by InsaneSeagull » February 7th, 2014, 9:08 am
Mah. Yeah, I went to watch this, and I must say - I'm quite disappointed with the movie.
It's not that I totally hate it or anything, I just think it had nothing specially new to offer. Most of the plot was just puzzle of elements overused earlier, and quite boring. Not too many unexpected things that happened. Pretty much, the story was predictable. The characters were predictable.
I must say that that "twist" with Hans everyone mentions didn't amuse me at all, especially since I didn't really see the movie needed a villain. Was he added just to keep that "every-Disney-movie-has-a-villain" tradition? I personally think the whole movie would have function fine even without Hans appearing at all. But, fine.
"Make a twist in the movie, so at least something un-predicted happens. And add a villain, no story without villain."
Anna daydreaming about romance the very first time she was supposed to meet people? Okay, I guess that's fine but, some parts (especially with Hans) were really cheesy and pathetic. Come on, sorry, but I can't go off with something like that. True love after first day? Ironically, that often happens in Disney movies but that never looked that pathetic to me before. Probably because usually these relationships are shown as rather natural, but, in Frozen, I just have a feeling that both relationships (with Hans and Kristoff) were way too rushed, and even forced. Just like with Hans, with Kristoff too... we don't see that she even cares for him as a man, and she's totally in love after Hans rejects her? Oh, well.
The movie also had way too many songs (even more than Tangled =O), which don't have any particular worth, lyrics are simple and undeveloped. Don't get me wrong, I'm actually one of those who don't mind songs in movies at all, if they are good. But these were just cheesy, and bad. I do re-listen to them from time to time, since some of them are amusing, but no more depth than that. This doesn't go for Let It Go, I adore that one <3.
The characters' design was also quite un-unique (especially Anna and Hans), and had way too many Tangled elements. Come on, producers, why so lazy? D: Anna looks just like Rapunzel with shorter hair, and Hans... well, another Flynn Rider, just uglier.
Oh, and even though Sven was really cute and everything, he didn't seem to be quite useful character in whole. What was his purpose anyway? Just to "provide comedy" (which he failed)? Or simply because producers decided that having reindeer would be nice (I agree, but...)? Apart from that, I'm sorry to say he felt rather useless. I get that Kristoff needed company blah, blah, but if he was his only friend from childhood, their relationship should have at least been developed better. Plus, I have a feeling that he and (especially) Han's horse were supposed to copy Maximus, which is a huge bite. Again, something they failed to do, Maximus is the one and only <3 (again... Tangled).
And what with Anna and Elsa? When I first heard they are sisters I expected to actually see some develop between at least their relationship (considering, that is the most important one in the movie). But what really happened? They were very close as young, we see them playing, later they part due to Elsa's fear to hurt her, and they re-unite in the end? Touching. Really, it is xD , but that just felt way too rushed... putting some more effort in this very important element in the story was definitely needed. They should have focused on that more, and not on Anna's romances.
Anna's character. Yeah, the main character didn't seem to appeal to me at all. OK, I can be I'm a bit subjective about this, considering we are entirely different, so I can't really understand her but... She just seems a bit of Rapunzel's copy, especially the parts where she runs around, daydreams about going out and meeting people, attacking people with something blah blah. When not like Rapunzel, she's just annoying. The perfect princess who wants to make everything right? Sorry, Anna, but that's not how it goes. She just felt undeveloped to me, Mary Sue-ish even. And I hate Mary Sue-ish characters in general. They are just boring. Did they make her that clumsy and everything, just to make her seem less Mary Sue-ish?
Not to be like I'm a complete hater, they were some stuff I liked... I liked the general story, it's just that I think they didn't develop it quite the way they should have. The idea of Gerda (Anna) and (good) Snow Queen being sisters actually appeals to me, it's just that they did practically nothing to display that sisterhood of theirs, a really crucial part of the story.
I also liked Elsa's character, even though I felt it was rather undeveloped as well, but much less than the rest. She's really beautiful, and her inner struggles are something I can identify with. I generally love grey characters, and she definitely goes to that group. I understand how she feels, having to deal with her greatest fear on daily basis, and plus having to hide who she really is. *hugs Elsa*
Oh, and I loved Olaf XD . He seemed to be much less annoying that most of the comic relief characters from Disney movies, and he was actually entertaining to watch. I love how he daydreams about living during summer, (Yay, Elsa, for letting him too!) and generally he was quite well-developed.
As I already said, I also love Let It Go song, since it really shows the inner state Elsa is in, and is actually really emotional and touching, inspiring even. It has complicated lyrics (unlike the rest) and is sang really well.
And last, but not the least, I love animation of the scenery. Snow, ice, ice palace... congrats to animators for these, that was indeed amazing.
So, yeah, the whole story had some good points, but in general, it was far worse than I expected it to be, especially after reading reviews on the internet, and also after hearing opinions of other MLKers. I guess I just have different taste from the rest XD . I don't really have the will to watch the movie again, even though I probably shall someday, just to remind myself how this was. But I personally saw nothing "worth melting for" in this movie. I liked some elements, but in whole, it was just bad.