Let me start off this review by saying that I’m a massive Disney fan so when I heard of Disney’s 53rd animated film ‘Frozen’ I was over the moon excited to see it. Just from the starting credits alone I was at the edge of my seat with a smile on my face. I don't think there will ever be a Disney animation that I won’t enjoy, but even taking this into account the movie was fantastic. I’m not the only one who thinks so, the film has recently surpassed Ice Age 4 to become the worldwide leader as the highest grossing animation film of all time in international markets, grossed at roughly $729.3 million. It has also become the sixth highest grossing film of all time with $1.129 billion. It has also won two Academy awards, including best-animated feature and best original song (Let it Go).
The story is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen” and follows
sisters Anna (Kristien Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel), princesses of a royal
Norwegian family living in the small kingdom of Arendelle. Elsa first in line
to the throne was born with the power to create snow and ice. Unable to control
her magical abilities, which are triggered by her emotions, Elsa is forced to
isolate herself in her bedroom.
“Conceal, Don’t Feel, Don’t Let them know”
This causes the two sisters to drift apart, with Anna never
understanding her sister’s solitary struggle.
On Elsa’s coronation day, the kingdom is open for celebration and Anna falls in love with the first prince she meets. However a fight with Elsa causes the new queen to reveal her powers and put Arendelle in an eternal winter. Elsa fleeing to hide in the mountains kicks off Anna’s adventure to find her sister. The film has a unique situation in which the antagonist, Elsa is not inherently ‘evil’, leading to interesting an unexpected twists and turns. Along her journey she meets sidekick Olaf (Josh Gad) a hilarious and warm-hearted snowman.
The character not only serves as comedic relief but is also a symbol of
Anna and Elsa’s childhood. She also teams up with Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), an
anti-social ice salesman and his pet reindeer, Sven. Together these characters
embark on a mission to save Arendelle.
This film breaks the traditional stereotypes of previous Disney princess
movies such as ‘The little mermaid’ and ‘Cinderella’. This modern take depicts
two strong minded and independent female leads, and while there is a romantic
element in the film it does not overpower the theme of true love saving the
day. The movie offers a sarcastic commentary of its own genre by making fun of
Anna’s immediate engagement, further distancing itself away from traditional
Disney fairytales. Even as it breaks these princess molds, the film still feels
like a throwback to the late 80’s and early 90’s Disney animation renaissance.
Similar to Tanged, Walt Disney’s Animation Studios took the approach to
blend features of both CGI (computer-generated imagery) and the traditional
hand-drawn animation together. The entire animation team behind Frozen is
estimated to around 650 people. Depending on the shot, it can take up to 4,000
computers and 30 hours to complete just one frame. Animators actually traveled
to Norway to find inspiration in its culture, architecture and environment.
They also visited an Ice Hotel in Quebec, Canada to understand how light
reflects on snow and ice. As snow is a large element of the movie, there was a
special program built specifically to better imitate real snow in animation. Similarly,
there was also a new program designed for characters hair. A typical human head
has approximately 100,000 individual strands; Elsa has 420,000 strands, making
the animation appear as true to life as possible.
Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez were the masterminds behind the
soundtrack of the film, the duo have also been responsive for the music behind
‘Winnie the Pooh’ and ‘Finding Nemo’ musicals. The 11 tracks they composed not
only completely encompassed the mood of the film but were also so catchy. I
couldn’t stop listening to the opening song “Vuelle” and the soundtrack was constantly
on replay in my head for the following week.
Overall, Frozen definitely exceeded my expectations. It was such a feel
good movie and also embodies the love between sisters. In my opinion this movie
is universal and perfect for all ages, i highly recommend it!
Rating:
Frozen Trailer:
Swatika Suresh
