Excellent movie - enjoyable for all ages

Rating: 9/10 (4 February 2014)

I'll start by stating that I haven't watched many of the more recently released Disney movies. I actually watched this by accident and couldn't stop. I'm not going to pretend to write up some super snazzy review, trying to impress people with references and comparisons. Here's the deal - it's extremely well animated. The facial expressions are so precise I feel like you could watch the movie in silence and easily understand everything. The characters had missed opportunities in their development but, being based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale and how dark that story is, they accomplish enough. I've noticed that, in many instances, the folks giving this poor reviews always seem to mention things like "I figured out what would happen..." or "it was so cliché...". You can't go in to movies like that. There is a lot of thoughtfulness in this film that makes it very deep. Perhaps you've had to have experienced things like losing a parent or parents, realizing your own personal flaw(s) and how they shut others out of your life or even not knowing your own weaknesses. Anyhow, I was pleasantly surprised by this film and would highly recommend it to anyone of any age. If you go into it cynically, with a thought process that it's just another Disney film with the usually expected story lines, I don't think you'll get to experience it as it was meant to be. I do wish they had developed Elsa's character more but, in the end, the pain and suffering inferred from being shut out of the world for over 15 years of her life has to be taken into consideration.
Let It Go is absolutely brilliant. Fantastic performance by Idina. In that sequence, after watching it numerous times, there is a point where Elsa seems to melt the snow... just once. Right as she sings "slam the door" and throws her hands backwards, it sure looks like the snow in the air behind her melts and falls very quickly. I am thinking that it was an indication of her finally freeing her mind and accepting herself for who she is, finding love in that. Also, since Olaf was built about 3 seconds before that, I am thinking that's when he was given life.
Way off track now... just see this. It's brilliantly animated and enjoyable for people of all ages. I fall into the group of people who cried during this one. Certain experiences in your own life will allow you to connect with aspects of this storyline more than others might.