FROZEN – The Review

Don’t let the name fool you… Disney’s FROZEN will warm your heart.

Anna and Elsa are the closest of sisters until a childhood accident drives them apart. See, Elsa is not like other children. She has the ability to freeze things, and to manipulate ice. The only problem is, she hasn’t quite learned to control it. Instead, she learns to hide her powers away, which also means hiding herself.

That only works for so long… and soon she is forced out of hiding, only to accidentally freeze their kingdom in the process. Anna is now on a quest to find her icy sister and put an end to the cold. Along the way she meets some pretty interesting new friends including a mountain man named Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), and his sidekick Sven, and Olaf (Josh Gadd), a snowman that Elsa and Anna made as children who has suddenly come to life. Together, they trek through the frozen mountains on a race to save the kingdom from its eternal winter.

FROZEN is an absolute delight. Disney went back to their storytelling roots, and created an old-school fairytale that has a very classic feel, without the need to add a ton of modern twists. This film fits in with the likes of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ALADDIN, and THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG. By watching the film, it is apparent that they really did their research when designing the kingdom of Arendelle, and it’s easy to get lost in. Animation with such an authentic feel doesn’t just happen. Instead, animators took several trips to the Fjords in Norway, and spent months studying the architecture, details, and characteristics of the area so that they could create a more believable, magical environment for their tale. It shows. The film looks stunning. It’s very easy to lose yourself in their world.

Directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck strayed a bit from the tradition of having a prince come in and save the day. Instead, they chose a story centered around family, and the love of sisters. It’s nice to see strong female leads in film… especially animation. Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel do an incredible job of bringing strength and beauty to the characters of Anna and Elsa. There is a nice balance keeping the character of Elsa vulnerable, and still likable in her time of rebellion. It would have been easy to cast her as a villain. Instead, they keep the majority of the film villain free. Sure, there are a few jerks along the way, but no one that I would call an actual villain.

This film is certainly for those who love musicals. FROZEN has an incredibly strong soundtrack, and has a much more “musical theater” feel than many of the Disney animated films of the past. As much as I love the music, I could have done without the “Don’t know if I’m elated or gassy, but I’m somewhere in that zone.” in the song “For The First Time In Forever”. It took me out of the song, and had me praying that they didn’t put crass jokes in the rest of the film. It’s not that I’m uptight… I just don’t want my Disney movie full of fart jokes. Corny jokes are ok on occasion. That is what the character of Olaf is for. He is the comic relief of the film. Still, I was relieved to find that as the movie went on, they avoided that direction. Instead, they opted for songs such as “Let It Go” and “Do You Want To Build A Snowman” which are sure to bring a smile to your face, and possibly a tear to your eye!

FROZEN is sure to cast a spell on audiences. It’s a treat for the whole family!

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

FOR MORE INFO: 

“Like” FROZEN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DisneyFrozen

Follow FROZEN on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DisneyAnimation

Visit the official website: http://www.disney.com/frozen  

FROZEN is in theaters now