Disney's 50th: An All-Around Good Film

Rating: Null/10 (18 August 2011)

For years, Disney was always the leader in animated entertainment ever since Walt Disney produced the groundbreaking "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". Instead of repeating himself, Walt made more films that always tried something new. After Walt's passing in 1966, the studio has never really been the same. There have been ups (particularly the late 1980s and early 1990s) and downs (the early-to-mid 1980s, 2001-2005), and they have fallen behind studios like Pixar, DreamWorks and even smaller studios like Blue Sky. With "Tangled", and "The Princess and the Frog" before it, Walt Disney Animation Studios is now fighting their way up back up the animation mountain.
"Tangled" isn't perfect, but it's an indicator that Disney knows what they are doing. With talent like John Lasseter behind the animation division, the films have gotten better. "Tangled" is a wonderful mix of great storytelling, heart, humor and fun. It's what a good Disney film should be. The characters are very appealing and likable, the story is interesting and it has its fair share of dramatic moments, and the musical numbers are essential to the story. This is what made "The Princess and the Frog" succeed. While "Meet the Robinsons" and "Bolt" suffered from some inconsistent writing and dialogue, they still had heart and great storytelling. You can't say the same about the Disney films made under Eisner's final years, films that are a mix of weak storytelling, poor dialogue and lowbrow humor shackled to great animation and production values. The film has some flaws. The first half of the film is inconsistent, with dialogue that feels too much like "Shrek" or something from DreamWorks. It's fun, but the film gets progressively better as the second half rolls in. When the second half begins, there's more heart and the story gets more interesting.
The story is well-done while the dialogue could've been a bit better ("The Princess and the Frog" didn't suffer from this, though many will disagree), and the characters are wonderful. They're appealing, they're likable and they're never annoying. The non-speaking animals steal the show, Rapunzel's chameleon Pascal and the palace guard horse Maximus. They supply most of the film's comic relief, along with Flynn Ryder himself. Mother Gothel is a wonderful villain, one who is a lot like Judge Clause Frollo from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". She protects Rapunzel, while also manipulating her and using her for her magical hair. The songs are good, but they aren't great, with the exception of the brilliant love song, "I See The Light". Still, "Mother Knows Best" says a lot about Mother Gothel's character and her relationship with Rapunzel and "I Have a Dream" is very enjoyable.
"Tangled" is basically an entertaining Disney film. It isn't an earth-shattering film that's worthy of Walt Disney's greatest films, but it's a little better than the repetitive films under the Michael Eisner era. It's bright, it's fun and it has heart. The first half is a bit flimsy, but the second half feels like a Pixar film with its heartfelt moments and the storytelling. Out of the four post-Eisner Disney films, I wouldn't say it's the best. Most people didn't care for "The Princess and the Frog", but I felt that "Princess" had better dialogue and storytelling than this film, and better music. I know many will disagree, but at times, "Tangled" felt very flimsy. Still, it's an all-around good film that is perfect for the young and old.