What? Surprised? To be fair I only saw it because I was spending time with my cousins from out of town over the holidays. I went to see it with them and my brother and much to my surprise...I actually enjoyed it. But more on that later.
OBLIGATORY SPOILER ALERT. READ NO FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT YET SEEN THE FILM IN QUESTION.
The Exposition
Going in, Frozen (at least for me anyway) had two things working against it. As most people know, is based on (well more like inspired by) a fairy-tale by Hans Christian Anderson, called "The Snow Queen." What most people don't know is that technically it is a short story which Anderson wrote in the style of a fairy-tale, which is true of his other famous stories "The Ugly Duckling," "The Little Mermaid," and "The Emperor's New Clothes." These tales are not descended from ancient folklore, unlike the stories written down by the Brothers Grimm, such as Sleeping Beauty which can be traced all the way back to Norse mythology. I never really cared much for Anderson's tales as a result because, to me at least, they weren't genuine fairy-tales as much as they were popular children's stories that became classified as fairy-tales. Yes, I know that sounds incredibly pretentious but it's just how I'm wired. I like mythology, A LOT. If you've ever met me in person I've probably talked your ear off about the subject.
Which brings us to the second thing I was uneasy about going to see Frozen: the fact that it was a Disney movie. You could say I have a love hate relationship with The Walt Disney Co. Sure as a kid I was enthralled to Disney like everyone else. But at some point it just started become so gosh-darned cliche. The maudlin love story, the naive princess who is somehow perfectly normal despite enduring some kind of trauma, the musical numbers that interrupt the story. It just got to be too predictable, too much sameness.
Also they made Hercules, in which they completely hacked and butchered the Greek myths and my childhood hero into a buffoon. I was not pleased to say the least.
The point is I am wary of Disney. That's not to say I don't enjoy some of their movies. The Lion King is the gold standard by which all animation should be judged even today, and I have a great love for Lilo & Stitch, most un-Disney Disney movie ever made (which is precisely why I loved it so much. C'mon, who wouldn't want an indestructible mutant alien for a friend?) Even in recent years they've made films that I enjoyed. Wreck-it-Ralph was a treat for those of us who grew up on old-school videogames.
All that said, I went into the theater expecting not to enjoy Frozen. I was less than impressed with their last fairy-tale inspired (and past participle titled) effort Tangled for many of the reasons listed above and fully expected to feel the same way about Frozen.
Boy was I surprised.
The Gist of It
The only thing that Frozen has in common with "The Snow Queen" is that it features a monarch with the power of winter. Beyond that the two stories barely have anything in common.
And that's a good thing.
Frozen takes many age-old cliches found in Disney films and turns them on their heads. While the obligatory romance element is there, it is more of a subplot. The heart of the film is the relationship between two sisters, Elsa, the aforementioned Snow Queen, and Anna, the spunky little sister. I had assumed from the trailers that the elder sister would take on something of a villainess role, trapping the kingdom in ice as vengeance for some past transgression. Instead, Elsa is arguably the most sympathetic character and the one I most identified with. She is the older sibling, admonished by her parents, the king and queen, to be responsible and control her powers which as we find out she was born with instead of cursed. She did not ask for them, but nonetheless she has them and has a difficult time suppressing them. So not only does she have to be the responsible older child who will one day rule the kingdom, she also has to keep from unleashing unending winter.
And you thought your childhood was rough.
Elsa's affliction drives a wedge between her and Anna who doesn't understand why her sister chooses to keep her at arms length, even after their parents pass away (in the middle of a musical montage no less. Cheery, huh?) Anna yearns to let the outside world in, while Elsa is bent on keeping it out, lest her secret be revealed and she be branded as a sorceress...which is exactly what happens at her coronation, when Anna unintentionally pushes her too far as younger siblings often do. And so the Snow Queen runs away, her powers running amok trapping the kingdom in ice. This is the chief conflict of the story, not of a good princess versus a bad one, but of two sisters trying to understand one another. Who just happen to be royalty...and one of them can control the weather. In other words it's a very real, very relatable scenario heightened by extraordinary circumstances.
