Every time my girls go to the playground and ride the swings, they start singing "Let It Go" to energize themselves. They squealed with delight when they received Frozen T-shirts and action figures at Christmastime. They beg me to buy them almost every bit of Frozen merchandising that we see. Lorelai has been writing a stage adaptation of Frozen, with her sisters & friends playing all the parts (perhaps I should explain copyright law to her?). And when we visited Disneyland a few weeks ago (more on that later), the girls ooh'd and aah'd over the animatronic Olaf, who greeted visitors who were waiting in line to meet "Princess Anna and Queen Elsa":
And yet...and yet... *I kind of think Frozen is overrated*. And maybe...just maybe...*I actually like Tangled (the last "Disney Princess" film) a little bit MORE than Frozen*
Let the comparisons BEGIN!! Warning: spoilers ahead for both Tangled and Frozen
PRINCESSES
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| from disneyinfinity.wikia.com |
Let's start with perhaps the toughest point of comparison between the two movies: their lead characters. In all honesty, Rapunzel, Anna, and Elsa are all pretty great. All three princesses are clever, kind, determined, brave, and beautiful. In addition, these princesses have a distinct feminist bent; they have life goals separate from "finding their one true love," and they don't expect a man to solve their problems for them (Anna falls victim to romantic yearnings on occasion, but it's not her defining characteristic). I wouldn't mind at all if my young daughters idolized any of these three!
Since Rapunzel "flies solo" in her movie, she gets more time to develop on-screen (and reveal a more complex personality) than the princesses in Frozen. Rapunzel has spent her life developing a multitude of talents (art, cooking, exercising, etc.), and we get to see some of those talents put to good use on her journey. Rapunzel seems to be a more thoughtful, reflective character than either Anna or Elsa; the audience gets to see Rapunzel carefully weigh her decisions, and have spontaneous outbursts of both regret and joy. In contrast, the Frozen sisters (particularly Anna) sometimes behave more like "character types" than people. Anna sometimes feels like nothing more than a bundle of quirky cliched character beats, while Elsa goes missing for large portions of the film and is thus cheated of additional character development. Their actions sometimes feel more dictated by the plot than by their personalities (ie, "Now Elsa has to do this, to cause Anna to act this way, which will then cause this to happen, etc.")
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| from disney.wikia.com |
WINNER: FROZEN (by a snowflake)
PLOT
In this section, I'm mostly considering the mechanics of the story...how the story progresses, if events come together naturally, that sort of thing. Frankly, I think this is the area in which Frozen suffers the most. I've read more than once that early on in Frozen's script process, Elsa was intended to be the villain of the story. Then, the producers heard "Let It Go," Elsa's signature song, and decided to rework Elsa into a heroine instead. Which was the right move, in my opinion! However, you can tell by watching the story that they never managed to make the plot reflect this shift in character. After Elsa's big musical number, she vanishes for much of the rest of the movie, either from hiding in her giant ice castle or from being thrown in jail back in Arendelle. Hiding (and plotting) are okay things to do when you're a villain. When you're a heroine and you vanish for most of the story, the writers have to insert a lot of filler. And so instead of Elsa being in conflict with Anna, we get...lots and lots of scenes of Anna & her friends walking/climbing/sledding around. Not a lot of import happens in the middle third of Frozen, and the climax had to have a different villain added at the last minute to heighten the stakes. It all feels very disconnected & slow.
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| from livingoutsideofthebox.com |
Tangled isn't a masterpiece of plotting, but at least stuff happens in a logical sequence. The prologue (about Gothel's origins, her kidnapping of Rapunzel, etc.) nicely set the scene. Rapunzel's desires, combined with Flynn's arrival, facilitate her departure from the tower (and Gothel's frantic pursuit). Rapunzel & Flynn have experiences & meet characters who have an effect on the plot later on (I'm looking at you, residents of the Snuggly Duckling!). Rapunzel's journey is logical, makes sense, and doesn't ever drag (despite a back-track to the tower, which sets up the film's climax). Her journey to "see the floating lights" ends up having big consequences for her and for the other characters, and helps Rapunzel discover who she really is and what sort of life she wants. It's standard fairy-tale/adventure story stuff, but it all works.
