When “Frozen” was first advertised last year, I’ll admit I was skeptical of what Disney was trying to accomplish with this film. With the exception of “Tangled” and “Toy Story 3,” the past few years of Disney films have not been a portrayal of their best work. Yet, “Frozen” was a pleasant surprise that gave me that same giddy feeling as when I watched other classics like “The Little Mermaid” or “Beauty and the Beast” as a child.
Disney’s “Frozen” is the story about two sisters, Elsa and Anna, in the fictional Kingdom of Arendelle. Elsa was born with magical powers that allow her to create snow and ice with the wave of her hand. One day while the sisters are playing as children, Anna is accidentally injured by Elsa’s power.
She is healed, but all memory of Elsa’s power is erased from her memory. Because of this incident, Elsa is forced to suppress her powers and emotions from everyone except her parents. This leads to Elsa giving Anna the cold shoulder as she shuts her sister out in order to prevent Anna from being injured again.
The movie jumps to when the girls are fully grown on Elsa’s coronation day. The emotional stress from this event causes Elsa’s power to be revealed, and then she is shunned by the local townspeople who deem her power as witchcraft.
This causes Elsa to unintentionally create an eternal winter as she runs and hides in the snowy mountaintops outside the kingdom. With the help of mountain man Kristoff, potential husband Prince Hans, and a live snowman named Olaf, Anna now must face the cold weather and sister to restore order to Arendelle.
The cast gives lives to each character with Kristen Bell playing Anna, the ditzy, happy-go-lucky one whom is yearning to see the world. Idina Menzel plays a great contrast as older and standoffish, icy Elsa. The rest of the cast includes Jonathan Groff from “Glee” who voices mountain man Kristoff, and Josh Gad plays Olaf, the snowman that gives comic relief to the plot.
Each character had a different dynamic to their personality, creating wholesome moments of drama, humor, and romance to the movie. Usually it is perplexing to truly see an actor’s performance in an animated film, but it was easy to see the successful effort that the cast put in to making their characters come alive.
Disney took their computer-generated technology to the next level with the creation of “Frozen.” One of the first aspects I noticed was the use of cinematography throughout the film. There were extensive close-ups, panning shots, and camera rotation that put the viewer in the story.
When Elsa makes her castle of the ice camera, angles intricately follow the ice building and intertwining with extreme detail. There was a refreshing array of colors of greens, blues, reds, and gold used within the winter wonderland and summertime of Arendelle was beautifully portrayed.
One of the outstanding features of this movie is the soundtrack. With a cast featuring musical star Idina Menzel as a main character, I was expecting a score that would be powerful, enduring, and be stuck in my head for the next two weeks. The movie delivered all this and more with Menzel’s solo of “Let It Go” as her character Elsa finds comfort and freedom up in the mountains. The music overall was well executed as it emphasized the emotions and personality of each character as a Broadway musical would, giving me chills the entire film.
That’s not surprising considering the background of the actors. Idina Menzel is perhaps most well-known for her roles in “Wicked” and “Rent” while Jonathan Groff made girls’ hearts swoon in “Spring Awakening.” Josh Gad was fresh off a 2011 Tony win for “Book of Mormon” when he was cast. Even Kristen Bell, best known for film and television work, started out on Broadway (her only musical being “A Little Night Music”).
“Frozen” was a unique Disney film that I truly enjoyed, and it’s not because my wish of being a Disney princess finally came true (though that is a perk.) There were hilarious one-liners, unexpected plot twists, and marvelous animation. The film was different from other movies that the franchise is famous for as it focused on the bond and love between siblings. That message in the film was refreshing from the typical prince-princess relationship that has been overused by the movie industry.
“Frozen” is a film that all ages will enjoy and will warm your heart during this winter season.
PHOTO TAKEN from flavorwire.com
