Frozen premiered in 2013 and marks Disney's 53rd animated feature film. The movie has amassed a cult following among every little girl in America and really individuals everywhere. Frozen fever has struck minivan sound systems, Halloween parties, Disneyland, Target, and classrooms across the world. This film has been a powerhouse for Disney, and it doesn't seem to be losing steam. (There's even a Frozen 2 in the works.)
Frozen is Disney's take on the classic "Snow Queen" fairy tale. The film tells the story of two sisters: Elsa and Anna. Elsa is born with special icy powers that allow her to make all sorts of winter wonderland fun happen with a wave of her hand. One of Elsa and Anna's favorite pastimes is "building a snowman" with Elsa's magical powers. Alas one day while playing, Anna is struck by a blast of Elsa's icy power, and the only way to cure her is to erase all memory of the magic Elsa possesses. The episode causes fear to bloom in Elsa who becomes more and more withdrawn, while the perky, persistent Anna ends up eking out a very lonely childhood.
Fast forward a few years, Elsa and Anna's parents have died in a shipwreck, and Elsa has finally come of age to be coronated... which means Arendelle's gates will be opened for the first time in forever! Anna is beside herself with excitement whilst Elsa is beside herself with anxiety. Elsa makes it through the coronation ceremony, and all that's left to do is the celebration ball... And things probably would have been fine if Elsa and Anna didn't get into that argument about Anna getting engaged to someone she's known less than 24 hours... But alas, Anna did get engaged to Prince Hans, she did argue with Elsa about it (after Elsa wouldn't give their union her blessing - hooray for a little bit of rationality!), and Elsa's emotions did cause her icy powers to go a little crazy.
Summer becomes winter across Arendelle as Elsa let's it go. Anna races after Elsa to try to restore order to their relationship and the kingdom. She's left Hans in charge while she's gone. Thankfully she happens upon a grumpy ice farmer (Kristoff) and his friendly reindeer (Sven) just when she's lost her horse and needs some help getting to Elsa's ice castle. So now all that's left to do is find Elsa, convince Elsa to stop the winter and come back with her, get back to Arendelle, restore order to the kingdom, buy Kristoff a new sleigh, marry Hans, and live happily ever after. What could possibly go wrong?
As mentioned earlier, Frozen fever has struck America. Hard. And the film is good. Arguments can be made that it is great. It is, however, not the best thing Disney has ever produced. I enjoyed Frozen very much (I'll tell you why below), but I must disagree with the large portion of population that have labeled it the best Disney film ever. (This is the best Disney film ever for this blogger.)
There are two elements that make Frozen so enjoyable for me. First, the humor. This film is funNY. Anna's bubbly personality coupled with her excited clumsiness make her adorable, likable, and relatable - and on top of all that it makes her funny. Kristoff's cynicism provides a nice dose of contrast to Anna's over-the-top personality, and makes for many a great line ("you mean to tell me you got engaged to someone you just met that day?... Didn't your parents ever warn you about strangers?") Sven and his reindeer antics are super cute. And then you have Olaf.
Olaf is a snowman who's favorite thing is warm hugs. He dreams of experiencing summer in all its steamy heat. He's comedic gold in this film and absolutely lovable.
The second element that makes Frozen so wonderful is the music. Oh my goodness. The music! This film has the best music of any animated Disney film since 2000. And it's up there with the likes of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and The Lion King. Elsa and Anna are voiced by Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell respectively. Idina hails from Broadway and her powerhouse vocals shine through whilst Kristen's pure soprano and comedic gaffes make the soundtrack a true gem. The entire musical repertoire of the film is outstanding, but the song that defines the soundtrack (and really the film as a whole) is Elsa's "Let It Go." If you're ever having a bad day and need to belt a song, look no further. Elsa sings this as her ode to "seeing what she can do" once her powers have been revealed. It is Disney magic.
So there you have it. Two sisters. One big secret. Winter in summer. An adorable, huggable snowman. A grumpy iceman. A playful reindeer. A shiny prince. Fantastic music. And love. These all add up to one wonderful movie: Frozen.
Thanks for sticking with me through this journey! I've had so much fun watching all of these Disney films. Some were new to me, many were old favorites. I've learned that I don't have the discipline to be a great blogger, but it's still been nice to have a platform to share my thoughts and words. Finishing this blogging adventure and journey through Disney film is bittersweet. I'm so excited to have completed this bucket list item, but at the same time I'm a bit sad to see it go. (I'm no good at endings. They always make me sad to some degree.)
The only way to finish this is with wisdom from the man that started it all - Mr. Walt Disney:
All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.
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