In the Iger Era, Disney does not produce many sequels and they learn very quickly when an idea falls flat on its face (Alice Through the Looking Glass, anyone?). So you can imagine the trust and investment when Iger Disney bucks the trend to greenlight the first ever wide release of a sequel to an animated Princess movie under their banner. What could go wrong? Frozen is the biggest animated movie ever and it's not like another certain Era, where direct-to-video sequel after sequel after sequel would be pumped out with our iconic characters. Anna, Elsa, Olaf and 'Let it Go' have defined a generation, so Creative have got this... or do they? Frozen was virtually open and shut, like most movies that studios sequel after. The current generation would not want to see Anna & Elsa put through the wringer again ir the payoff lets everyone down. One of the qualities to Frozen II is that Buck and Ms. Lee were not afraid to shake the status quo of their characters, but the delivery was off its mark and continues Disney's trend that if something isn't broken, find something within it to break to keep the world moving.
Surprise, Surprise, Arendelle is in an era or prosperity. Everyone is happy with their Queen Elsa and Kristof wants to pop the big question to Anna. Then Elsa hears a voice... and it somehow suckers her into putting the kingdom in a dangerous situation. The only logical solution is for Anna & Elsa to follow the voice into an enchanted forest where more revelations are found, be it of their parents, their lineage, and themselves.
Give it that, Frozen II's animation is at the top of its game. Be it the Elements, the Dark Sea, the characters themselves along with Arendelle have been touched up perfectly. The songs themselves are enjoyable, if not safe follow ups to the bar set by the first film. 'Into the Unknown' seems destined for Ms. Menzel to belt out come Oscar time ('Show Yourself' woukld be the better bet). Olaf's 'When I Am Older' is just a natural companion piece to 'In Summer,' while 'Lost in the Woods' channels 80s B-side soft rock ballads on a major Disney budget. Mind you, all of the high production and quality could not protect Frozen II from the script it carries. The film is a glaring example that countless care put into building an animated powerhouse can be undone with an uninspired, stretched-too-thin delivery.
***SPOILER ZONE*** The MacGuffin that causes Elsa to ditch her kingdom made little sense after all is said and done. Oaken and the rock trolls, though not part of Arendelle, somehow end up stuck on the hilltop with the kingdom. Anna is spent chasing Elsa throughout the movie, squabbling with her sister about her consistent abandonment only for to totally understand that and why she did (?). Nevermind the Elements themselves, who fight Elsa one minute and are subservient the next (the Fire Elemental in particular looking as though Disney put Tangled's Pascal and Coco's Dante in a blender and out this guy popped). The end product becoming a painful pretentious mess about what Anna is meant to be and what Elsa already is (Could you imagine Charlton Heston or William Shatner belting out lines in this movie? "You ARE the fifth SPIRIT!"), Frozen II continues the idea that, like Vanellope & Ralph and Woody & Buzz, duos are better for growth by busting them up (Watch Nick abandon Judy to start his own division in the ZPD). Let's see if Anna & Elsa get their own separate series now on Disney+.
On its own Frozen II may not hold up well, but it is the organic follow up to the smash first film. The movie could have been worse... it could have been made in a more direct-to-video era...
Surprise, Surprise, Arendelle is in an era or prosperity. Everyone is happy with their Queen Elsa and Kristof wants to pop the big question to Anna. Then Elsa hears a voice... and it somehow suckers her into putting the kingdom in a dangerous situation. The only logical solution is for Anna & Elsa to follow the voice into an enchanted forest where more revelations are found, be it of their parents, their lineage, and themselves.
Give it that, Frozen II's animation is at the top of its game. Be it the Elements, the Dark Sea, the characters themselves along with Arendelle have been touched up perfectly. The songs themselves are enjoyable, if not safe follow ups to the bar set by the first film. 'Into the Unknown' seems destined for Ms. Menzel to belt out come Oscar time ('Show Yourself' woukld be the better bet). Olaf's 'When I Am Older' is just a natural companion piece to 'In Summer,' while 'Lost in the Woods' channels 80s B-side soft rock ballads on a major Disney budget. Mind you, all of the high production and quality could not protect Frozen II from the script it carries. The film is a glaring example that countless care put into building an animated powerhouse can be undone with an uninspired, stretched-too-thin delivery.
***SPOILER ZONE*** The MacGuffin that causes Elsa to ditch her kingdom made little sense after all is said and done. Oaken and the rock trolls, though not part of Arendelle, somehow end up stuck on the hilltop with the kingdom. Anna is spent chasing Elsa throughout the movie, squabbling with her sister about her consistent abandonment only for to totally understand that and why she did (?). Nevermind the Elements themselves, who fight Elsa one minute and are subservient the next (the Fire Elemental in particular looking as though Disney put Tangled's Pascal and Coco's Dante in a blender and out this guy popped). The end product becoming a painful pretentious mess about what Anna is meant to be and what Elsa already is (Could you imagine Charlton Heston or William Shatner belting out lines in this movie? "You ARE the fifth SPIRIT!"), Frozen II continues the idea that, like Vanellope & Ralph and Woody & Buzz, duos are better for growth by busting them up (Watch Nick abandon Judy to start his own division in the ZPD). Let's see if Anna & Elsa get their own separate series now on Disney+.
On its own Frozen II may not hold up well, but it is the organic follow up to the smash first film. The movie could have been worse... it could have been made in a more direct-to-video era...