Frozen review on the podcast

disneyworldsk

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jul 10, 2014
I would like to agree here with Kathy. While the men's views are valid, it is Kathy who honed in on the real review, that of children's responses in the theater . I too noticed children's responses in my theater during the movie as did Kathy and can concur with her views. I heard very loud crying during a couple of sensitive scenes involving olaf and I truly believe children were coming to not see Anna and Elsa, but wanting to laugh hard at Olaf. It was like they were craving the laughing scenes with him and anything else was a distraction and/or too intense. I think disney needs to create an Olaf movie with comedy, because that's what the children were very much searching for throughout. It was too intense for small children in many scenes. And really that's who the target audience is, small children. (spoiler)...My 16 year old said in his many commentaries: i thought it's about sisters and their love for each other and they don't have to get married or have a prince but in this one the ending took an original princess turn. Lots of mixed messages and intensity and confusing plot lines for sure. Children will not be singing any songs from this movie either when they leave the theater.
Saw three movies over the holiday wknd and while i enjoyed frozen, it was my least favorite of the wknd.
 
First, that’s your Interpretation. I just don’t think it was a good movie, and I don’t think kids would enjoy an entire Olaf slapstick film.

He’s good in segments and breaks up the narrative - kids loved frozen one and his limited antics as well.

Also I’m not sure it took an original princess ending...? Women are allowed to get married and have princes. These are two of the most headstrong characters Disney has producex for girls.
 
My 16 year old said in his many commentaries: i thought it's about sisters and their love for each other and they don't have to get married or have a prince but in this one the ending took an original princess turn. Lots of mixed messages and intensity and confusing plot lines for sure. Children will not be singing any songs from this movie either when they leave the theater.
Saw three movies over the holiday wknd and while i enjoyed frozen, it was my least favorite of the wknd.
The sisters were still very much a strong message in this film. Anna never wanted to let Elsa go through the hard stuff alone. It also wasn't easy for Anna to let Elsa stay back.
 


I don't think that you need to remove the intensity of the movie for kids. Often, I find that adults believe children to have much lower emotional intelligence than they really possess. Mr. Rogers said it better than I ever could:

"The world is not always a kind place. That’s something all children learn for themselves, whether we want them to or not, but it’s something they really need our help to understand."

Frozen 2 can teach children many things about how to treat others & themselves and what to do when you don't know what to do. I thought the songs were fantastic and that the plot was great.
 
It’s interesting to see how polarizing this one was. Personally I loved it, even though I hated the first one to the point that it’s my least favorite of the entire animated canon. Tbh I was ready to skip this one because of that until I read an article about Disney wanting to do better with it re: representation issues. I like to put my money where my mouth is when it comes to that because it’s important to me, so I checked it out, and I’m glad I did. It wasn’t a perfect movie, but I enjoyed it and thought it had a positive message. I also liked the music much more in this one (the whole Show Yourself sequence was amazing imo).
 
I think Kathy had some valid points but I think it depends on the individual child (though good for parents to consider vs just assuming it is all silly fun)

I have 3 kids, my 5 year old daughter got scared at parts and a chunk of it was a bit too intense for it. My older two (son is 7 and older daughter is 10) loved it. Also, my oldest spent the weekend singing "Into the Unknown" so I think the songs can impact people in this one too
 


I wouldn't call the first Frozen "fun." Maybe it had a couple of cuter moments, but certainly the tone is more dramatic vs. comedic.

I actually thought the comedy was amped up in Frozen II. They really let Josh Gad go wild. I thought it was right on the edge. Any more and it would've seemed strange and thrown everything off balance. The point in the post above about why the Minions movie didn't work is a smart one. An Olaf only movie is too much and wouldn't work.

I enjoyed Frozen II even though I didn't think it was very good. All of the conflict was manufactured. It didn't feel necessary or natural. There was a lot of rehashing of themes from the first film, despite the discussion saying there wasn't on the podcast. And the music overall just wasn't as memorable.
 
I sat next to an almost 5 year old (my kid) who forced himself to stay awake just to watch the whole movie (we went during nap time bc I'm a moron). This same kid passed out HARD during the Lion King reboot. Literally said "i'm bored" and when I suggested that he go to sleep, did.
I think it's a weird thing to suggest that a kids movie be reduced to only laughing parts. Who does that serve? Do you feel less uncomfortable if it's all laughs?
The majority of Disney movies contain heavy topics - and I don't think that's a bad thing.
I thought Coco was more problematic (just in the sense of me having to perpetually explain the concepts of death and afterlife to a child - i love the movie and we watch it often), but it may not have been so blatant because - bright colors.
I thought it was pretty good - my son loved it.
 
We brought our 2.5 year old to Frozen 2 for her first movie theater experience because she looooooves Frozen. I was fully prepared for her to get restless and I’d have to take her out. Nope. She sat there, transfixed, the entire film. She uttered “Wow” several times. My 9 year old daughter who has seen Frozen 100 times and was obsessed with it when it came out also really liked it. They both love the soundtrack and make me play it all the time (mostly “Into the Unknown,” “When I’m Older” and “Some Things Never Change.” )
I thought it was really good but it was pretty dark when (spoiler) Olaf melted and that song Anna sings at that time is depressing and not at all singable.
The animation is gorgeous—-the water horse, the Into the Unknown scene—-stunning!
Elsa is quite the bad *** in this film, she really surges forward and takes charge. Quite the change from hiding scared in her room wearing gloves.
Kristoff is supportive and loves Anna but is definitely the background to Anna’s foreground and that’s ok! I do like he got a real song to sing in this one!
My girls love princesses, even Snow White and Cinderella, and while I do too, I do like that there’s Anna and Elsa (Rapunzel too!) that take charge and don’t need a man to save them.
 
