For those of you yet to see this relatively new film, Frozen is a loose interpretation of Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen. The film follows two sisters, Anna and Elsa, who have been divided by Elsa's nearly uncontrollable power over ice and snow. If you have not seen this film yet, stop here. Though I would say that it is not the best Disney film, in my opinion it is well worth seeing; if only for the show-stopping scene "Let It Go."
For this thread, I will be comparing and contrasting to what I consider to widely be the best modern Disney film: Tangled.
SPOILERS START HERE
First off, it?s extremely hard to adapt such a dark fairytale into something a more modern and secular audience can enjoy. Forgoing the references to the Devil's cursed mirror and the power of prayer in my opinion was a smart move. Though this iteration of The Snow Queen story is very good, it still lacks in key areas.
Poor Song Transitions
I enjoy Disney movies. I can even say that I look forward to every song in them. One of the reason Tangled's songs worked so well was the build up to each. For instance the song "I have a Dream" begins with a sizable intro dialogue and a firm theatrical lead in with Hook-Hand's piano solo and spotlight scene. This is why I was disappointed in some of the most abrupt transitions into the songs of Frozen. One example; in the film Olaf's song begins with his almost instantaneous affirmation of his love for summer. It seems rushed and out of place. But at the same time Christoph and Sven's song succeeds without such a lead in because it is a simple guitar piece. It is something that you might just hear someone sing while playing on a park bench.
Ultimately the amount of lead in per song should depend on the auditory power of the song. Simple songs can be introduced quickly, with little fanfare. More complex pieces like ?Love is an Open Door? favor better with a more gradual progression into full song.
Lack of Pain or Grief
I'm aware that this is a Disney movie, and that most of their films must end on a happy note. Their cheerful version of the tragic Hans Christian Anderson story The Little Mermaid is evidence of that. This I understand, but in a place turned into an icy wasteland a little misery would have gone a long way to instil a sense of urgency.
In Tangled the driving force to the story is time. The floating lanterns will fly in only a day or two. Mother Gothel is dying with each day that goes by. This creates the tension needed to move the story forward while shaping the character's motivations. Gothel and Rapunzel cannot wait around and are forced to deal with their obstacles as quickly as possible. Gothel uses violence and schemes; Rapunzel uses cheer and creativity.
None of these things push the plot forward in Frozen. The cold is played off as more of an inconvenience than the terrifying icy death that was seen in the film The Day After Tomorrow. I'm not saying kill anyone, but just have people suffering a bit or at least fearing the cold. Fear goes a long way in establishing urgency. Also, problems are more intense if they are constantly getting worse. If the storm was getting more and more lethal stopping Elsa would have seemed more vital. Otherwise it just seemed inconvenient.
The Troll Problem
I will just say it. The Trolls were the worst handled part of the film, (with the possible exception of a certain main character listed in his own section below.) They were an under discussed plot device with no other point in the story than to delete a memory and diagnose some icy heart problems. Even their "adoption" of Christoph took place in a single line of dialogue. These characters had potential. If shown in more than two scenes, they could have really felt like a mystical part of the world rather than the neighborhood wizards that anyone can go to. It would have been nice to see how Christoph grew up under their care. This could have even happened with a short montage.
Under-Characterizing Christoph
Flynn Rider was a fun character. He was jaded, greedy, selfish, arrogant, and secretly emotionally broken inside. Flynn was the ultimate challenge that Rupunzel had to face. She changed his cold heart, freeing Eugene from his own self-delusion. You could almost say the story was more about Flynn's character arc than Rapunzel's.
A character like Flynn Rider was exactly what Frozen was calling for. Mind you I did not say Flynn Rider; I said a character like him. A person who's personality is one of, if not the most difficult challenge for the protagonist to face. Elsa partially fills this role with her fear and distance, but ultimately the romantic aspect of this role needed to be filled with a separate character. What Disney came up with was a relatively bland ice seller named Christoph.