The other cliche upended by this movie is the naive princess falling in love with the first man she meets. Anna meets Hans, who proposes to her a few hours after meeting her. Elsa objects, but Anna will not listen, her trust in her sister damaged by years of distance. Turns out Hans is a jerk, an outright sociopath who spends the first two thirds of the film convincing everyone including the audience that he's a nice guy. Only when he sees an opportunity to get rid of both the sisters at once do his true colors come out as he seeks to seize the throne for himself. I know this is going to sound horrible but I'm glad this particular plot twist played out the way it did. I am beyond tired of Disney sending out the message that it's okay to be naive when it comes to relationships. Too many female protagonists end up getting rewarded for their naivete, instead of learning to be discerning about who they can trust. Fortunately, Anna spends the second act of the movie building relationships with people she can trust, namely a peasant named Kristoff, his dog-like reindeer Sven, and a talking snowman named Olaf (who easily had the best lines in the movie).
The the final cliche Frozen decides to do away with is the love conquers all idea. As it turns out the damage caused by Elsa's powers isn't just harming the kingdom; it is also freezing Anna's heart, threatening to leave her frozen solid forever. According to a troll king (it's a fairy tale, just go with it) only an act of true love will warm Anna's heart, which hearkens back to Anderson's original story while setting the audience up for what they think will be the resolution, namely a kiss from Anna's true love. Only it doesn't happen that way at all. When Hans attempts to dispatch Elsa once and for all, Anna steps in front of his blade, saving her sister's life but turning to ice in the process.
I should pause and relate this little anecdote. When this scene played in the theater I was in, a boy of about four years old or so started crying, loudly. His mother tried to comfort him but he proclaimed, "But it's too late! She's already frozen!" The entire theater went "awwwwwwwwwe."
Thankfully, tears were not needed. Anna became unfrozen and embraced her sister who in turn was able to end the winter she herself had unleashed. It was the mending of their relationship, not finding romance, that broke the curse and saved the day. I can only imagine the looks on the studio execs faces when they heard this idea pitched to them. "B-b-but the kiss is supposed to solve everything! You're messing with the classic Disney formula!" To which the directors are now no doubt responding "Yes, and as a result we have the most successful movie you've had since The Lion King. So there!"
The Anti-Climax
In short, Frozen may be one of the five best films Disney has ever made. Yes it featured a lot of the typical elements you'd find in such a movie, but done in such a way that it felt new and different. Two frigid thumbs up from a guy normally rolls his eyes at this sort of thing (gimme a break, I'm a dude).
Answers to Burning Questions
Best scene in the movie?
The musical number "Let it Go," Elsa's solo where she unleashes her powers to build an ice castle on the side of a mountain. Fantastic animation paired with incredible vocals, no surprise considering Elsa is voiced by Idina Menzel, an award-winning Broadway actress with a serious set of pipes.
Best performance? A tie between Menzel and Josh Gad who voices the cheerful Olaf.
Will you see it again?
I suspect I will at some point, though not by myself given the weird looks I'd get.
If there's a sequel will you see it?
Maybe, if the next movie focuses on where exactly Elsa's powers came from and why she has them and if there are other people like here. I have no idea what they'd call it though. Frozen 2: Below Zero? Frozen: The Ice People Cometh? Sorry I can't think of any good puns about ice. Oh, I know! Frozen: A Rock and a Cold Place. Yeah? No? Fine whatever.
What's up next?
From frozen to fire, I journey through The Desolation of Smaug, the second part of Peter Jackson's not-well-thought-out plan to turn The Hobbit into a trilogy. For Tolkien fans, it's enough to make you angrier than a dragon whose treasure gets stolen. See ya next time.
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