Now that the dust has finally settled on Frozen (2013) - just in time for Maleficent (2014) too! - I feel that I can finally comment on what is now the most successful Disney Animation Studios film to date. Usually I would have reviewed a Disney film when it came out, but I lost track of time and the movie became a cross generational phenomenon with Oscars, songs on the Billboard charts, and birthday parites/proms galore. So really, I got off easy and now is as good a time as any to comment. This might not be so much of a review or a critique, but more of a straight up reflection; plus, I feel like I should say something!
First of all, is Frozen the best DAS film to date? No, but it is one of the best. Did it deserve the Oscar for Best Animated Feature film? I don't know, I haven't seen The Wind Rises (2013) (and Prof P says that one was better); however, I do feel that Frozen winning big is sort of like Scorsese winning big with The Departed (2006) in that the film almost needed to win to celebrate a larger previous body of work. What I mean is that the DAS had it coming now that its third renaissance has come full circle. And honestly, Brave (2012) beating out Wreck-It Ralph (2012) in last year's Oscars was total bullcrap. But this leads me to the point that DAS has truly progressed and produced some excellent work since they reemerged in 2009 with The Princess and the Frog. Indeed, that film exemplifies the mandate that DAS set out to achieve, which is to push Disney classicism into the zeitgeist. And while they have excelled critically with each film since, Frozen represent the studio finally breaking through to the masses and striking cultural pay dirt. Not surprisingly, Frozen also represents the ideal summation of the recent tactics used across these DAS films of the previous four years. The Princess and the Frog and Tangled (2010) were both classicist Disney princess films filtered through the modern feminist suggestion so often leveled against the princess films of Disney's golden age and even the late 1980's second coming. Conversely, Winnie the Pooh (2011) and Wreck-It Ralph were more about pure Disney progression and experimentation, respectively. Put it together and what do you get? Frozen and massive success.
Frozen is an anti-princess tale, not only because there is no prince, but also because there is no need for a prince. Despite The Princess and the Frog's racial milestone, there is still a prince; despite Tangled having no prince, there is a need for a prince and we essentially get one. Frozen counters this by only suggesting the need for a prince, instead of using the character trope as mere misdirection. The prince is a red herring slapping the face of classic Disney, and it works so well. Therefore, with the subtext of virginity lost all but erased, the film is an ensemble journey and visual spectacle a la Pooh and Ralph. This is why Frozen is now more successful than The Lion King (1994). The film has everything Disney and yet is nothing like what we have seen before in the DAS canon, but what's important is that it still feels like Disney (almost more so than ever).
All in all, Disney has another big one in the can, and Frozen is already The Lion King of its generation and the most successful animated film to date, but DAS has been building up to this point after returning from the dead... again. It will certainly be interesting to see if the studio can sustain this kind of success and influence in the wake of Frozen; Big Hero 6 is next on the docket and is slated for a fall release this year. Regardless, Frozen has put DAS back on top, and deservedly so. And while I'm sure we'll feel its presence for years to come, I'd personally rather here "Let it Go" over a Nickelback song any day.
- McS
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