Frozen: Part V

[thedisneyspirit]

I agree with Pap, in that the ending and beginning bring forwards a lot of the drama and story. It's just the middle with the lulzy roadtrip shenanigans and shoehorned romance that the movies loses it a bit.

Otoh, some people say that Hans being a villain was like Christian Bale's character in American Psycho. I don't see it but...

[thedisneyspirit]

Saw this parody video of Let It Go (SPOILERS):

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9J9Kgy5W7Y[/youtube]

Bah, seems like the typical "wah wah we WANT 2D" mentality that I'm tired of.

Also Olaf is a real name. Seems like she's pulling out the random jokes out of her ass.

Agree with the Tangled thing, though. And Wicked yeah. Disney's just desperate to own the rights for that play and make it a film.

[Lady Cluck]

Yeah that video was horrible Nice effort I guess.

Frozen already has the 6th highest domestic gross for an animated film this year!

1. Despicable Me 2 - $367.0 million
2. Monsters University - $268.4 million
3. The Croods - $187.2 million
4. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs - $115.0 million
5. Epic - $107.5 million
6. Frozen - $93.4 million
7. Planes - $90.1 million
8. Turbo - $83.0 million
9. The Smurfs 2 - $71.0 million
10. Escape From Planet Earth - $57.0 million
11. Free Birds - $53.3 million

[zackisthewalrus]

I can see it beating MU. I'm not sure about DM2, but we'll see. If the positive word of mouth keeps up, it's a possibility.

[Disney's Divinity]

Allow me to gush just a bit. Saw the film again today (was bored and decided to go out), and I really love this movie.

I don't think the music is as good as the '90s and there are a few lyrics I don't care for (like Anna's line about being somewhere in the zone of gas-y... I mean, in the moment, it's funny, but it kind of hurts the song's ability to stand the test of time), but it's probably equal to Tarzan and slightly superior to Mulan. I'm glad I ordered the soundtrack now, because I really want to hear "Let It Go" again... There's no doubt in my mind that that scene was a "moment" along the lines of "A Whole New World," "Part of That World" (reprise), the dance during "Beauty and the Beast," etc. My favorite parts are when she's saying "Here I stand" and stamps the ground with the ice exploding outwards. And then again, at the end, "Here I stand in the light of day!" I only wish they'd worked harder on the dress transformation, because I would've liked something similar to Cinderella. I think my only disappointment with the music is they could've had one or two more reprises to make the film feel more balanced at the end.

For some reason Elsa's design reminds me of Jane Lynch. And I have to admit I love Anna. Although her eyes/face borrows heavily from older heroines, there's something about the way they designed her body that I like. Not bony exactly, but she's more slender and, I guess, has more awkward movements? I have to admit, I almost prefer her to Elsa, which is unlike me; she's very endearing. Kristen Bell does a really good job (btw, her giggle reminds me so much of Jodi Benson...). And speaking of hot characters--see that new topic--I almost wish Hans was a legitimate prince because he's so handsome, particularly in the blue/gray winter coat. Even Olaf, against myself I like him, and I like Kristoff, too. I believe the only thing that hasn't changed so far is that I don't like the trolls at all.

Also, the film is very beautiful. I love the dresses--particularly Anna's green dress--and the backgrounds, like the designs on Elsa's bedroom door. The scene of Elsa in her castle just after Anna and Kristoff have been thrown out by Marshmallow--the reds and purples in the background of the ice are gorgeous. And there's when Kristoff is walking back up the mountain after leaving Anna with Hans--the greys/browns there made me think of The Nightmare Before Christmas, when Jack finds the holiday trees in the dawn light. Overall, very attractive visuals in this movie. I believe the only thing I don't like about the animation is that some of the background characters are horrendous, especially in the ball scene just before Elsa reveals her powers to the crowd.