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I completely disagreed with Kathy’s take.

My 4 year old daughter and 3 year old son LOVED it. We saw it on Saturday opening weekend and my daughter asked to see it again. I was quick to say yes (I LOVED it) and I saw it again with her over Thanksgiving. She sat through it twice! And she’d do it again, but now she has to wait until we can watch it at home :)

Completely disagree about the soundtrack. We have been blasting the soundtrack nonstop in our house and car since we saw it - at my kids’ request. They don’t ask to skip any songs and have pretty much learned the words to them all.

I think it is visually stunning. A beautiful balance of drama, emotion and humor. And to me, Olaf was even funnier than in the first one.

The sweeping generalization of “the kids won’t/don’t like it” is funny to me. Mine absolutely loved it, and the many kids in the theater for both showings we went to seemed really into it too 🤷‍♀️
 
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My 6 yr old daughter loved Frozen 2. She is still singing the songs.
In the cinema, there were definitely some children who were upset at some of the more sensitive Olaf scenes, but, actually, Olaf provided a point of connection and, generally, some good balance and lightness.
I found it better, story wise than the first one (but I do admit this might be because I hadn't seen it 4 million times)
And, my 13 yo son, who was only there so as not to miss out, said it was much better than he thought it was going to be, so, high praise indeed.
 
I don't have kids myself but I thought it was quite brave in tackling mental health issues head on instead of skirting around them. I did find some parts uncomfortably sad and a little close to home but you could imagine the message of keep going and do the next right thing being very important to anyone but especially kids who don't have a support network.
 
I didn't care for it upon initial viewing, but I think it might be one of those movies that I like better upon a second watch.

I did like it better than "Toy Story 4", which I thought was an unnecessary mess.

Also, I tried to sing "Into the Unknown" on the way home from the movie and I lost my voice and threw my back out.

This has been "King Llama On Cinema".
 
I forgot to mention this is in my post from yesterday, but I also disagree with the idea that everyone went into it expecting the same kind of movie as the first. Every preview, trailer and ad showed that Frozen 2 would be different, heavier and darker. I actually found Frozen 2 to be more in the spirit of the first than I was expecting based on the promotion of it.

I was very pleased with how they balanced the heavier themes with the lightness and humor. And as I said in my previous post, my kids (3 & 4) absolutely loved it - they’re requesting the soundtrack nonstop around here.
 
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I forgot to mention this is in my post from yesterday, but I also disagree with the idea that everyone went into it expecting the same kind of movie as the first. Every preview, trailer and ad showed that Frozen 2 would be different, heavier and darker. I actually found Frozen 2 to be more in the spirit of the first than I was expecting based on the promotion of it.

I was very pleased with how they balanced the heavier themes with the lightness and humor. And as I said in my previous post, my kids (3 & 4) absolutely loved it - they’re requesting the soundtrack nonstop around here.
the speaker in my laptop failed (The guy at Apple saved me £150 repair bill though, so yay for that) so, since, at the time, I had no idea how long it would take to fix, and I couldn't bear to listen to my speakers mangle it on YouTube, I had to buy the soundtrack for my daughter. She is, at least singing a lot more of the words than she was...
 
I'm not a child - I wasn't even when the first came out - and
It was really just a story of people walking in the woods. The entire moral of #1 was 'people will love you the way you are so don't isolate yourself' is completely thrown out.

The music is much, much better than #1.
 
We brought our twins to Frozen 2 as their first movie theater experience and they ADORED this movie. We are now dealing with the issue of being able to watch it daily at home, but that's another issue completely. They belly laughed at Olaf to the point I was in tears from laughing myself. I was fully prepared to have to leave with my son, thinking parts may be startling, but both were completely engaged. Every child is different, but this movie was an immediate crowd favorite. And my kiddos love singing Into the Unknown, and I am full on obsessed with Panic at the Disco's version - so no real issue on my end to letting them listen to this on repeat.

There were some really touching moments in this movie that I am so happy were included; the discussion between Anna and Elsa where Anna clearly told Elsa she didn't want to hold her back from becoming whatever she needed to become, but that Anna simply wanted to be there to support her (tears.). When Kristoff scoops up Anna but rather than full on rescuing her says, "What do you need from me?" (Swoon.) I also adored Olaf's curiosity. I love that this movie allowed the characters to evolve and grow, and to do so together. I am ok with that as a happy ending. And really ok with my kids learning from their idols that you can support one another in following your dreams. I was nervous going into the second film only because my kids fell so hard for the first one, but Disney got it right.
 
I took my boys to see Frozen 2 last Monday. We all enjoyed it. I know I liked it more than my boys did. The message really hit home with me. I BAWLED! My 6 year old was sitting on my lap for the entire movie. As I started sniffing he kept looking behind at me. Finally my 8 year old leans over and whispers, "Are you crying?!" 😱 Me, "Yes!" and the sobs continued. They all awkwardly gave me a pat to tell me it was ok. :lmao:I am driving the boys crazy listening to the soundtrack. LOL
 

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