Movie Review: FROZEN
For a movie so beloved by people of all ages, Frozen should be better. While it’s certainly not bad, most who adore the film seem too caught up in its celebration of female empowerment to acknowledge its shortcomings. Don’t be one of those people.
Make no mistake, Frozen is an important feminist film that should be lauded, because it’s rare to see stories where women are not defined by their relationships with men. Sisters Elsa (Idina Menzel) and Anna (Kristen Bell) are powerful women who refreshingly don’t need men to get what they want. And although Anna is looking for love, she’s more interested in a man for companionship than for having someone take care of her. As a change of pace, the two men vying for her attention, Hans (Santino Fontana) and Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), are much more dependent on Anna than she is on them.
Frozen’s greatest strength isn’t its emphasis on women over men though, it’s the movie’s focus on Elsa and Anna’s relationship. Elsa has powers to control snow and ice, which almost kill Anna when they’re children. Their parents use magic to erase Anna’s memory and ask Elsa to stay away from her sister to avoid further accidents. What’s truly amazing is that Elsa loves Anna so much that she’s willing to endure years of loneliness to protect her sister. It’s this same affection that ultimately helps Elsa save Anna’s life toward the film’s end. Their solid relationship as sisters is the kind we need more of in cinema.
The picture’s strong values aren’t the only thing that will wow you. Visually, Frozen is a feast to behold with rich animation that is beautifully detailed and impressive, especially as the characters bound around during musical numbers. Speaking of the songs, there are a couple of catchy tunes like “Let it Go” and “Fixer Upper” that will delight musical fans. The problem with the music however, is that it doesn’t sound cohesive. Although individual songs are entertaining, they don’t feel like they all belong together in the same movie.
Upbeat snowman Olaf (Josh Gad) will surprise you with lots of laughs when he’s on screen. Gad easily gives the most spirited performance in the film, totally selling you on the Olaf’s hilariously naive desire to hang out in warm weather. By comparison, everyone else comes off as wooden. The other characters don’t quite know how to handle Olaf’s childlike sense of innocence, and as a result, he feels like he belongs in a different picture.
Even though Frozen is unconventional in a good way for its emphasis on women and their relationships, the most disappointing thing about it is how predictable the rest of its story is. You can easily guess which of Anna’s men has evil intentions and which is the real one that she’ll end up with. If you’re paying attention, you can also speculate that Elsa will be the one to save Anna instead of a man.
In spite of its issues, there are enough good things about Frozen that make it worth watching. So definitely see it. Just don’t let those things blind you to the pieces of the film that are ineffective. I didn’t and I hope you don’t either.
✮✮✮ 1/2
