Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Movie Review: "Frozen" (Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, 2013)

“FROZEN” IS A FANTASTIC TIME AT THE MOVIES
by Mo Shaunette

Above: Concept art from the film
 
In 1991, Disney released “Beauty and the Beast”, and introduced one of the most unique additions to what would soon be called the Disney Princesses. Belle was unlike any female protagonist the House of Mouse had introduced before: smarter than Snow White, more active than Sleeping Beauty, and more independent than Ariel. In Belle, Disney had released their first really feminist character, and she helped make “Beauty and the Beast” the classic it is.

            As groundbreaking as “Beauty” was, 2013’s “Frozen” almost seems to be one-upping it at its own game, and in the process becomes one of the most subversive and self-aware Disney features of all time (without being the self-parody that “Enchanted” was). It’s also one of the best animated features that Disney has ever released.

            Loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen”, “Frozen” has a pretty front-loaded plot, so bear with me here. Ahem: In the land of Arendelle are the young princesses Elsa and Anna. The two are inseparable as children, but when Elsa’s innate ice and snow magic nearly kills Anna, King Dad and Queen Mom decide it’s best to wipe away Anna’s memory of her sister’s powers and isolate Elsa so she can learn to keep her abilities under control and not hurt anyone. And then they do what all parents in Disney movies do, leaving the sisters alone together but still apart.

            Cut to years later and the sisters have reached adulthood. Anna (voiced by Kristen Bell) is wide-eyed, naïve, enthusiastic, and has no idea why her sister locked her out all those years ago, while Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) is reserved, introverted, barely able to restrain her powers, and about to be coroneted queen. That night, however, an argument between the sisters over Anna’s sudden engagement to her true love - all-around nice guy Prince Hans (voiced by Santino Fontana) - leads to Elsa revealing her powers, being labeled a witch, and running away to the mountains. There, she finally unleashes her magic to their full extent and builds her own very well-designed ice castle, and in the process inadvertently blankets Arendelle in a nuclear winter in July. To save the kingdom and get her sister back, Anna sets out to talk Elsa off the mountain with the help of disgruntled ice salesman Kristoff (voiced by Jonathan Groff), his dog-like reindeer Sven, and Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad), a snowman brought to life by Elsa’s magic.

            If that seems like a lot for just Act 1, it’s because it is, but it works for a few reasons: first, because the songs help the plot move forward at a brisk pace, and second, because the real meat of the flick is the road movie of the second act as Team Anna makes their way through the frozen forests. That’s where the movie really lives, in the back-and-forth between these people, and that’s where “Frozen” has its funniest moments and best songs.

The actors all bring their best, particularly the two female leads as the contrasting royals, but a special mention has be given to Josh Gad as Olaf the snowman (even if it’s just because he’s given the most to do in terms of comedy). Mr. Gad is a performer I’ve been a fan of for years since seeing him in “The Book of Mormon” on Broadway and he brings the same energy to Olaf as he did to Elder Arnold Cunningham – he’s simple, awkward, but charming and funny in his own way. He’s also well-animated, waddling around like a toddler and fixing up his body made of snow whenever he falls apart. He doesn’t quite steal the show, which is good, but he’s a high watermark for comedy sidekicks in Disney pictures.

As I mentioned, Mr. Gad was in “The Book of Mormon”, whose music was co-written by Robert Lopez, who also wrote the songs for “Frozen” with his wife, Kristen Anderson-Lopez (Segway bonus!). Now I’m not a music critic, so take it with a grain of salt when I say that the songs in “Frozen” are all a ton of fun, the actors are singing their hearts out, and Elsa’s big number “Let It Go,” sung as she embraces a life of snowy hermitage with just her and her unbridled powers, destined to become a breakaway pop hit.

The flick isn’t perfect – the central romance feels a bit underdeveloped and some character traits regarding Kristoff are brought up and then swept aside, but then again, the focus of the story is (unusual for a Disney flick) on the relationship between the sisters Anna and Elsa. With its fun, energy, novelty, dynamite animation, great songs, and a really interesting third-act development, “Frozen” is a fantastic time at the movies and comes highly recommended.

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