WINNER: TANGLED
THEME/MORAL
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| from rotoscopers.com |
Despite having its slow spots, Frozen does have a lot to say about love and acceptance, and that's no small thing. There's a reason so many people have fallen for Elsa and love her character: her struggle with her powers mirrors that of many people who have disabilities/preferences/struggles they keep to themselves. When Elsa decides to embrace her differences and begin to love herself for who she is, it's a triumphant moment, and signals a new beginning for someone who has spent most of her life in uncertainty and fear. Ironically, the "Let It Go" sequence only marks the beginning of Elsa's journey; she still has to unfreeze Arendelle and accept her role as queen. Thankfully, her loving sister is there to defend her, protect her and support her. It's a simple but powerful statement: love and family do matter, and they can help you overcome your weaknesses & obstacles. It's a positive, uplifting message and even though Frozen isn't perfect, it gets a pass on a lot of things because it makes its point effectively.
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| from weeatfilms.com |
Tangled shares a few themes with Frozen (moving from youth to adulthood, responsibility, becoming happy with who you are, love being a powerful force, etc.), but they're portrayed in a lighter, more superficial manner. Mostly, Tangled is focused on telling a good story. And it does that very well! Tangled is less concerned with sharing a "moral" of the story, and more with having fun and putting a slightly modern spin on a classic fairy tale. In fact, with Flynn Rider's reformation being totally glossed over at the story's end (he was a well-known criminal, and we never really saw him change in the movie!), I suspect Tangled wants to "moralize" as little as possible!
WINNER: FROZEN
LOVE INTEREST
I realize that Frozen is not really a movie about romance. However, it does try to trick the viewer into thinking a romance will be forthcoming. And it uses not just one, but two guys to pull this trick off! Too bad they both end up being red herrings, to one degree or another.
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| from thetoryparty.com |
Kristoff is a nice fellow; handsome, strong, funny, noble of heart. True, he has an abnormal attachment to his reindeer Sven, but that can be forgiven. But is Kristoff really necessary to the movie? If you were to remove Kristoff from the film entirely (even taking Sven with him!), the plot would barely change at all. Anna could have acquired a sled/supplies/etc. from Wandering Oaken. Heck, she could have taken Wandering Oaken up the mountains with her instead of Kristoff. The end result would probably have been about the same. Now that would have been an interesting movie to make...but not all that different, I bet. The movie's climax could also have happened without Kristoff present, since his love for Anna ended up being unnecessary. All we would have lost by losing Kristoff was a superfluous musical number by those darned trolls (more on them later). Hans is a more stereotypical fairy-tale love interest; handsome prince, charming, brave, a good singer and dancer, and a good leader. Too bad he also turns out to be calculating and very cruel; suffice it to say, his romance with Anna would never have worked out for a variety of reasons.
And then there's Tangled's Flynn Rider (aka Eugene Fitz-Herbert, which is what my girls call him all the time). He's a handsome rogue who has more charisma than Kristoff and Hans put together (sorry, guys!). Flynn is brave, streetwise, and very funny. Plus, he can sing (and dance, when threatened at sword-point). True, he has some legal issues and a clouded past, and his redemption is pretty glossed over at the film's end. But hey...at least he didn't try to murder one of the main characters (looking at you Hans!). As Flynn himself says at the beginning of the movie, "This is a good story, and it's not even mine." He wisely cedes the story to Rapunzel, and plays comic relief sidekick for most of the movie. Most important of all, Flynn is actually important to the plot of Tangled (unlike Kristoff, and Hans for most of Frozen). He discovers Rapunzel's hidden tower, thus inspiring her to finally escape. He helps her find her way back to her kingdom. And at the end, he "frees" her from her bondage to Gothel by slicing off her hair. He dies for his troubles, but not to worry...Rapunzel magically revives him and "saves" him as payback for him saving her! Theirs is a pretty equal relationship, as cartoon characters go.
