana and comes up with the sweetest gesture to convey this to her.
He minces many different snacks and crafts a pearl ring for her. Although this gesture doesn’t go as planned, their love is eventually realized.Â
After defeating the villain, Naveen tries to get Tiana’s friend Charlotte, who is the princess of the Mardi Gras parade, to kiss him so he and Tiana can both return to their human forms. This plan doesn’t work, as midnight strikes too soon, but some of the sweetest revelations come after this.Â
Tiana confesses to Naveen that, “my dream wouldn’t be complete without you in it” (this is when I start crying), and Naveen tells her that she is his “Evangeline,” referencing the true and unyielding love of their firefly friend for his girl.Â
The sweet couple decides to be content as frogs, viewing their love as enough to maintain them. When they wed, Tiana becomes a princess and they return to their human form. They purchase and renovate her restaurant, and, as the film closes, they dance together on the rooftop since Tiana’s dream is now fulfilled.Â
Cute story, right?Â
I’m aware that most Disney princesses have a cute storyline with unwavering love incorporated throughout the plotline, but “The Princess and the Frog” is different. The maturity and intensity of the love conveyed in the movie is stronger than in the other films.
The development of the characters of both Tiana and Naveen greatly contributes to this. As an audience member, being able to understand the thoughts, feelings and motives of both of them strengthens the romantic feelings due to the mutual nature of it.Â
Before she was Naveen’s partner, Tiana was an independent, working woman. She thinks for herself and Disney embraced this feminist feeling with her character development. Differing from a story like “The Little Mermaid,” where Ariel can’t speak for half of the movie, “The Princess and the Frog” fully develops the female lead, which makes the love story even more beautiful.
It’s clear how cute the love in this film is, and that’s only touching on the romantic relationship between the main characters. The affinity amongst the supporting roles in romantic and platonic ways is beautiful in this film.
I highly recommend a rewatch, but, this time, think about it as a romance film.