I'll admit that after the movie was over, I felt like buying another ticket and watching again, but I had a few things to do and don't like to drive in the dark. I will see it again though, I'm sure. Maybe I'm just in a really good mood today. I still wish the movie was called The Snow Queen though, but I definitely love this movie. It's strange to be reminded that, yes, I am still a Disney fan.

Btw, I have to say, if this doesn’t break the Pixar bias at the awards and beats Monsters University--nothing ever will.

So Frozen turned out to be (somewhat) better than Tangled in your book, which is nice. So Divinity, what did you think of Hans as a character and.. What did you think of him after he was revealed to be the villian and where would you rank him with the other male villians? Just wondering.

Not on level with Hades/Frollo/Scar, but just after with Shan Yu, Dr. Facilier and Jafar, imo.

I agree with pap64 though, that I hope people will calm down with the "BEST SINCE TLK and B&TB," because that's skipping many great movies.

[Musical Master]

Allow me to gush just a bit. Saw the film again today (was bored and decided to go out), and I really love this movie.

I don't think the music is as good as the '90s and there are a few lyrics I don't care for (like Anna's line about being somewhere in the zone of gas-y... I mean, in the moment, it's funny, but it kind of hurts the song's ability to stand the test of time), but it's probably equal to Tarzan and slightly superior to Mulan. I'm glad I ordered the soundtrack now, because I really want to hear "Let It Go" again... There's no doubt in my mind that that scene was a "moment" along the lines of "A Whole New World," "Part of That World" (reprise), the dance during "Beauty and the Beast," etc. My favorite parts are when she's saying "Here I stand" and stamps the ground with the ice exploding outwards. And then again, at the end, "Here I stand in the light of day!" I only wish they'd worked harder on the dress transformation, because I would've liked something similar to Cinderella. I think my only disappointment with the music is they could've had one or two more reprises to make the film feel more balanced at the end.

For some reason Elsa's design reminds me of Jane Lynch. And I have to admit I love Anna. Although her eyes/face borrows heavily from older heroines, there's something about the way they designed her body that I like. Not bony exactly, but she's more slender and, I guess, has more awkward movements? I have to admit, I almost prefer her to Elsa, which is unlike me; she's very endearing. Kristen Bell does a really good job (btw, her giggle reminds me so much of Jodi Benson...). And speaking of hot characters--see that new topic--I almost wish Hans was a legitimate prince because he's so handsome, particularly in the blue/gray winter coat. Even Olaf, against myself I like him, and I like Kristoff, too. I believe the only thing that hasn't changed so far is that I don't like the trolls at all.

Also, the film is very beautiful. I love the dresses--particularly Anna's green dress--and the backgrounds, like the designs on Elsa's bedroom door. The scene of Elsa in her castle just after Anna and Kristoff have been thrown out by Marshmallow--the reds and purples in the background of the ice are gorgeous. And there's when Kristoff is walking back up the mountain after leaving Anna with Hans--the greys/browns there made me think of The Nightmare Before Christmas, when Jack finds the holiday trees in the dawn light. Overall, very attractive visuals in this movie. I believe the only thing I don't like about the animation is that some of the background characters are horrendous, especially in the ball scene just before Elsa reveals her powers to the crowd.

I'll admit that after the movie was over, I felt like buying another ticket and watching again, but I had a few things to do and don't like to drive in the dark. I will see it again though, I'm sure. Maybe I'm just in a really good mood today. I still wish the movie was called The Snow Queen though, but I definitely love this movie. It's strange to be reminded that, yes, I am still a Disney fan.

Btw, I have to say, if this doesn’t break the Pixar bias at the awards and beats Monsters University--nothing ever will.

So Frozen turned out to be (somewhat) better than Tangled in your book, which is nice. So Divinity, what did you think of Hans as a character and.. What did you think of him after he was revealed to be the villian and where would you rank him with the other male villians? Just wondering.

Not on level with Hades/Frollo/Scar, but just after with Shan Yu, Dr. Facilier and Jafar, imo.

