I could sit here and explain why Walt Disney’s push for live-action remakes of its animated films is an exercise in creative futility. That, however, serves no real purpose. Walt Disney has been adapting their animated films for the stage for years. So, with that in mind, if you’re sitting in a theater seat and happen to come across this review after you’ve seen the movie (or even before, just not during, please?), then you were as keen as I to see what Rob Marshall and his creative team were up to “Under the Sea” with The Little Mermaid.

Nothing is inherently wrong with Marshall’s and screenwriter David Magee’s adaptation of Ron Clements’ and John Musker’s 1989 animated script. The mermaid princess, Ariel, voiced beautifully and powerfully by Halle Bailey, is fascinated with the human world above her sea home of Atlantica. Bailey is easily The Little Mermaid’s strongest point, as she should be.

And it’s not just her singing voice that drives the character toward exploration of the human world. Her interactions with the various characters in Atlantica or in the human world when she surfaces following a deal with her paternal aunt, Ursula (Melissa McCarthy), with whom she makes the deal to become human to discover Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) or her overprotective father, King Triton (Javier Bardem). Bailey offers a real sense of exploration in a time where adventure drove the characters’ ambitions of seeking out new frontiers and, to the story’s credit, a relief of prejudices from those who are different.

Marshall and screenwriter David Magee and returning composer Alan Menken, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Marc Platt stage The Little Mermaid with a visual splendor reserved for a Broadway play. Admittedly, I am not as connected with the 1989 animated story, but its impressions are felt in this expanded story with new songs and reinvented characters for a new generation.

Aiding Ariel below and above the sea is Sebastian, voiced by the excellent Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay’s Flounder, and effervescent Awkwafina as Scuttle, originally a male seagull, now a female diving bird. Each serves as a part of Ariel’s conscience throughout her journey.

Marshall gravitates toward the adventurous side of Hans Christian Anderson’s fairy tale, with the scenes above water having more gravitas than those below the sea, which felt trite in comparison. However, Menken’s score more than carries the film’s lyrical story.

Scenes introducing Hauer-King’s Eric are beautifully shot by Dion Beebe. We get a sense of the grandeur of the open seas, the dangers that, when unchecked, can have negative consequences for a crew of even the most experienced sailors. Hauer-King plays Eric with an unexpected open-mindedness for a prince. Though he is a man of action, his heart sings for true love, a role Ariel plays when she rescues him after an accident destroys his ship. They are equally in distress,

The movie weakens in three key areas: Bardem’s brooding, bristling overprotectiveness, McCarthy’s over-performed Ursula, and an overstuffed extension of the story. Less helpful is the stilted editing from Wyatt Smith and the questionable use of CGI in certain scenes. Bardem broods like the best of us; however, his takes feel clipped; gone is his stature. He demands more than he commands. McCarthy’s strengths lie in the character’s ambitions to take over Atlantica, and they are good, but she felt less threatening than her animated counterpart.

The extended nature of the story allowed for four additional songs, newly written for this version, and unnecessary padding to modernize the characters. The biggest flaw is in the effects of her character. The four new songs don’t add or detract from the story; they are a part of its unique fabric.

Under the sea, Beebe is more than up to the challenge, complete with wired rigs carrying the characters in a swimming motion and lighting that sets the mood, all driven by Ariel.

All of this sets The Little Mermaid up as an interesting exercise. You’ll find yourself drawn into the story, yet once you’re there, disenchantment sets in due to the length.