Review of Frozen

Frozen (I) (2013)
7/10
My issues with Frozen.
2 January 2014
Warning: Spoilers
• Idina Menzel was miscast. Her speaking voice was almost acceptable, but singing-wise, it didn't suit Elsa at all.

• It's not okay to fall in love after one day, but two is okay? • Elsa was extremely one-dimensional. Despite being the most interesting character, she is deprived of screen time and development.

• The story was overly simplistic - not at all deep and multi-tiered like Wreck-it Ralph.

• The Hans twist was underwhelming and unnecessary. The story lacked a good villain. It was also rather predictable.

• Too much of the movie is spent road-tripping to Elsa's ice castle in a rather trite manner. The most interesting parts seemed rushed, especially the ending, which was anticlimactic and unsatisfying.

• Anna was the same character the entire movie except for her realization of love's definition, which she had always embodied. Everything she did in the movie was out of love. She shouldn't've been susceptible to being frozen, because metaphorically, it makes no sense. Elsa was the one with the frozen heart. I half-expected Anna to have summer powers or something.

• Elsa had the world at her fingertips, and created an entire ice castle out of nothing, and yet she struggles to stay alive against dudes with wooden crossbows and her own falling chandelier. Impenetrable ice cage, done. Also, you'd think being alone in that castle with nothing else to do, she'd've learned to control her powers better.

• The trolls had no recollection of Anna. Neither did Olaf.

• The visuals were a little cold and lifeless and too computer-y; not nearly as breathtaking as Tangled's lush, painterly animations and sceneries. It feels like a lot more work went into Tangled, whereas Frozen was merely a mini-story.

• The movie as a whole didn't feel as fully fleshed-out as Tangled in terms of characters and plot, despite being the same length. It would've been much more satisfying if it were given an extra 20-30 minutes.

• "It's easier to change your head than your heart." First of all, I dislike the false dichotomy between head and heart; they're one and the same, and it's nonsensical correlate them to the actual physical components. If the head is taken to mean reason, and the heart means emotion, then the latter should be more volatile.

Overall, it's a fun trip with great songs and likable characters; I only wish they had spent more time weaving the story, capitalized on their strengths, and not missed some great opportunities.
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