I saw Frozen and I have so many thoughts. First and foremost, I thought it was a great sequel to a phenomenal original. I still remember watching Frozen a few years ago and thinking how great it was. Especially the huge twist at the end of the film.
Listen to the episode about Frozen here:
Read more of my spoiler free thoughts on the sequel below.
Frozen 2 Review
A new kind of Renaissance
Frozen and Frozen 2 are nothing like the Disney Renaissance films of my childhood. You know the ones where a princess meets a boy then marries him. Well, over the last few traditionally animated features from Disney, that hasn’t happened. Tangled ended with Rapunzel and Eugene dating before a proposal later and they didn’t show a wedding. Rapunzel needed time to find herself after having her hair chopped off and finding her real parents. That’s a realistic relationship and slightly less “fairytale” ending.
Single and “Self-Partnered”
The whole premise of Frozen is family love. Sibling love is the true love in the first movie and in Frozen 2 that theme continues. It’s set 3 years after the first one and 6 years after their parents death. Elsa isn’t paired up with anyone and I appreciate that. She is strong, happy, loving and competent in her role as queen. However, the movie opens immediately by showing her internal discomfort. She longs for more. She still doesn’t believe she belongs there despite being accepted by the community and her sister. She’s on an individual journey to discover more about herself. That sets up the entire film. I love that they don’t ship her into finding love.
Journey to the Past
This move is about finding out who you are. Elsa and Anna are looking back for understanding. Something like childhood trauma exploration. That’s what I thought of. The movie shows that journey. From Elsa’s initial discomfort to shaking off the feeling that everything is perfect. She knows that something is calling her (literally and figuratively) and she has to figure out what and/or who it is.
Music
I was so excited that Kristoff gets a whole song that is totally 80s rock banger. It was a standout part of the movie in my opinion and he held it down. Nostalgia on 100. Of course, the big song was “Into the Unknown” I mean, Idina Menzel as Elsa plus a huge sing-a-long type big song can do no wrong. It reminded me of “Let it Go” as the lyrics can be applied to tough situations for both songs and they are inspiring and uplifting. but then there’s also “Show Yourself” which is beautiful and vulnerable in a poignant moment of the movie.
Criticism
My only criticism is that they fit a lot into one film. It was jam packed full of story which could be kind of tough to follow. I went with a friend and she and I were able to keep up the pace. Of course, the theater was full of young girls but I didn’t hear them asking many questions or talking. Maybe I was too into the movie to notice? Lol. Still, there are a few suspenseful moments where I could see a younger kid clutching their parent or chairs. Be mindful of that.
Did we need a sequel?
I thought long and hard about this. Frozen was a phenomenon. “Let it Go” was a phenomenon. It made a billion dollars in ticket sales. Imagine how much money the merchandise has made in the last six years. We never had a big budget theater sequel release for The Little Mermaid, The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast. Those all went direct to video. Back then, direct to video was a thing Disney was really trying to make happen. Times are different in the age of remakes and reboots, things are different. Plus Elsa and Anna have all of these new outfits and hairstyles that can be merchandise and cosplay inspo for years to come. I don’t think we needed a sequel, but this is the sequel that we deserve. It’s so well done and a worthy successor.
