Disney's trumpeted return to hand-drawn animation is set in New Orleans in the Roaring Twenties, where waitress Tiana (Anika Noni Rose) longs to fulfil a lifelong dream of owning her own restaurant. But a witch doctor's curse on playboy Prince Naveen (Bruno Campos) transforms him into a frog, and when Tiana agrees to kiss him she too is changed. After a bumpy start true love then inevitably beckons. Notable for featuring Disney's first African-American cartoon lead, in the shape of the ambitious and hard-working Tiana, the film tweaks the original fairy tale and stretches its premise rather thin. Randy Newman's jazzy songs are also quite weak, and there's nothing here that approaches the wit or cleverness of The Little Mermaid or Aladdin, the previous glories of directors John Musker and Ron Clements. But the zany antics of Tiana's creature pals will get the kids laughing, especially trumpet-playing alligator Louis and Cajun firefly Ray. The animation is also impressive, with vibrant fluorescents for the (fun if scary) French Quarter voodoo scenes and a warm richness for the bayou. This is a likeable enough southern-fried fantasia but it lacks the transporting magical quality of other more memorable Disney efforts.

A waitress, desperate to fulfill her dreams as a restaurant owner, is set on a journey to turn a frog prince back into a human being, but she has to face the same problem after she kisses him.