I agree with pap64 though, that I hope people will calm down with the "BEST SINCE TLK and B&TB," because that's skipping many great movies.

One of the things that I love the most about Frozen is that the artistry feels like as if Eyvind Earle and Mary Blair came back from the dead and inspired Mike Giaimo to do this film and he was the right art director for this kind of story. You may disagree with me on this, but I think Hans is a better villian than Scar because after the Hakuna Matata scene, he turns from a scheming, devious, classy guy into a whiny prima donna who really put Pride Rock to (almost) total ruin; where as with Hans, his masked personality is quite scary and he's a cruel smug man, but he will keep Arendelle a safer place once he kills Elsa for getting summer back. Plus, unlike the villians of Gaston and Scar, Hans is not a coward. When I mean by this, is that he actually takes care of things on his own and dispite such challenges (like him fighting Marshmallow and killing Elsa himself) he goes through with it. Gaston was almost like this untill the Beast was going to throw him off the roof and he was begging the Beast to spare his life, and Scar's dirty work is mostly done by the hyenas and he tries to lie to Simba about the hyenas "who are the real enemy". You do understand what I'm saying right? I don't think Frozen is equal with BatB, it's that kind of Disney movie that comes PRETTY DANG CLOSE though. It beats Hunchback for me because of better sidekicks and a consistant tone.

One thing that my older sister and I agreed on was that the songs are a VAST IMPROVEMENT over Tangled's.

[estefan]

I agree with pap64 though, that I hope people will calm down with the "BEST SINCE TLK and B&TB," because that's skipping many great movies.

That also seems to appear whenever a new Disney musical shows up. I heard that statement about both The Princess and the Frog and Tangled. Heck, even Siskel & Ebert declared The Hunchback of Notre Dame the "best Disney movie since Beauty and the Beast" and those films only opened five years apart.

[Lady Cluck]

Considering what was between them, I'd say Ebert was right.

Disney movies were much more of an annual "event" back then. There weren't 500 animated movies coming out each year and that was still the height of Disney's refound popularity (though on the decline a bit). Saying that sort of thing made sense at the time. It is obnoxious and overdone now though.

[pap64]

I was directed towards this great analysis on LiveJournal about the film. It does a far better job of explaining my issues with the movie (which I still liked, but as the article stated, it could have been MUCH better):
http://mdmbrightside.livejournal.com/214018.html

This video review also explains better my thoughts on the film:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciptY__0VeQ

[Jay]

Just got back from the movie and I absolutely hated it.

[Musical Master]

Just got back from the movie and I absolutely hated it.

...........................................kay.

Pray to tell?

[Disney's Divinity]

@Musical Master: Well, as far as powerful (male) villains, he's probably better than Scar at actually doing everything for himself and more threatening, but I feel Scar just comes to life thanks to Jeremy Irons which is why I rank him higher. It's true he becomes weaker in the 2nd half of TLK, but I wonder if it would have been the same way with Hans if he had achieved his goals and we saw him a year later after taking charge. I assume this is how most Disney villains would be as rulers--Ursula and Jafar would doubtless have been tyrants and destroyed their kingdoms' economies, lives, etc. I'm not sure if Hanswould've been a good ruler or not. It's hard to believe someone who would be that ruthless and power-thirsty would actually wield their power well. Either way, I think Scar is more memorable.

I would rank Frozen below TLM, B&tB, Aladdin, and TLK, but I think it bests Pocahontas and Hunchback for me (although I think their soundtracks are superior). Probably equal to Tarzan. Trying to be objective here, because I've always been attached to Hercules and Mulan, but I think Frozen is at least equal to those two on an objective level.

Listening to "Let It Go" on repeat right now. I'm thinking--is this the first song of its kind in Disney? I'm trying to think through the '90s right now, but it's not so much an "I Want" song as an empowerment anthem. I love the instrumental at the bridge of the song.

Are you joking, Jay? Not that I mind; I was hating Tangled while everyone else here loved it, so...

