Okay, now that I've made that old Nostalgia Critic reference, let's get on with this review, shall we?
Frozen has been out for about a month now, as you can tell from the poster above, but it is a fairly recent release in Australia. When combined with my job in retail and the release of The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug (unsurprisingly, I like dragons) resulted in my being delayed in seeing this movie. That's a right shame, because it is, in all honesty, a very entertaining film.
Frozen can be considered something of a spiritual successor to 2010's Tangled (which, sadly, I have not yet seen, though I plan to fix that). Both are very much in the spirit of traditional Disney princess movies, particularly those of the company's Renaissance period, though both use CGI rather than traditional animation. Both are based on fairy tales (in the case of Frozen, the film is based on The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson), though both attempt to disguise their origins on some level through simple, one-word titles that create a somewhat evocative image. Finally, while I can't speak with any authority on Tangled, it apparently managed to work quite well, a feat that has been replicated by Frozen.
Plot: The film tells the story of two sisters, Anna and Elsa, princesses of a (presumably) fictional city-state who are left orphaned after their parents die at sea. While Anna is a mostly normal girl with no extraordinary talents, Elsa has the power to manipulate ice and cold, an ability that she struggles to control. Under her parent's orders before their deaths, Elsa isolates herself from her sister and the world. When her power is accidentally revealed at her coronation, Elsa flees the city, unwittingly covering the land in an eternal winter in the process. Anna must journey to her sister's ice castle to set everything right.
There is, of course, more to the plot than I have just described. In particular, there is the romantic subplot that must find its way into nearly every non-Pixar Disney film ever made. In this instance, however, that part does work, and while the basic trajectory is obvious to anyone with the slightest hint of genre savvy, it does have an interesting twist or two that is actually foreshadowed quite well. In addition, it does link into the main plot in a very natural fashion, even though the basic story could probably have been told without it.
In short, the plot is nothing special, and does have a few holes. In particular, the climax and resolution to the main plot is very forced, and does not make a great deal of sense. It is possible, however, that I am forgetting something from the first act that may have foreshadowed that point, and helped it to make more sense. Beauty and the Beast comes to mind as a film that did such a thing, establishing the cause of the resolution in the opening, which allowed it to make a bit more sense. If you happen to remember any such thing from Frozen, feel free to mention it in the comments, with the proper spoiler warnings.
Characters: As already mentioned, our two main characters are the sisters, Anna and Elsa. The former is somewhat of a pastiche of Disney princesses. She has the social isolation of Belle, the curiosity and naivete of Ariel, the determination of Tiana, and the purity of basically every princess before them. It is the latter that is my main problem with Anna. Any flaws are presented as loveable quirks rather than serious problems. The one exception is her naivete, particularly in the area of romance. While this does cause some rather serious problems, and can be argued to be the spark that sets off the main conflict, I don't think this holds up under closer analysis. The conflict is more Elsa's fault, set off by an accident and little more. As for the problem that Anna's naivete actually causes, I'll simply say that I doubt she would have seen that coming even if she had possessed a little more worldly wisdom.
I found Elsa to be the more interesting of the two. Perhaps this is simply because I related to her more, being somewhat of a social recluse myself (though I'm fairly sure I wouldn't hide in an ice castle up in the mountains; the internet up there would be incredibly slow, and no pizza company would deliver). More likely, however, it's because her reasons for isolating herself are quite sensible. Her powers do make her quite dangerous, but it is the great irony that shutting herself off from others hurts her emotional state in such a way that she becomes more likely to harm others. It's an idea that, while not particularly deep in its execution, is at least interesting.
The two leading men in this story are Kristoff and Hans. Kristoph is a fairly interesting character, particularly when compared to Elsa. While she hides from others so that she doesn't hurt them, he is the opposite, a man rejected too often by society, so much so that he avoids human contact except when necessary. Honestly, I would have preferred it if he had wound up with Elsa instead of Anna (that's not a spoiler; it's obvious from the first scene between him and Anna that they'll wind up together). As things stand, his relationship with Anna feels very forced, and it hurts his character more than anything else.
