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Hello, Fluffsters!
Happy Monday! Guess what? It’s Christmas Week!
Anywho. So yesterday, for my Christmas present, my sister took me to see Disney’s Frozen. So, (SPOILER ALERT!) here’s a:
Review: Disney’s Frozen.
First of all, I loved it. I found it significantly better than Disney’s Tangled; it was amazing. Especially as I was watching it with my sister. Which brings me to the first part of the review:
Basic Summary
This is very loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s Snow Queen. Very loosely. Very. As in, it had a couple of elements, such as slivers of “something” entering one of the main character’s heart, and there being a queen of the snow & ice and stuff. And it’s based in roughly the right location.
The basic premise is that there are two princess sisters. The older one (Elsa) has a power to control and create snow and ice. Way towards the beginning, she accidentally hurts her little sister (Anna). This shapes the entire rest of the movie. Anna’s memories of Elsa’s powers are removed, and Elsa needs to try to control her powers, in order to not hurt people. This basically means that Elsa blocks Anna out, in order to protect her.
Fast-forward a few years. The parents die. (It’s Disney- what did you expect?) Fast-forward a few more years. Elsa is of age, and is to be crowned queen. It’s an eventful day for her. Not only is she coronated, but she also actually talks with her sister, “interacts” with people, and accidentally unleashes a big winter storm over her land, mid-summer.
Woops.
Yup. And she runs away.
The rest of the movie goes on from there, as Anna goes to find Elsa, and hopefully “bring back summer.”
It’s a very character and situation driven story, as opposed to plot. The plot itself is very simple, but the situation gives tension, and the characters give depth to the “plot.”
The methods Disney used to bring the depth and tension, though, are amazing.
Sound & Visual
Ok. So as I’m sure you’re aware, Disney got an excellent acting cast, including Idina Menzel (Elphaba from Wicked) as Elsa. Disney also made stunning graphics and sound effects / music.
Seriously.
The opening songs and sounds are fantastic. It starts with Scandinavian choral music. Then it goes to a song from ice-cutters about nothing more dangerous than “a frozen heart.” The sounds is beautifully open, somewhat minor, and very folksongish. This, of course, sets the context for Elsa’s powers. “Beauty and Danger” are found in ice, and, again, nothing is more dangerous.
The opening scene also lays the expectations for the animation. It is beautiful. The artists truly captured the treacherous beauty of ice. This shows up throughout the entire movie. The ice reflects, it looks cold, and (even in 2D), it has so much depth and detail. Seriously, it is stunning.
The opening scene was great. It wasn’t the best of the movie, though.
The songs keep going on. So much character depth is given through the songs. Anna’s loneliness and Elsa’s fear and trapped feeling all shine through with the music. The two princesses have a couple of duets, which are very wonderfully orchestrated. (The background is full, and the harmonies the two girls form is gorgeous.)
The most iconic scene, and the one that actually truly got me interested in the movie, is one that Disney itself released to YouTube. (I personally think this was brilliant marketing on their part- it did get me and my sister into the theater…) This scene comes shortly after Elsa accidentally loses control and reveals her powers to the world, and therefore runs off. This is one of the most beautiful scenes in the movie, both visually and musically.
Wait… Did the lyrics actually just include a reference to fractals?
Yup. Isn’t it amazing? It, like, actually treats the audience as intelligent!
In case you couldn’t figure it out, that’s one of my absolute favorite scenes. Ever. Seriously, I have watched that scene way too many times.
Ah. So you’re saying that this song, well, you can’t “let it go?”
…Very funny.
The Foley artists in that are also amazing to, don’t you think? The snow sounds like its freezing as Elsa creates it. The palace audibly shimmers. And aren’t those graphics stunning? I totally want to visit that palace.
In all, I was very satisfied with the movie. I went into the theater expecting to like a scene from the movie- the one I found on YouTube. Instead, I was drawn in from the very beginning. Disney captures a true sister relationship amazingly, and presents a wonderfully compelling story. Both my sister and I were impressed by the movie.
Personally, and I know I’m going to ruffle some feathers with this one, I think it was unequivocally better than Tangled. The characters were believable, the sister interactions were so good, the graphics and setting were beautiful, and the music was fantastic. I think I would probably give this a full five-star review for a kids movie. (It wasn’t “OMG THE BEST MOVIE EVA!!1!”, but it was really good.)
I highly recommend it.
I hope you have wonderful week!
