Frozen (November 22, 2013)

I feel there is not much I can add to the discourse about this film- it has been analyzed and talked about for death. Having said this, I will attempt to give my thoughts on the film, anyway. Starting off with the technical aspects, the animation is stunning. The ice and snow affects are absolutely beautiful (though, I personally prefer the style of Rise of the Guardians, released by DreamWorks a year earlier). The songs are, by far, the best part of this film. I have listed to all of them countless times and they still hold up. My personal favorite is “Love is an Open Door,” though I am also partial to “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” (and “Let it Go is truly a great and utterly iconic song as well). Watching Frozen in theaters, Hans’s betrayal was truly shocking. Looking back on it is not actually that surprising, (especially given Kristoff’s warnings about marrying someone you just met and knew next to nothing about), but he did hide his intensions well. Olaf is one of the most annoying characters Disney has created. His voice is grating, and his naïve personality and brutally honest dialogue make me dislike him even more. I had a bad impression of him from the beginning, when he was the start of US teaser trailers that I would constantly see in front of other films and videos. Kristof does not deserve Anna; he cares more for her than she does for him. Honestly, the film does a disservice to his character, with the focus on sister love instead of romance (what I crave and expect from a Disney Princess film, and the same problem I had with Brave). This is not sisterly love is a bad thing to focus (indeed it is a rare and beautiful thing) on I just, prefer romance in these sorts of films. Anna is naïve and sheltered but somehow is able to go on this frozen adventure, braving dangers and escaping largely unscathed (besides the whole, being frozen by her own sister part). Elsa is very much a victim of her parents’ ignorant ways. I know they genuinely cared about her but they really messed her up; instead of helping teach her to control her powers like they promised they simply made her suppress it and basically instilled in her that she was indeed a monster. Additionally, her powers do not make much sense besides being cool to look at (which is definitely accomplished!). Overall, Frozen is a fun film, if you do not think to hard or deeply about it. It has amazing songs and enchanting animation (especially the wintery effects) but it was not what I expected when I originally watched. While that is not bad, it means I am not completely satisfied with the end result.

Final Rating: 6.5/10