Without any defining character flaws Christoph is kind of like a smooth ball: truly featureless. His hygiene and some other minor problems were mentioned in the Troll's song sequence, but none of these flaws were ever reference in the main story arc. This makes the song feel as though it?s describing a character that we have yet to even come close to meeting. You see Flynn rider decides to steal the crown to begin the story; he doesn't trust anyone. Flynn openly plans to betray Rapunzel, but is ultimately beaten by her joy and love. His flaws are a driving part of the story. Christoph?s are just kind of there.
My solution would be to make Christoph?s supposed trouble with social interactions a core part of his character. Make him shy or angry or depressed or afraid: ANYTHING! Have him overcome his social ineptitude through what he experiences with Anna through the plot. Make him a CHARACTER not just a plot device to move Anna to Elsa and ultimately a shamefully token love interest.
Quite Simply: Hans
Never before have I seen such potential wasted in a character. In Frozen Prince Hans of the Southern Isles is portrayed as a power hungry manipulator, whose powers of acting were so great that they even caught me by surprise. Not because I came to a revelation that the good prince?s inexplicable cruelty had been hinted at by his subtle behavior earlier in the story, but because it made no sense. Hans fights to protect Elsa only to suddenly declare "Oh yeah, I'm evil," and perform a complete 180. This was poor writing at best and a massive oversight at worst. Similar to Dwayne Johnson's role in Get Smart, the character's motivation to turn on the main character made no sense. It felt more like a rip-off than a reveal.
One of the reasons that Gothel worked so well as a villain was because we could sympathize with her. A dying old woman finds a magic flower that gives her everlasting youth. She protects and cares for the flower for thousands of years (speculative,) and is ultimately horror-struck when the only thing keeping her alive was taken from her. She seeks out the flower, already on the verge of death once more, only to find a little girl in the place of her precious flower. She then attempts to take only a single lock of hair, but is terrified to find that this will not work. In that moment of desperation she takes the child in the same way that the king and queen took her life. Mind you that these are the King and Queen of the land that came about centuries after Gothel and her people lived and subsequently had no right to rule over her. The Mother Gothel then raises Rapunzel like the daughter she never had.
Just in back story, Gothel beats Hans hands down. She does everything out of fear of death. It is even made believable that Gothel truly loves Rapunzel, and even in the very end of the story Rapunzel reaches out to her as Gothel fell to her death. You see, Gothel is REAL, or at least more real than Hans is. She is still wrong, greedy, vain, and a bit cruel, but she feels like a real person.
If I were to make just one change to Frozen, it would be this.
Make Hans do what he does out of a misplaced sense of self-righteousness. Have him seek out Arindale (I have no idea how that is spelled) because he wants to appease his family and rule to the best that he is capable of. Make him not kiss Anna because her death is the only thing that can weaken Elsa, the only thing that can stun her. Have Hans lie about his marriage to Anna because he needs the people's support to defeat Elsa and end the devastating icy death she has created. All the while Hans should be sad he has to let Anna die, solemnly he should tell her it?s for the greater good. Create sympathy as well as anger.
In the climax, when Anna sacrifices herself for Elsa, have Hans recover himself from the blast and yell at Elsa. Have him make her see what she has done. Hans should beg her to let him end all this. Only through her death can the pain end. In that moment Elsa should comply. In an act of true selflessness, she should offer herself to save everyone that she had once ruled over. In that moment, have Anna thaw. And threw the knowledge that love can melt the winter, let Elsa end the icy storm.
Then have Christoph or Anna beat the crap out of Hans.
You see the difference between Tangled and Frozen lies in the characters they use to populate their stories. Almost all of Tangled's main characters are complex and real, while many of Frozen's are relatively simple and one sided. By creating a villain that people can identify with, even the cruelest characters become almost pitiful. And in that moment, become more real than any doomsday-take-over-the-world character could ever hope to be.
In the end Frozen is a very good movie. Though it falls just tragically short of true greatness, Frozen possessed such potential that I hope it inspires more films like it. And maybe with a few slight changes to the formula, they can achieve something magical.
