When “Frozen” debuted in theaters on Nov. 27, 2013, the girl power anthem “Let It Go” propelled the movie to $1.3 billion in box office receipts, and created a blueprint for Disney Princess movies in the 21st century.
In the past, Disney generally sent sequels for its animated musical spectacles straight to home video (less-than-stellar sequels to movies like “Pocahontas” and “The Little Mermaid” come to mind).
Here we are — six years after “Frozen” debuted — with “Frozen II” crystallizing itself at multiplexes around the globe (already breaking box office records).
“Frozen II” starts off with King Agnarr of Arendelle (Elsa and Anna’s father) telling a tale to his daughters about their grandfather, King Runeard.
Runeard established a treaty with a tribe in Northuldra — resulting in a dam being built on their tribal lands.
(I realize as I’m typing this that the narrative of “Frozen II” already sounds way more complicated than the first movie.)
Anyhow, a battle occurs between the Arendelle people and the Northuldra tribe, and that enrages earth, fire, water, and air spirits. As a result, a magical wall of mist envelopes the forest.
Agnarr (a boy at the time) narrowly escapes with the aid of a mystery entity — living to tell the story so Disney can add more coin to their record box office take in 2019.
The movie then shifts to Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven enjoying a placid autumn in Arendelle. After the events in the first movie, the quintet seems to rule the kingdom with predictable spunk — a scene involving them playing charades in the castle is particularly cute.
Elsa — our pale, emo-like queen — starts hearing voices (a siren’s call), which unleashes the elemental spirits (meaning the Arendelle people have to evacuate the coastal town).
These events result in our heroes having to set out on a quest — to the Enchanted Forest — to figure out what the heck is going on.
That’s pretty much the “spoiler free” setup in a nutshell.
The original “Frozen” stands as one of my favorite animated movies (we have the soundtrack in our vehicle).
I know there are some out there who have declared “Frozen II” to be superior to the first. I’m not quite sure I feel the same way.
Let me start by analyzing where the new movie improves on the original “Frozen.”
The animation in “Frozen II” is superior to the first movie, and is rendered beautifully. That’s not surprising with the wizardry Disney employs in its wares.
The story is deeper and more fully realized than the first movie. It might not be J.R.R. Tolkien in terms of “fantasy tropes,” but it achieves an epic quality.
There is also a sequence I really liked where Olaf brings people up to speed on the “Frozen Saga” à la C-3PO in the Ewok village in “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.”
In my mind, though, the problematic aspect in the narrative is the lack of a clearly defined antagonist. “Frozen II” lacks a villain.
This sort of “fairy tale” needs an antagonist to realize its full potential.
It also needs an antagonist threatening our heroes so that when they make rash decisions (which certain characters do) it makes sense in the heat of the moment.
That’s where I think co-directors/screenwriters Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee stumbled a bit.
I also thought Kristoff was underutilized in the film. His character is whittled down into a one-note piano as he spends the film trying to propose to Anna.
But enough of me pontificating on the story. What you really want to know about are my thoughts on the music.
While the “Frozen II” soundtrack doesn’t feature an obvious hit like “Let It Go” in the lineup, there are some terrific musical stylings. As with the first “Frozen” movie, the songs in the sequel are penned by husband/wife team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez.
There is the Chicago-esque song “Lost in the Woods” (sung by Kristoff voice actor Jonathan Groff):
We’ve been trying to figure out what 80s pop song it reminds us of. As of this writing I’m leaning towards Chicago’s 1988 hit “Look Away”:
On Good Morning America, Groff described the song’s sequence in the film (which channels 80s music videos) as “a joke for the adults.”
Since most of the film focuses on the relationship between Elsa and Anna, we get plenty of vocal triumphs by Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell.
Menzel — whose rough-hewn mezzo soprano is like nectar from the gods — is showcased gloriously in the power ballad “Show Yourself” (along with Evan Rachel Wood):
Her voice is also spectacular in the haunting track “Aurora — Into the Unknown” (a song that’s been rolling through my head for days):
One minor quibble I have with the integration of the music into the story is that I felt (at times) like the songs didn’t mesh well in the narrative flow.
It’s hard to describe without being able to pull specific examples from the film, but with certain songs in “Frozen II” it was like the filmmakers said, “Well, we need to put another song in here, so let’s break for a music video.”
That wasn’t the case with the first “Frozen” movie. For example, the song “For the First Time in Forever” intertwined so well with the story — it set the scene, gave you insights into Anna’s character, and moved the story forward to the next scene:
Therein lies the challenge with creating a sequel to a popular musical movie. The “Frozen II” filmmakers did the best they could to avoid being “Grease 2,” but it is hard to be as sharp as the original.
Before I go I want to make sure to mention the little salamander (named Bruni) who becomes a sidekick for Elsa in the movie:
The little guy seems to be inspired by Rapunzel’s chameleon companion Pascal in Disney’s “Tangled”:
While “Frozen II” lacks the icy-smooth goodness of the first movie, it helps solidify the saga as something more than your typical Disney Princess movie.
I think Elsa sums up my feelings about “Frozen II” best in the song “Show Yourself” — “Something is familiar / Like a dream I can reach / But not quite hold.”
P.S. — Be sure to stay through the end credits of “Frozen II” for an easter egg scene.
P.S. — Be sure to stay through the end credits of “Frozen II” for an easter egg scene.
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