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| Plus...HE'S GOT THE SMOLDER. From sideshowcollectibles.com |
WINNER: TANGLED
SUPPORTING CAST
If/when Frozen becomes a Broadway play, it will mostly be a two-woman show, a la Wicked. After the sisters and the various men in their lives, Olaf is probably the next most important character. His design is cute and his song "In Summer" is hilarious. Olaf manages to be funny while not being snarky or obnoxious. Without exception, he is friendly and loving to everyone. He's even important on a narrative level; he is a physical representation of Elsa & Anna's childhood love for each other. It's important to remember that as they struggle to reconnect.
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| from insidethemagic.net |
So, Olaf's great. Unfortunately for Frozen, the supporting cast thins out dramatically after that. Can you name any of the townspeople in Arendelle? Yeah, me neither. The Duke of Weselton is sleazy and bigoted, but he only appears in a handful of scenes and doesn't end up doing much. Sven is loveable, but he is mostly an appendage to Kristoff. And don't even get me started on those darn rock trolls.
Yeah, yeah, trolls are an integral part of Norse fairy tales...whatever, I don't care. They are probably my least favorite part of Frozen. At best, they are terribly unhelpful to our heroes. Their "Fixer-Upper" song is the worst song in the film; worse, it's the last song in the film! Why couldn't we have had a triumphal final song, or at least a reprise of "Do You Want To Build A Snowman?"? ANYTHING? No, we get a bunch of ugly trolls singing about what a catch Kristoff is...this, after a dramatic confrontation with Elsa that leaves Anna fighting for her life. Ugh...what an anticlimactic final number!
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| Dumb trolls! From cartoonpapers.com |
But the trolls are worse than unnecessary; you could even argue that they are the cause of most of Elsa's problems. At the beginning of the film, the old troll wizard guy warns Elsa and her parents that her powers could be used to do others harm. This scares the snot out of poor Elsa, and it inspires her (also scared) parents to lock her up in the castle and isolate her from everyone for the rest of her childhood. It's because of the old troll's advice that Elsa is so terrified and nervous all the time. Thanks a lot, trolls! And then, the most puzzling & frustrating thing of all to me: The troll wizard erases Anna's memories of Elsa's powers. WHY does he do this? It doesn't matter plot-wise; Anna "re-discovers" Elsa's powers about 15-20 movie-minutes after she was made to forget about them. Keeping Elsa's powers a secret from her sister don't protect anyone; that action drives a deep emotional wedge between the sisters that takes the whole rest of the movie to overcome. Maybe if Anna remembered Elsa's secret as a child, she would have been a lot more sympathetic to her struggles as they grew up, and been less likely to antagonize her at the coronation, which led to Arendelle getting frozen over...et cetera. Darn trolls...they caused all the conflict in the movie!
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| from fanpop.com |
Thus, Olaf is cancelled out by the trolls, and Tangled wins the supporting cast battle. Unfair, you say? Well, Tangled's supporting cast has a lot of things in its favor! It has not one, but two cute animal sidekicks, each with very distinct personalities. Maximus is actually an antagonist for most of the movie, but is finally won over by Rapunzel's charm. His antipathy towards Flynn is some of the funniest stuff in the movie. Pascal is Rapunzel's animal companion, who is generally very friendly but not opposed to a frying-pan beatdown, if the situation warrants it. Besides the animals, we have Flynn's partners in crime, the hulking Stabbington Brothers, whose last name alone makes them worthy of mention. Rapunzel's parents aren't very prominent characters (they don't even have any lines!), but hey! A Disney movie in which both parents are alive! That is a rare thing indeed. And last but not least, we have all these guys:
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| from disney.wikia.com |
The ruffians in the Snuggly Duckling tavern get their own (great) musical number, "I've Got A Dream," which is a chance for them to both reveal their sensitive sides and to remind children watching that we shouldn't judge people based on outward appearances. Because of the goodwill built up in this scene, they even help Flynn bust out of jail later in the movie, so he can go save Rapunzel! And then they all attend the coronation, and they find love, and play piano, and collect ceramic unicorns, and dreams just come true all over the place...sigh. So uplifting!