For this thread, I will be comparing and contrasting to what I consider to widely be the best modern Disney film: Tangled.
SPOILERS START HERE
First off, it?s extremely hard to adapt such a dark fairytale into something a more modern and secular audience can enjoy. Forgoing the references to the Devil's cursed mirror and the power of prayer in my opinion was a smart move. Though this iteration of The Snow Queen story is very good, it still lacks in key areas.
Poor Song Transitions
I enjoy Disney movies. I can even say that I look forward to every song in them. One of the reason Tangled's songs worked so well was the build up to each. For instance the song "I have a Dream" begins with a sizable intro dialogue and a firm theatrical lead in with Hook-Hand's piano solo and spotlight scene. This is why I was disappointed in some of the most abrupt transitions into the songs of Frozen. One example; in the film Olaf's song begins with his almost instantaneous affirmation of his love for summer. It seems rushed and out of place. But at the same time Christoph and Sven's song succeeds without such a lead in because it is a simple guitar piece. It is something that you might just hear someone sing while playing on a park bench.
Ultimately the amount of lead in per song should depend on the auditory power of the song. Simple songs can be introduced quickly, with little fanfare. More complex pieces like ?Love is an Open Door? favor better with a more gradual progression into full song.
Lack of Pain or Grief
I'm aware that this is a Disney movie, and that most of their films must end on a happy note. Their cheerful version of the tragic Hans Christian Anderson story The Little Mermaid is evidence of that. This I understand, but in a place turned into an icy wasteland a little misery would have gone a long way to instil a sense of urgency.
In Tangled the driving force to the story is time. The floating lanterns will fly in only a day or two. Mother Gothel is dying with each day that goes by. This creates the tension needed to move the story forward while shaping the character's motivations. Gothel and Rapunzel cannot wait around and are forced to deal with their obstacles as quickly as possible. Gothel uses violence and schemes; Rapunzel uses cheer and creativity.
None of these things push the plot forward in Frozen. The cold is played off as more of an inconvenience than the terrifying icy death that was seen in the film The Day After Tomorrow. I'm not saying kill anyone, but just have people suffering a bit or at least fearing the cold. Fear goes a long way in establishing urgency. Also, problems are more intense if they are constantly getting worse. If the storm was getting more and more lethal stopping Elsa would have seemed more vital. Otherwise it just seemed inconvenient.
The Troll Problem
I will just say it. The Trolls were the worst handled part of the film, (with the possible exception of a certain main character listed in his own section below.) They were an under discussed plot device with no other point in the story than to delete a memory and diagnose some icy heart problems. Even their "adoption" of Christoph took place in a single line of dialogue. These characters had potential. If shown in more than two scenes, they could have really felt like a mystical part of the world rather than the neighborhood wizards that anyone can go to. It would have been nice to see how Christoph grew up under their care. This could have even happened with a short montage.
Under-Characterizing Christoph
Flynn Rider was a fun character. He was jaded, greedy, selfish, arrogant, and secretly emotionally broken inside. Flynn was the ultimate challenge that Rupunzel had to face. She changed his cold heart, freeing Eugene from his own self-delusion. You could almost say the story was more about Flynn's character arc than Rapunzel's.
A character like Flynn Rider was exactly what Frozen was calling for. Mind you I did not say Flynn Rider; I said a character like him. A person who's personality is one of, if not the most difficult challenge for the protagonist to face. Elsa partially fills this role with her fear and distance, but ultimately the romantic aspect of this role needed to be filled with a separate character. What Disney came up with was a relatively bland ice seller named Christoph.
Without any defining character flaws Christoph is kind of like a smooth ball: truly featureless. His hygiene and some other minor problems were mentioned in the Troll's song sequence, but none of these flaws were ever reference in the main story arc. This makes the song feel as though it?s describing a character that we have yet to even come close to meeting. You see Flynn rider decides to steal the crown to begin the story; he doesn't trust anyone. Flynn openly plans to betray Rapunzel, but is ultimately beaten by her joy and love. His flaws are a driving part of the story. Christoph?s are just kind of there.