[Jay]

Just kidding! I loved it. Nothing really to add. I loved all the characters. Anna was too cute and hilarious. I loved the part at the coronation she went up to Elsa and was like "Hi me again.". Kristen Bell really surprised me she did a great job. Elsa was fabulous. "Let it Go" was so spine chilling beautifully and Idina nailed it perfectly. Kristoff was adorable to. My man JGroff did a great job. Hans was a pretty interesting character and quite ze stud. Olaf and Sven turned out to be much better than I thought they would. At the end when Sven disappeared into the water when the ice broke apart a ton of people screamed "SVEN!!!!"

I really liked the music to. "Let it Go", "For the First Time" and "Do You Wanna Build a Snowman" were definite stand outs. I also really dug "Love is An Open Door". I thought the score was great as well. I loved the mysterious sounding flute music that played through out.

And yes the move was so pretty. It definitely felt like Mary Blair and Eyvind Earle worked on it. As for the ending I kind of liked that it was silent when Anna was frozen. I think having a reprise of a song would have been nice but kinda cliche. I think the silence other than Elsa's sobs made a much more powerful moment. I think it maybe could have been a couple of seconds longer though.

The only complaints I have is I wish Elsa had a bit more screen time and they sang a reprise of "FTFT' at the end. Seeing as how Frozen is doing very well atm and if it keeps doing well I wonder if Disney will add Elsa and Anna to the princess line sooner than Spring 2015.

[Disney's Divinity]

You know, even though the princess line is getting crowded, I've loved all their new characters--Tiana, Rapunzel, and now Anna and Elsa. I know I'd probably be drawing Elsa like crazy if I had seen this when I was a child.

[Musical Master]

@Musical Master: Well, as far as powerful (male) villains, he's probably better than Scar at actually doing everything for himself and more threatening, but I feel Scar just comes to life thanks to Jeremy Irons which is why I rank him higher. It's true he becomes weaker in the 2nd half of TLK, but I wonder if it would have been the same way with Hans if he had achieved his goals and we saw him a year later after taking charge. I assume this is how most Disney villains would be as rulers--Ursula and Jafar would doubtless have been tyrants and destroyed their kingdoms' economies, lives, etc. I'm not sure if Hanswould've been a good ruler or not. It's hard to believe someone who would be that ruthless and power-thirsty would actually wield their power well. Either way, I think Scar is more memorable.

I would rank Frozen below TLM, B&tB, Aladdin, and TLK, but I think it bests Pocahontas and Hunchback for me (although I think their soundtracks are superior). Probably equal to Tarzan. Trying to be objective here, because I've always been attached to Hercules and Mulan, but I think Frozen is at least equal to those two on an objective level.

Listening to "Let It Go" on repeat right now. I'm thinking--is this the first song of its kind in Disney? I'm trying to think through the '90s right now, but it's not so much an "I Want" song as an empowerment anthem. I love the instrumental at the bridge of the song.

Are you joking, Jay? Not that I mind; I was hating Tangled while everyone else here loved it, so...

Do you remember the scene where, Hans was offering cloaks to the freezing people of Arendelle and the fact that he was also offering people to stay in the castle for hot soup (much to the displeasure of the Duke of course)? I was thinking that in the moment he was actually doing really good deeds for these people that he doesn't know. But you could argue that he was doing that so that he could win the favor of the people if Elsa and Anna were gone forever. But if Hans was more like Scar, he would hardly care for anyone's welfare or the safety of the kingdom. Sure Jeremy Irons did great as Scar and gave him a classy edge, but I sometimes look at the writing of the character if the villian works as a whole and Scar didn't do it for me.