WINNER: TANGLED
VILLAINS
Neither of these movies has a Major Villain in the moustache-twirling, world-dominating vein, but both movies do have villains who manage to ruin a lot of other people's lives while chasing their selfish goals. But which villain is the most dastardly?
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| from fanpop.com |
I'm going to go with Mother Gothel in Tangled! Even though she has no plans to rule the world, it's pretty clear she'll do whatever it takes to prolong her life, even if it's at the expense of Rapunzel's freedom or Flynn's life. On a more personal level, she's also horribly manipulative, selfish and cruel, always doing her best to keep Rapunzel docile, insecure, and contained. She is skilled in hurling veiled insults; her big musical number "Mother Knows Best," is a masterpiece of passive aggression. She is also devious and double-crossing, and manages to swindle her way back into Rapunzel's good graces for a time, by making her think Flynn has abandoned her. In short, she's very easy to hate and fun to root against!
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| He was...in the SHADOWS...this whole time! from fanpop.com |
While not every movie needs a villain, sometimes Frozen seems a little confused as to who (or what) their villain actually is. Having Elsa as a villain may have enlivened the slow middle act, but that wasn't an option after the script was finalized. In many ways, the main conflicts in the film are internal (Elsa struggling with her personal demons, for example), or else simplified into man vs. nature (like Anna & Kristoff fighting off the wolves or climbing the mountains). But it seemed like the writers made it to the end of the movie and realized there wasn't much tension in the last scene. So bam! Hans suddenly reveals his true colors and becomes a Villain Of Convenience for the last ten minutes or so of the film. It's not completely out of the blue (his family situation seems like obvious motivation, and he mentions it early in the film), but it still feels inserted mainly for shock value (I heard audible gasps in the theater when his "evilness" was revealed). Up to that point in the movie, Hans had done nothing remotely suspicious or dangerous, so his evilness felt spontaneously generated. He is undeniably a threat to Anna & Elsa, but his comeuppance lacks some weight since his betrayal happened almost too fast to process.
WINNER: TANGLED
SETTING
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| from badassdigest.com |
Here's another element that both films do pretty well; the worlds are both great to look at! In fact, they are somewhat similar; the kingdoms in Frozen and Tangled are both set alongside large bodies of water. While Tangled's location appears more temperate (northern Meditteranean, perhaps?), Frozen's Arendelle clearly borrows heavily from Nordic culture, which influence its costumes, climate, and architectural design. Tangled is undeniably more colorful (lush forests, blue waters, and of course the vibrant purples & yellows in the kingdom itself), but I'm giving Frozen the edge for its more daring, exotic atmosphere.
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| from thestar.com |
The writers and animators reportedly took multiple trips "up north" to get a sense for what life in snowy climates would be like. Then they infused their still, snowy landscapes with weird magical flourishes (the beaded ice drops on the tree branches, the "forest" of horizontal icicles, etc.) that manage to both unnerve and amaze the characters and the viewers. I live in Arizona, and watching Frozen made me feel cold on several occasions.
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| from theglobeandmail.com |
WINNER: FROZEN
HUMOR
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| from guidetostuff.com |
I realize humor is a hard concept to measure. I also realize this may be a bit unfair, since Frozen is ostensibly a more "serious" movie and isn't trying to constantly hit the punchline. But too bad; this is my list, and part of what makes a movie entertaining for me (animated movies in particular) are their ability to make me smile and/or laugh. And Tangled is much more fun (and funny!) than Frozen. Its style is much more loose and free-wheeling; the witty banter between the characters feels a lot less forced, and the action is much more slapstick.
