Review of Frozen (2013) by Emma G — 16 Sep 2015

Like most other Disney films that are inspired by century old fairy tales, Disneyâ??s most recent entry into their animated canon became their 15th fairy tale and 53rd film in total, showing no signs of relenting or even varying their source of storytelling success. That latest entry, Frozen, destroyed the competition of 2013/14 not only in terms of animated opposition but also box-office-wise. Frozen was a sleeper hit as it just grew and grew displaying no mark of yielding in its global conquest. With a release date in the month of November, Frozen remained a force up until the beginning of the summer cinematic season in May. Such a length of time in cinemas is comparable to Titanicâ??s yearly stay on our screens, and the factors in Frozenâ??s longevity come in the form of the festivity period it not only subjectively originated from, but also through its Christmas screenings, its Academy Award advertisement in February, and plain and simply the fascination the world and in particular the Japanese had for it!

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersenâ??s fairy tale The Snow Queen, Frozen tells the tale of a pair of royal orphan sisters, one a fearless young princess, the other an estranged princess with cyrokinetic powers. The young fearless sister, Anna, sets off alongside a rugged iceman, his pet reindeer and a naïve snowman on an epic quest to find her sister whose icy tendencies have unintentionally imprisoned their kingdom in perpetual winter. The subject matter of Frozen is a recurrent storyline adopted by Disney that is then moulded into a whole new universe. But, Frozen is the first true Disney fairy tale classic to grace the screen in a really long time so it possibly can come as no surprise that it took the world by storm. It has the iconic imagery, charming characters and memorable music so it was sure to be a hitâ?¦ but in truth I really cannot understand how it became as popular as it has.

By far the major factor in boosting the attachment and affection people have towards this film is its music; if you start singing the three words â??Let It Goâ?? in front of anyone not only will they recognise where it is from, but they will also continue singing along subconsciously. Idina Menzel, or as John Travolta would say â??Adele Dazeem,â?? sings â??Let It Goâ?? with such a plucky bravura that she almost screams the food she ate the night before out! In fact, the song is not that amazingly sungâ?¦ it is just the sheer sing-along factor the song exudes that makes it so catchy and as popular as it still is today. Nearly everyone is perhaps an expert of its lyrics! Lesser popular songs; well, no song will ever reach the heights of â??Let It Goâ??; such as â??Do You Want to Build a Snowman?â?? and â??For the First Time in Foreverâ?? are known by some and are quite decent but are no match for its headline song. To be honest, the music of Frozen isnâ??t that spectacular once you begin to take notice of it rather than belch it out, but it still delivers some of the best music from an animation film in a whileâ?¦ or Disney for that matter.

Frozenâ??s specific scenery is hinted to in its titleâ?¦ itâ??s going to be cold and full of snow! The simplicity of the scenery provides some beautifully spectacular images of a blanket of whiteness. In particular, the song â??Let It Goâ??sâ?? montage of Elsa exploring her abilities in the snowy wilderness to create a mighty ice castle and her very own snow troll is lovely viewing. The things its filmmakers do with everything ice-related is quite remarkable that it almost seems like a film about the X-Men character Iceman or even more ridiculous an animated version of The Day After Tomorrow. Frozenâ??s animation is in truth simple, but this simplicity gives the film the license to explore the possibilities of what ice can do.

The actors that helm Frozen are all credible in their abilities but none stand out to you enough to endure to you their characters. Probably only Josh Gadâ??s voicing of Olaf, the comical snowman who dreams of experiencing summer, has some clout to make him memorable. The characterâ??s naivety and obliviousness to his icy situation provides some of the best moments in the film that not only children can find funny, but it can also reach the enhanced understandings of adults. Nevertheless, Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff and Santino Fontana make up the rest of the main cast and even though none are globally recognisable actors, they are substantial enough to hold the film together against such a mammoth audience it turned out to envelope.

In all Frozenâ??s naked glory, it isnâ??t that astonishing a film as it has been portrayed to be. It ticks all the boxes of how to make a charming animated film for all the family but it doesnâ??t provide anything to really get full from. It isnâ??t your exceptionally classic Disney film that really grabs your love through its story or characters; instead its global popularity has developed from the admiration of its soundtrack, which has permeated into so many other media industries and daily life. Seeing as it is internationally beloved by basically every single child, and some adults, on the planet means that perhaps everything I am saying is just my futile outlook, but Iâ??m going to stick to my guns because only the song â??Let It Goâ?? had me at hello.

At the 2014 Academy Awards, Frozen was nominated for both Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song, and won both so easily that the other animated films of that year might as well have not been nominatedâ?¦ or even made! The fact that Wreck-It-Ralph, also a Disney film made the year before Frozen, lost out to Brave for being the best animated film convolutes everything because it is unfair for Brave and Frozen to now be considered the best of their years when Wreck-It-Ralph is in truth one of the best animated films of this decade so far. In terms of box-office statistics, the popularity for Frozen is extremely clear because by earning almost $1.3 billion, it has become not only the highest grossing animated film ever but also the fifth highest revenue out of everything ever to grace our screens. Frozen has eclipsed the world of animation for over a year now, that anything that gets made or has been made in the last 2 years will ultimately fall into memory because Frozen is what every kid is talking aboutâ?¦ or better yet singing!

The Verdict:

Frozenâ??s worldwide popularity is a symptom of its musical prowess, in particular the song â??Let It Goâ?? which elevates your attachment to everything else featured in the film.

â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â?? 6/10.