My solution would be to make Christoph?s supposed trouble with social interactions a core part of his character. Make him shy or angry or depressed or afraid: ANYTHING! Have him overcome his social ineptitude through what he experiences with Anna through the plot. Make him a CHARACTER not just a plot device to move Anna to Elsa and ultimately a shamefully token love interest.
Quite Simply: Hans
Never before have I seen such potential wasted in a character. In Frozen Prince Hans of the Southern Isles is portrayed as a power hungry manipulator, whose powers of acting were so great that they even caught me by surprise. Not because I came to a revelation that the good prince?s inexplicable cruelty had been hinted at by his subtle behavior earlier in the story, but because it made no sense. Hans fights to protect Elsa only to suddenly declare "Oh yeah, I'm evil," and perform a complete 180. This was poor writing at best and a massive oversight at worst. Similar to Dwayne Johnson's role in Get Smart, the character's motivation to turn on the main character made no sense. It felt more like a rip-off than a reveal.
One of the reasons that Gothel worked so well as a villain was because we could sympathize with her. A dying old woman finds a magic flower that gives her everlasting youth. She protects and cares for the flower for thousands of years (speculative,) and is ultimately horror-struck when the only thing keeping her alive was taken from her. She seeks out the flower, already on the verge of death once more, only to find a little girl in the place of her precious flower. She then attempts to take only a single lock of hair, but is terrified to find that this will not work. In that moment of desperation she takes the child in the same way that the king and queen took her life. Mind you that these are the King and Queen of the land that came about centuries after Gothel and her people lived and subsequently had no right to rule over her. The Mother Gothel then raises Rapunzel like the daughter she never had.
Just in back story, Gothel beats Hans hands down. She does everything out of fear of death. It is even made believable that Gothel truly loves Rapunzel, and even in the very end of the story Rapunzel reaches out to her as Gothel fell to her death. You see, Gothel is REAL, or at least more real than Hans is. She is still wrong, greedy, vain, and a bit cruel, but she feels like a real person.
If I were to make just one change to Frozen, it would be this.
Make Hans do what he does out of a misplaced sense of self-righteousness. Have him seek out Arindale (I have no idea how that is spelled) because he wants to appease his family and rule to the best that he is capable of. Make him not kiss Anna because her death is the only thing that can weaken Elsa, the only thing that can stun her. Have Hans lie about his marriage to Anna because he needs the people's support to defeat Elsa and end the devastating icy death she has created. All the while Hans should be sad he has to let Anna die, solemnly he should tell her it?s for the greater good. Create sympathy as well as anger.
In the climax, when Anna sacrifices herself for Elsa, have Hans recover himself from the blast and yell at Elsa. Have him make her see what she has done. Hans should beg her to let him end all this. Only through her death can the pain end. In that moment Elsa should comply. In an act of true selflessness, she should offer herself to save everyone that she had once ruled over. In that moment, have Anna thaw. And threw the knowledge that love can melt the winter, let Elsa end the icy storm.
Then have Christoph or Anna beat the crap out of Hans.
You see the difference between Tangled and Frozen lies in the characters they use to populate their stories. Almost all of Tangled's main characters are complex and real, while many of Frozen's are relatively simple and one sided. By creating a villain that people can identify with, even the cruelest characters become almost pitiful. And in that moment, become more real than any doomsday-take-over-the-world character could ever hope to be.
In the end Frozen is a very good movie. Though it falls just tragically short of true greatness, Frozen possessed such potential that I hope it inspires more films like it. And maybe with a few slight changes to the formula, they can achieve something magical.
oorly. The scene right before that with the shop keeper shows how he treats people:again poorly.He admires Anna's optimism because despite them having odd up bringing she stays optimistic while he's become cold and jaded. They complement each others weirdness,her naive optimism showing that there are good people in the world and his more realist personalty showing her just how foolish she's being about Prince Hans and what love truly is.The trolls song reenforces all of these things and points that yeah he's odd but he has a good heart.