A beautiful, moving, dark and funny take on Rapunzel

Rating: 9/10 (16 November 2013)

I first saw this at the cinema two years ago with a temporary support worker at my former care home and we both enjoyed it. Likewise with 'Horton Hears A Who' and 'Igor,' this is another film I found more entertaining than I did on my first viewing.
Although the entire film could easily be mistaken for a Pixar film due to its CGI animation, it is beautifully rendered with characters whose styles tend to differ from those of typical Pixar characters, stunning colours and realistic backgrounds. The floating lanterns scene is exceptionally gorgeous as is the glowing effect on Rapunzel's hair. The animation itself is just as good as that of recent Pixar films such as 'Toy Story 3' for example. I also liked the majestic if poignant and tense incidental music with a touch of Celtic authenticity and the songs, especially 'When Will My Life Begin?,' 'Mother Knows Best' and its reprise where Mother Gothel sings about Rapunzel knowing best as a clever twist, 'I've Got A Dream' and 'I See The Light.' While Rapunzel was cute as a baby and a slightly older child, the teenage/young adult version of her is as aspiring as Tiana from 'The Princess and the Frog' and as excitable as Tiana's friend Lottie (the scene of her up-and-down feelings upon leaving the tower is one of the most memorable), Flynn Ryder/Eugene is amusing (especially the joke about his nose being drawn incorrectly on his wanted poster) and suave while Pascal is cute and provides some laughs with his colour changes but the funniest character here has got to be Maximus the horse with his dog-like traits. Mother Gothel is a wicked so-called maternal figure who is reminiscent of the queen in 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,' Malificent from 'Sleeping Beauty' and Lady Tremaine/Cinderella's stepmother - I liked the shocking twist of Rapunzel discovering that she is not her real mother. The writing has a fine mix of humour, emotion and darkness with a hint of intelligence and Mandy Moore was a more than worthy choice to voice Rapunzel since she can both sing and act (I remember her as a singer from my early teenage years) if the other voice actors are not quite as well-known. Another positive aspect is the Steamboat Willie logo to commemorate 'Tangled' as Disney's 50th animated classic. It's not just a Disney Classic, it's a modern Disney Classic.
While I have previously mentioned that 'The Princess and The Frog' bridged the gap between 'Bolt' and this one, this bridges the gap between 'The Princess and the Frog' and the 2011 version of 'Winnie the Pooh,' Disney's most recent 2D animated feature length film to date. Not only that but this is one of Disney's best films to come out in recent years and the short follow-up film 'Tangled Ever After' is a must-see as well. 9/10.