As you know Frozen is my 2nd favorite Disney film behind Beauty and the Beast. With Huncback sharing the #2 spot but with Frozen beating the death out of that film for reasons you already know, Tangled and The Little Mermaid at #3 (with the latter being better than Tangled in MANY departments), #4 being The Lion King (despite being VERY OVERRATED AS HELL), and #5 being Aladdin. But I do see the flaws with Frozen (pacing, Fixer Upper being somewhat out of place, more time with Elsa) but I could see problems in Beauty and the Beast as well. But when I watch them I enjoy them for what they are and I try my best not to compare them to each other for their own unique way of storytelling and songwriting.

Phew, that was some crazy writing I did! But hey, it's a great thing we all have different views on certain things.

JAY YOU JERK! DON'T SCARE US LIKE THAT! JEEZ..........

[Lady Cluck]

Playing at 3,742 locations, Frozen opened to a massive $66.7 million over the three-day weekend. That's the second-highest weekend ever for a movie opening out of first place. For the five-day frame, Frozen took in an estimated $93 million, which is a new record for a Thanksgiving opening ahead of Toy Story 2 ($80.1 million). It's also way above similar movie Tangled, which took in $68.7 million over the same five-day period in 2010.

Frozen's audience skewed female (57 percent)—not surprising, considering it's a princess story—and was made up predominantly of families (81 percent). It received a rare "A+" CinemaScore, which suggests word-of-mouth will be very strong. While there is some competition late in December, Frozen will be the exclusive choice for family audiences for the next three weeks; as a result, a final total north of $250 million seems within reach.

[qindarka]

Allow me to gush just a bit. Saw the film again today (was bored and decided to go out), and I really love this movie.

Heh, wouldn't it be funny if after all that, you ended up liking the movie more than me.

Which seems a fairly realistic possibility now. Having some serious concerns, probably shouldn't have read that many reviews.

[Flanger-Hanger]

I saw the movie opening day, but am obviously late with this review. To say I "liked" the movie, would be an understatement. This is the first DAC in a long time that I feel could be placed in my top 10 in the near future, if the movie continues to grow on me. I love it that much.

And I feel no shame in saying that I think this is better than most of the movies they've made after Little Mermaid. While its song score is never as good as BatB or Hunchback and its heights never reach that of other DACs, on the whole it satisfies on a much more consistent level. It never has any of the severe tonal issues, obnoxious supporting characters or cringe worthy dialogue that plauged most of Disey's efforts over the last 20+ years. That is not to say it is perfect, it just never reaches the lows of Treasure Planet or PatF (for example). It has fantastic interpersonal character relationships, and stronger writing than most DACs and that's probably what sold it the most for me. That and it was very pretty. I also think that having a female director is what helped the movie confront the fairy tale Disney tropes (marrying after a few hours, the prince is always perfect etc) without resorting to mocking or pandering. If this is the case, I say bring in more females, and more new talent with fresher ideas.

I had no idea what to expect going in, and felt it was ridiculous to have 5 threads for one movie that wasn't even out yet, but I felt a big sigh of relief knowing that it all (or 90%) turned out fine in the end. The great new Mickey cartoon probably helped my positive feelings too.

EDIT: I think objectively speaking Lilo and Stitch and Hunchback are better movies, but this one I persoally liked more. You could make a case for Tangled too, but I think it and Frozen are more even.

I was also the only one to bother and stay until the end of the credits, which was worth the wait.

[rj.disney]

On a side note. The soundtrack is already temporarily out of stock on amazon. I guess it's really selling well. It's number #4 in amazon's Top 100 in Music list. While number one in the Movie Soundtracks, Disney, and Movie Scores categories. Darn, I hope they restock soon. I want to get it before Christmas.

[taei]

I'm not surprised that the soundtrack sold out on Amazon.
It seems like the Deluxe Edition should have been labeled a Limited Edition. While my Best Buy got a few boxes of the regular edition, they only got 2 copies of the deluxe edition.

But What I found more impressive is that it outranked Catching Fire on iTunes.

Let it go, DYWTBAS, and FTFIF are selling more than Atlas... That is impressive!!

And it's number 2 on iTunes Albums list!!