My Review: Frozen (8/10)

"Winter's a good time to sit close and cuddle, but put me in summer and I'll be a happy snowman!"

Frozen may not be among Disney's best animated films, but it sure is a warm and charming one. The animation was gorgeous and looked really beautiful, while some of the characters were quite fun and memorable (Im thinking mostly of Olaf the snowman here). It balances the classic fairytale elements from other Disney movies, while at the same time bringing in some surprising twists to the mix. The Disney princess formula may be old, but it continues to work and charm audiences over the world, and it doesn't hurt that Frozen adds some fresh elements to the known and bankable formula as well. Frozen relied heavily on several musical numbers like most of the classical Disney animated films did, so it also manages to have a nostalgic effect on those of us who grew up watching those movies. This is a fun and warm film that the entire family will enjoy. It's not perfect, it has some very cheesy moments and lacks a stronger villain, but it has plenty of heart and laughs to carry the film.

Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee and loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale, The Snow Queen, Frozen is a tale of two sisters, Elsa (Idina Menzel) and Anna (Kristen Bell), who grow up together in the palace of Arendelle. Elsa has a magical power which allows her to turn things into ice and snow. At first it's all fun and games, but when Elsa's power increases she cannot control it any longer and is forced to live secluded in her room. After an unfortunate accident Elsa brings an eternal winter to Arendelle and runs away from the palace ashamed for what she has caused. Elsa sets out on an adventure to bring her sister back with the help of a mountain man named Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and his reindeer Sven. Along the way they encounter a friendly snowman named Olaf (Josh Gad) and together they face the cold weather as they search for Elsa in order to bring her back home, but Elsa fears her powers have become too dangerous and is afraid to return home.

Lee happens to be the first female director of a Disney animated film, and she delivers by creating stronger female characters. Frozen becomes more than anything a story that centers on these two sisters and the bond between them. Fear gets in the way of their relationship and it's up to them to overcome it. They are strong characters that don't depend on a prince to come to their rescue. That is what makes this classic fairytale take a modern turn. It is gorgeously animated and has some very warm moments with some catchy songs. Olaf also delivers most laughs in this film. It was just a fun and entertaining film and one more that succeeds in Disney's long line of memorable films. 

My Review: Frozen (2/10)

¨Hmmm, smell that mountain air. You know what it smells like? Cancer¨

Frozen is one of those movies that even at 90 minutes feels long and boring; the reason is simple: It`s a 20 minute film that seems to have been stretched out to a full length feature picture. Frozen could have been a decent short film, but they decided to go for a 90 minute movie that just doesn’t work due to the terrible dialogue and bad performances. The plot is simple and so it should have been kept that way. Adam Green (known for his Hatchet films) directs this terrible suspense/horror film and he also wrote the story and screenplay for it so it is a very personal project. I didn’t feel scared at any point of the film, I thought the plot was ridiculous, the characters had terrible dialogs and made ridiculous decisions, and the suspense was just not there. I didn’t really care for any of these characters and could care less if they survived. There were several gruesome scenes that made me wince, but that was it. I was left expecting a whole lot more from Frozen. It was a very forgettable film.

The plot is simple; the story takes place in Mount Holliston where a pair of snowboarders decide to spend the weekend. Joe Lynch (Shawn Ashmore, better known as Iceman from the X-Men franchise) and Dan Walker (Kevin Zegers) have been friends for a long time and they decide to go skiing at this beautiful resort. Dan`s girlfriend, Parker (Emma Bell) decides to go along with them despite not having much experience as a skier. They realize they don’t have enough money to pay for the lift tickets so they convince Parker to bribe the lift-worker in order for him to let them on the chairlift. The guys seemed to enjoy their time together and it went by so fast that when it was around time for closure they asked the worker to let them go on one last pass. The lift-worker, Jason (Ed Ackerman), allows them to go on one last, but quick ride. However Jason is called to the office by the manager and he tells his colleague to wait for three skiers to get back before he stops the lift. He mistakenly sees three other skiers come up the mountain so he ends up stopping the lift and shutting the place down. Parker, Joe, and Dan end up stranded in the chairlift near the top of the mountain. With the darkness and silence approaching and the freezing weather threatening their health the skiers will have to come up with a solution to their problem before it`s too late. They know that the resort won`t open till next weekend so waiting isn’t an option.

My biggest problem with Frozen was the dialogue. Some things happen in this film that you would think would traumatize them, but somehow they find time to talk about a lot of nonsense. Parker begins worrying about her dog that will be waiting for her back home and worrying about him not having anyone to feed him. The moment she says this is just unbelievable, but I don’t want to give away anything in this plot so I won’t say what just had happened before that. The guys also talk about some great horror movies that just remind us how bad this one really is. Most of the dialogue felt forced and was just there to stretch a film that didn’t have enough substance for a full feature. Some fans might be satisfied with the couple of gruesome scenes that are presented, but I just didn’t feel the suspense or horror at any point of the film. The only thing I felt about the movie was the freezing and chilly weather. It was the only thing Green got across in Frozen.  

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