Let It Snow!

Rating: 8/10 (4 January 2014)

This film is recommended.
What film could be more appropriate on a extremely cold winter night than Disney's computer animated film, Frozen. The film is loosely (very loosely) based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, The Snow Queen. In this new version, catered for today's modern audience, we meet two sisters, Anna (Kristen Bell), the good princess (what else!) and Elsa (Idina Menzel), the slightly cold but mostly misunderstood older sister (of course). Both are polar opposite in looks and personality and have that Disney cuteness going for them, but character-wise, they are distinctly different, even if the film adheres to the same crowd-pleasing conventional formula (with a few unexpected twists along the way).
This plot involves the estranged relationship of two princesses. Elsa, who becomes Queen, has secret uncontrollable super powers that create endless snow and icy cold fronts that end up distancing her from her younger sibling and plaguing her kingdom. Anna sets out to rectify this problem and on her journey meets a handsome prince (there's always one per fairy tale), voiced by Santino Fontana. She befriends a handsome mountain man, Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and for comic relief, his not-too-bright silent reindeer friend named Sven. We also have an even dumber sidekick, Olaf, a funny snowman who yearns to experience summer. (This character flaw leads to a wonderful musical number, In Summer, with a dream sequence that is one of the film's more successful moments.)
Solidly directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, both of whom co-authored the script along with Shane Morris, Frozen has scenes that rival many Disney classics in their artistry. (Particularly memorable are an outing with trolls and the film's glorious sequence when the kingdom is trapped under a snowy mix and goes from lush greens to icy whites.) But, like other animated films of late, the film runs into script problems that prevent it from becoming a truly great children's film, with too many overly adorable interludes. Much of the dialog uses too many anachronistic phrases and modern jargon that seem totally out of sync with this tale. A few more re-writes could have taken this film to that level of excellence. ￼ Still, the animation is first-rate. The action sequences are beautifully staged and vividly detailed with lovely textures contrasting the reflective ice and powdery snow. Disturbingly, the two main female characters are such dated generic princess types with huge bug eyes and ultra-thin Barbie waists, perfect for the next new line of Disney toys but certainly not PC correct. (So much for the feminist movement!)
Frozen remains a worthy visual achievement. The 3-D effects are effectively handled. The voice-over work by Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, Santino Fontana and especially Josh Gad is perfection, with Alan Tudyk and Claran Hinds also providing strong support. Most of their Broadway talents come in handy with the film's strong musical score by Christophe Beck and jaunty songs by the husband-and-wife songwriting team, Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. (The power ballad, Let It Go, sung by Menzel is the film's musical highlight.) ￼ Frozen is wholesome family entertainment and a fine musical treat for all ages. The film a hearty blend of stylish animation and charming story, one of Disney's best efforts in a long while. Frozen will thaw the heart of many a Grinch this holiday season and delight many moviegoers with its visual splendor. GRADE: B
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NOTE: Back in the early 1940's, Disney wanted to produce a film about Hans Christian Anderson, incorporating his stories into a mix of live action and hand-drawn animation, with one of the fairy tale segments to include The Snow Queen. Plans for that production were shelved due to irreconcilable concept issues.