Hans is the most surprisingly interesting character in the film, and that's all I'll say about him.
Being a Disney film, there are naturally a handful of minor comic relief characters, including Kristoff's reindeer friend Sven, and a society of trolls. Perhaps the most noteworthy side character, and the one who most aptly demonstrates the problems with this film, is Olaf, a snowman brought to life by Elsa's magic. To put things very briefly, he is obnoxious and annoying. This is not necessarily a problem, as many Disney characters have managed to pull this off in a way that is entertaining. The main reason characters like Timon and Pumbaa work, however, is that they mostly stay out of the serious moments. Olaf, on the other hand, somehow manages to work his way into nearly every major emotional moment from the point when he's introduced. More importantly, he is the one tasked with explaining the plot, at least when it's not the trolls doing so. Honestly, that's his main role in the plot, and it's very annoying to have that task given to such an obnoxious troll.
In short, the characters are the film's main weak point. Anna is too perfect, Kristoff suffers from being paired with her, and the minor characters are simply too annoying.
Voice acting: There is little to say here. The voice actors and actresses all did fine in their respective roles. Even annoying characters like Olaf are, in principle, played well. Unfortunately, there are no performances that rise above that level. I have heard a fair amount of praise for Idina Menzel as the voice of Elsa, particularly for her singing, but I found little worth mentioning about it, other than that her version of "Let it Go" felt overdone for the character.
Visuals: As many people have said, modern audiences are spoiled when it comes to visuals in animation. Most, if not all, major releases are well-made on a purely technical level. This can often be a curse, however, for it becomes increasingly difficult for a film to rise above the pack.
While Frozen does not stand atop the mountain of animation, it makes it most of the way. The film is very nice to look at. Everything and everyone moves fluidly and is believable. Of course, the focus from a visual standpoint is on the snow and ice, and this is where the film looks its best. The film does a very good job of portraying both the desolate nature of a snowy landscape and the beauty that can be found within it. Elsa's ice castle stands as perhaps the best castle I have ever seen in an animated film, and its creation is the film's visual peak. Special mention should also go to the film's climax, which takes place within the heart of the storm. While naturally impressive on a technical level, it also helps to keep the critical action contained, focusing on the major characters as they make the decisions that will ultimately determine their fate. It's a simple technique in some ways, but one that works very well.
Music: As a Disney princess film, Frozen is, like its brethren, a musical. The Disney Animated Canon has a very high standard for music, containing more classics than I can count. I am very happy to report that Frozen lives up this high standard. I bought the soundtrack soon after I left the cinema, and am listening to it as I type this. The songs are catchy and perfectly suit the mood of their respective scenes. "Let it Go" seems to be the general favourite, but I have to go with "For the First Time in Forever" as my personal pick. Regardless, it's hard to imagine a person who can't find a single song to love in here.
With that said, the songs aren't perfect. On more than a few occasions, the voice actors and actresses (actually, as things stand, it seems to be more of a problem with the women, but that's because they have the greater volume of material) seem to rush through their lines. This is particularly a problem with the reprise of "For the First Time in Forever", so if you want to see what I mean, look that up, or download it from iTunes.
The score itself is equally good in many ways, whether it's utilising the melodies of the songs or using original tunes. Regardless, it always fits the mood, and enhances it, and I can't ask for any more than that.
Note: if you're at all interested in film soundtracks, I recommend getting the deluxe version of the soundtrack (this may only be available on iTunes). In addition to all the songs and the background music, it also contains demo versions of the songs, as well as some deleted songs. It's rather like the special features on a DVD, and I for one am finding it quite entertaining.
Conclusion: Frozen is an impeccably presented film, with the highest production values imaginable. The result is a film that is incredibly entertaining to watch. Unfortunately, the film shows the difference between Pixar and basically everyone else in western animation at the moment (with the occasional exception). Pixar put the story first, working out every kink in the plot and characters, and the mother company simply doesn't.
With all that said, I enjoyed Frozen immensely, and it is a good film, just not a great one. I highly recommend watching it.
Final score: 3.5/5
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