The New York Times has been criticized for its review of “The Little Mermaid,” which complained of a lack of KINK
The New York Times has come under fire after their movie critic moaned that The Little Mermaid didn’t have enough “kink” in it.
Writer Wesley Morris sparked controversy with his review, saying that the PG-rated film, aimed at young girls and boys, didn’t have enough mystery, risk, or kink to his liking.
It has already grossed $117 million at the US box office in its opening weekend.
The NYT review begins: ‘The new, live-action ‘The Little Mermaid’ is everything no one would want in a movie: dutiful and defensive, but desperate for approval. It smacks of obligation and noble intentions.
“Joy, pleasure, mystery, risk, taste, kink – they are missing.”
While the word kink also refers to a “sharp twist or curve,” it is more commonly known as an abbreviation for someone’s unusual sexual preference.
The Little Mermaid has already grossed $117 million at the US box office during its opening weekend. The casting of Halle, who is African American, as the lead actor resulted in a number of racist reactions to the film
The NYT review stated that “kink” was missing from the film
Among those who found a problem with the NYT’s review was political commentator Ian Miles Cheong, who said, “The New York Times wants ‘kink’ in a movie made for kids, and they’re sad The Little Mermaid has none of it.” It.’
Another person said, “The New York Times” wrote a movie review of the children’s movie “The Little Mermaid” and complained that there was no kink in it. I think we have a pedophilia problem, not a childhood sexual identity crisis.”
One indignant reader commented, “The kink was missing, wasn’t it? Incredible.’
Another wrote online, “Kink? Kink is missing from The Little Mermaid? WTF?’
A fifth said, ‘Not enough KINK?! In The Little Mermaid? What do you want them to do, let Eric lick Ariel’s tail? What does that even mean?’
This follows news that the Little Mermaid reboot has earned the highest fan rating of any live-action Disney movie on the review site Rotten Tomatoes.
The musical, which was released Friday, currently boasts 95 percent approval from more than 5,000 viewers from moviegoers.
NYT writer Wesley Morris wrote the controversial review
The film is expected to gross millions over Memorial Day Weekend
It surpasses the previous record held by Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin, which has a viewing rating of 94 percent.
Despite a backlash over Halle’s casting, the film topped the box office at number one over Memorial Day weekend in the United States with a whopping $117 million in debut.
That would make it the fifth-highest Memorial Day opening in history, according to Variety.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Top Gun: Maverick became the highest-grossing film to debut over Memorial Day weekend last year with $160.5 million.
Despite winning over audiences, the film has garnered mixed reviews from critics and currently holds an approval rating of 67 percent.
While some pundits claimed it was close to “the best live-action Disney movie” and praised Halle’s performance as Ariel, others argued it “can’t” escape its animated legacy, which has an overall rating of 92 percent, with an 88 percent fan rating.
A rough review by Bloomberg labeled the film a “soaked riddle” and described the new rap song The Scuttlebutt, a song sung by Awkwafina’s Scuttle and Daveed Diggs’ Sebastian, as particularly cringe.
Scuttle is voiced by Awkwafina, who is never funny – except here. At the screening I attended, many grown adults covered their faces to avoid looking at the screen. Both songs feel like first drafts,” Bloomberg noted.
Halle Bailey attends the world premiere of Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ on May 8, 2023
One of the most iconic scenes from the original film, Under The Sea also wowed the critic.
“The original is cute and cheerful, featuring sea creatures with angelic, smiling faces. But in the 2023 version, they’re faceless and so (sorry, fish) they’re just not that much fun to watch,” Bloomberg wrote.
“Both the old and new issue end with the camera quickly cutting between all the sea creatures ‘dancing’.
In the animated version, this moment is a triumph. In the modern iteration – as the camera jumps between a manta ray’s belly and a snail’s arm and a starfish’s hole, I think – you just wonder, ‘What the hell am I looking at?’
NPR, meanwhile, headlined their review, “The Little Mermaid is the latest of Disney’s poor unfortunate remakes,” in reference to Ursula’s song Poor Unfortunate Souls.
They also described Under The Sea as “dead in the water” and called the Scuttlebutt rap “ridiculous.” Like Bloomberg, there was also criticism of the way marine life was portrayed: “The underwater scenes have a flattened sheen reminiscent of video games circa the early 2000s.”
Halle also revealed how she broke down watching videos of kids gleefully reacting to her role of Ariel in the live-action movie The Little Mermaid.