Where i Watched it: Disney Plus

English Audio Description Provided By: Zoo Digital

Narrated By: Cynthia Cruz

I truthfully didn’t know this documentary existed until the internet worked its magic and kept Disney from pulling it. howard was originally one of the titles slated to be pulled from Disney plus in their first content purge, but fans of the lyricist pointed out that removing a documentary about the openly gay Howard Ashman right before Pride month, as well as just as The little Mermaid opens (for which he was a lyricist) was in poor taste, and Disney kept it.

So, naturally, i watched it.

And in a year where I feel like I’ve seen so many celebrity centric documentaries, even though this wasn’t made in 2023, it still stood out at the top of the heap. I was introduced to howard Ashman, and the film talked about his childhood, did not attempt to hide his sexuality, and dealt directly with his AIDS. I think the only context I had on Ashman prior to this was a little short on the Aladdin DVD release that played Proud of Your Boy over some early animation, and discussed how that song was so important to Howard prior to his death.

Howard Ashman seemed like a delightful and brilliant artist, and based on his contributions to The little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin, it’s pretty easy to say that he was a big part for the Disney revival, and his documentary should be engraved in their streaming service. It’s the least they can do.

On the audio description side, it’s got a lot of typical documentary problems, tracking who is speaking and finding a way to get those introductions in. It’s always difficult, given the large amount of talking in most documentaries, to actually do this well. you almost have to wait for something like Fire Of Love, which is far more about the visuals than the dialogue, to really grade description in this genre.

But, I had no real problems, and I thought it succeeded in tackling the important moments in Howards life. he loved his work, he loved life, and he loved men. All of that is represented in this documentary, and for kids during Pride month looking for a story about someone who contributed to their world in a bigger way than they may realize, this is a terrific doc. I wouldn’t mind watching this again, and I recommend checking it out so Disney knows not to try and pull it again.

Final Grade: A