review of Frozen

Rating: 9/10 (24 February 2014)

Frozen is an animated Disney movie that was released on November 27, 2013. It was directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, and features the voices of Kristen Bell, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, and Idina Menzel. In the movie, Princess Anna of Arendelle teams up with Kristoff the ice salesman, his pet reindeer Sven, and an amusing snowman named Olaf to find her sister Elsa who has sent their kingdom into an eternal winter with her magical powers. Frozen has won 32 awards, including a Golden Globe, and is nominated for 2 Oscars. With it's Broadway style songs and innovative key message, Frozen is one of Disney's best musicals.
One of the best parts of Frozen is the music. Throughout the movie, each song provides the right amount of drama or comic relief needed. In his review of Frozen, Perry Seibert from TV Guide said, "What makes Frozen far and away the most entertaining Disney musical in quite sometime is that the married songwriting team of Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson- Lopez have put together a set of reasonably ambitious songs that not only have pleasant melodies, but are matched with lyrics that are humorous while revealing character" (tvguide.com). Paired with the voice of Broadway star Idina Menzel, their song "Let It Go" was guaranteed to be a hit. The songwriters also created the perfect moment of comic relief with the song "In Summer" in which lovable Olaf, played by Josh Gad, expresses his dream to feel the warmth of summer and to "do whatever snow does in summer." The success of "Let It Go", "Do You Want To Build A Snowman", and "In Summer" along with the rest of the soundtrack quickly led Disney to re-release Frozen as a sing-along version on January 31, 2013.
Throughout the movie, there are countless surprises and messages. For instance, the message that you should not rush into things or judge people solely on your first impression of them is hinted at throughout the entire movie. However, the most important message is not brought up until the very end. This is the message about the importance of sisterhood and family. When discussing the messages of the movie, Christy Lemire wrote, "the biggie— the one that's a real game-changer in terms of the sorts of messages Disney animated classics have sent for decades—is the one that's important not just for the little girls in the audience, but for all viewers" (rogerebert.com). Lemire is talking about the importance of family. Contrary to most Disney princesses, Anna and Elsa show the world that family is more important than finding Prince Charming. Anna has the opportunity to have her happily ever after with Kristoff—her Prince Charming—but instead she sacrifices herself to save her sister. By doing this, she makes the biggest act of true love—not one for a guy, but one for family. With this innovative ending, Disney shows people everywhere that girls are not just damsels in distress waiting for their prince to rescue them. Instead, they illustrated that girls have the power to save themselves. While all of the characters thought that Anna needed a guy to thaw her frozen heart, she had the ability to perform an act of true love and heal herself.
Overall, Frozen is one of Disney's greatest musicals due to its hit songs and unique message. Each song provides just the right amount of drama or humor for the character and the scene. The soundtrack topped the Billboard album chart for four weeks. Frozen also sent a wonderful message to the entire audience about the importance of family and showed that girls do not need a Prince Charming.