Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee

Screenplay by Jennifer Lee

Starring Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad

Frozen 2…didn’t…suck? I’m…shocked?! I thought for sure this would be a disastrous sequel, but instead it’s just sort of okay? I think I may even like it, somehow. It’s about the same as the first movie, harmless and with a younger audience in mind. But this time the movie runs a bit darker at times, and has some good memorable songs, and is heavily carried by some mindblowingly beautiful animation. The problems arise in its less than eventful story, but even at that cost, it’s always wonderful to look at.

The first Frozen was okay to me as well, I didn’t mind watching it in theaters back in 2013. Didn’t love it, but I understood it was a harmless movie with a positive message for younger girls about sisterly love. You know the filmmakers have no control over what happens to their movie once its released, and no one could have foreseen the sensation it became. After a while I had heard variations of Let it go so many times I never really thought that well of the movie again. How could I? It had morphed into something else entirely.

Now, 6 years later comes Frozen 2. I didn’t care it was being made, didn’t care for the trailers either. At some point I had forgot it was even coming out this year. But against my better judgement I went to see it tonight. I gotta tell you watching these movies as a grown man I have to try and salvage the good I can. I am not the target demographic, these movies generally are not made for me. But if they are made well enough, they can be for anyone. At least I can see what the filmmakers were trying to do this time around and where they were going. I don’t know if it’s going to work for a lot of people. I can just speak what I took away from it, but I must confess a light affection for the film. I enjoyed more than I didn’t, and maybe that’s the highest praise I could give it.

The movie opens with chanting like the first one did, but it’s slightly different this time. It shows Anna and Elsa playing with snowmen that Elsa swirls up when they are kids. We are back in the past. Their parents are there and alive at this point in time, and the father tells them a bedtime story (a true one) about an enchanted forest he knew about when he was younger. It features their grandfather, the King at the time, and his partnership with an indigenous tribe in the region north of their kingdom. He has a dam built as a token of unionship between the two peoples. Also this is where the enchanted forest is. Also there is magic here that the tribe can use.

But right in the middle of celebration, the Arendelle soldiers are attacked by the tribe, the grandfather is killed, the magical spirits of earth, wind, fire, and water trap the people in a misty wall. Only Elsa and Anna’s father is saved by a mysterious person.

Now we’re back in the bedroom. Their mother sings them an old song that contains clues about a magical river. I suppose. I want to point out that we are 10 minutes into this movie and we’ve had two kids playing with snowmen, a bedtime story, and a lullaby and I haven’t cringed once. In fact this is where my skepticism about the movie’s quality started to vanish. That’s a good sign.

The song transitions slowly to the opening title (and a subtly powerful opening it is) and the camera whisks around the trees and waters of the kingdom before landing on present day Elsa. Now it’s 3 years after the events of the first movie (had to wiki that). The whole gang is there, Anna, Elsa, Sven, Kristoff and Olaf of course. Your final takeaway from the movie will be contingent on how you feel about Olaf. For as the fan favorite of the first movie, he is now given way more screen time. The goofy snowman never bothered me so much, and this time around he did make me laugh at times, but kept me quiet at others. I never cringed at him either though. Sometimes he’d make a joke and I would just be stoic. Other times I did laugh out loud tho. I dunno what I’m trying to convey with this.

Kristoff wants to marry Anna. He spends most of the runtime trying to find the right way to propose to her. Sure, why not. Sven helps him out, as all reindeer companions do.

The plot has to kick in sometime. Elsa starts hearing the same song their mother sang to them as kids, that lullaby from the intro. She is the only one who can hear it. After the second or third time of hearing it, the annoying little kid sitting behind me loudly said, “how come only she can hear it”. I laughed so hard I cried.

It distracts Elsa. She can’t keep her mind off it. It leads her to unknowingly awakening those elemental spirits. The wind, first, which wreaks havoc on the kingdom, forcing an evacuation. So the trolls come back, yes the trolls from the first one, to tell Elsa she must find out the past of the kingdom. Now she knows she has to find the source of the singing voice, it may lead her to more answers about herself as well. Anna, Sven, Kristoff and Olaf demand to tag along.

They find the enchanted forest, and the misty magic trapping everyone inside. They discover both the older Arendelle soldiers, and the indigenous tribes, who are still fighting amongst each other. Olaf breaks up the battle with a one man recap of the story of the first movie, which leads to the movie’s funniest moment.

From here on out the story more or less goes where you think it will. But is so gorgeously told that I don’t care if it’s a little predictable. I liked Elsa venturing on her own to the dangerous Ahtohallan, and her ridiculous battle with a mystical water horse won me over, even though it had me question the extent of her powers. Some of this shit is mythic, even in the framework of a animated Disney movie. And did I mention this animation is fucking amazing?

There are great moments in Frozen 2. There are a few good and catchy songs that will be remembered. A couple will be forgotten, like Kristoff’s solo with Sven and the other reindeer. Seriously, what the fuck was that shit? Dead on arrival. It’s the exact moment the movie starts to decline a bit, but it does pick up again later on.

But the characters moments, few as they are, are what tilt my favor on a movie like this. It’s also just so damn pretty to look at. And the music is really good/harmless (mostly). And Olaf is not as annoying as I thought he might be with that much time onscreen. And one moment where I almost broke into tears. I am not fucking joking. I wanted to turn around and make sure the kids in my theater were okay. Truly, in that moment, was this a movie for kids? It shattered me how effective it was. Like what the fucking shit I almost cried in Frozen 2!!!

But yeah. I can understand people’s dislike for it overall. the story is just not that thrilling. There is no villain, and truth of the past is what you can see coming, although it is touching in execution. Another positive message with uplifting spirits. And you know I loved who the mystery savior for their father ended up being. If it aint broke dont fix it.

So look. This movie is okay. Just like the first one is okay. But this one is much better animated, with some jaw dropping visuals constantly, and not many cringe moments that make you want to dive through the screen (except Krsitoff’s song. fuck that). And how touching it is when we learn that the chanting from the beginning of both films is of the indigenous tribe. Or did we already know that from the first one? Nevermind. So go see if it if you were planning to. And take your kids if you’ve got em cause they will love it. People complaining about this movie like they don’t know it could have been so much worse. It could have been Aquaman. And then I would quit going to the movies forever.

Frozen 2 is about on par with the first Frozen. But its incredible visual mastery may push it over to be more likeable, it’s just something you could watch over and over to marvel at. The characters end up in debatable places in the end, but really, who cares? I leave only with whenever Frozen 3 comes out they focus a bit more on expanding the future story now that we know the origins.