There are countless examples of how the bad press machine can steamroll a film into complete obscurity or ridicule, whether warranted or not. But to those who have already written off “Frozen” because of controversial comments made by animator Lino DiSalvo or because of a now-notorious GIF comparing the faces of Rapunzel from “Tangled” with Anna and Elsa from “Frozen,” it is in one’s best interests to reconsider — Disney really does hit a homerun with their latest animated feature.
Directed by Chris Buck and assisted by both a pitch-perfect screenplay and co-direction from Jennifer Lee, “Frozen” is loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Snow Queen.” The film follows the story of two sisters, Anna (Kristen Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel), who are the daughters of the rulers of the Kingdom of Arendelle. Elsa happens to be born with a special power — she can create snow and ice with her hands.
As a little girl, she uses the power while playing with her younger sister Anna. One day, when Elsa makes a mistake, her parents decide they must lock her away until she can learn to control her powers. This solution works, however, only until their parents die and Anna is named the ruler of Arendelle. Elsa loses her temper again and casts a permanent winter on the kingdom, forcing Anna to find a way to reunite with her sister.
The animators know how to make the best of the unique cold setting — the many depictions of ice in the film are beautifully rendered and add to the story’s comedic and dramatic beats. In particular, the sequence set to Elsa’s musical number “Let It Go” is stunning and a real emotional high point for a character who delicately walks the line between loving and hating, but whose heart is in the right place.
Kristen Bell’s Anna, on the other hand, elicits sympathy even when we know she’s being naïve or wrong simply because of her undeniable charm. Her relationship with Kristoff the Mountain Man (Jonathan Groff) is just as adorable, though Jennifer Lee knows how to use it to surprise and subvert traditional Disney princess expectations, especially in an emotional final act.
As charismatic as Anna is, the undeniable show-stealer is Olaf the Snowman, a childhood creation Elsa brought to life with her powers. All of his spoken lines land wonderfully, whether due to their content or Josh Gad’s committed vocal inflections, and he is one of Disney’s best comic sidekicks to date.
Despite the constant presence of ice, “Frozen” is a heartwarming tale of sisterhood, isolation, sacrifice and true love — although not in the way you might think — that is sure to quiet any naysayers.
A version of this article appeared in the Tuesday, Nov. 26 print edition. Ife Olujobi is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].