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| from dettoldisney.wordpress.com |
WINNER: TANGLED
MUSIC
Poor Tangled. It has some good, under-appreciated songs that lots of people don't seem to remember. For some reason, Disney tried to hide the fact that it was a musical as they were promoting the film. Perhaps they were afraid audiences would stay away if there was singing? At any rate, many people didn't realize Tangled was a musical until they sat down to watch it in theaters. Sometimes, the movie itself seems unsure of its status as a "musical"...there are only four musical numbers (well, six, but two of them are reprises of earlier songs). And the songs are each unique and delightful ("Mother Knows Best" is probably the best of the bunch, but "At Last I See The Light" is beautiful and "I've Got a Dream" is toe-tapping). They have a very "pop music" feel, but they are easy to sing along to, and suit the movie quite well.
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| from jandmranch.com |
It seems Disney was right to be confident about their musical formula this time, because Frozen's soundtrack is a major part of the film's success. Although there are several well-loved songs throughout the film, the most popular by far is "Let It Go," the song Elsa sings just after fleeing the kingdom. It's THE watershed moment for the character; through the course of the song, Elsa goes from sorrow to shame to relief to excitement to decisiveness to triumph, all as she really lets loose with her magical powers. The music and lyrics, in tandem with the animation, are truly electric; it's a high emotional point of the film and probably one of the best musical animated sequences Disney has ever created.
The words of "Let It Go" are just generic enough that countless people can adapt them to fit their own personal circumstances. Many in the gay & lesbian community have adopted it as a "coming-out" anthem; others have praised it as a song that inspires victims of abuse and repression. Still other interpretations of the song include overcoming physical illness, psychological disorders, or simple loneliness & isolation. It's been fascinating to me to see how many different interpretations can be applied to "Let It Go"--and most of these intepretations work! And of course, the little girls all love singing it too; it makes them feel grown-up, strong, and in control. What a good way to feel! I am happy that this song (and the movie containing it) have inspired my little girls to be happy with themselves and live their lives the best way they can.
WINNER: FROZEN
And...because you all asked for it...my final category:
PRINCESS DEATHMATCH
Bwahahaaa! After all the critical analysis, it's time to shove all three of our princesses into a cage and force them to fight to the death. Who will be left standing?? (feel free to skip this part if you don't like gory descriptions)
Since Anna is the only one of the three princesses without magic powers (unless you count "nervous babbling" a superpower), I'll assume she'll be the first to bite the dust. Either Elsa will freeze her heart (again), or Rapunzel can strangle her to death with all that hair. Anna, sadly, will be a non-factor in the battle.
So it comes down to Rapunzel, the girl whose long golden hair has magical healing powers...
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| from accioyabooks.wordpress.com |
...and Elsa, the queen who can conjure snow and ice from thin air with nothing but her hands.
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| from disney.co.uk |
I'm sure that Rapunzel could wrap her hair around herself and sing her healing song to take care of her more superficial wounds, but it'll be pretty hard to sing if there's a huge icicle sticking through her neck. Or if Elsa conjures another Marshmallow-type giant snowman who can shatter every bone in Rapunzel's skinny little body. Elsa was able to handle the two Weselton guards with relative ease when they trespassed into her ice castle; if she went full-throttle and full-speed with her ice-making, poor Rapunzel would be a bloody mess in minutes.
All hail the victorious Queen!
WINNER: FROZEN
So there you have it, folks; my final score is Tangled=5, Frozen=5. Hmmm...a tie?? Well, it just goes to show you; each movie has its pluses and minuses. In terms of personal preference, I slightly favor Tangled, but I really enjoy Frozen as well, and I'm glad they're both in my family's DVD library. Last weekend, I held a Frozen viewing party for some friends of our girls; more than twenty people showed up, and they were all glued to the screen throughout. It was great fun to share the fun with others.
What do you all think? Which movie is your favorite, and why? Happy viewing!
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