Review: Disney's Frozen Mini Movie Marathon (Thanksgiving Special)
Welcome back everyone! We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with good foods, good people, and good movies!
We interrupted our Disnerd Movie Challenge last week for a mini Frozen marathon in honor of Frozen 2 arriving in theaters. We watched Frozen, Frozen Fever (not on Disney+, but well worth the digital download from Amazon), Olaf’s Frozen Adventure, and finally Frozen 2!!!
Now we hope all you fellow Disnerds have had the chance to see Frozen 2 by now, but just in case, we’ll refrain from anything too spoiler-y in our mini review. We assume you’ve seen Frozen, though, so fair warning - there are spoilers ahead!
A Quick Review of Frozen
Those of you who have read our bios already know that Frozen ranks in both our definitive top 3 favorite Disney movies of all time. Why, do you ask? Here’s a quick rundown of our reasons:
Kevin’s Thoughts
This is still a favorite after six years, and I doubt that I’ll be getting sick of it anytime soon. The story isn’t perfect by any means, but taking it and combining it with the gorgeous visuals, great animation, and catchy music and we have a very solid film in the Disney franchise.
Some of my favorite lyrics are “You” “and I” “were just meant to be.” Once you realize that Hans is referring to Anna, and then Anna refers to herself, it actually points to the fact the relationship is one-sided. Pretty clever, I think. It’s not the only example of clever writing, but considering this story almost fooled me into thinking Anna and Hans were going to be a legit couple, I didn’t foresee Hans’ true nature. I know some weren’t fans of that twist, but I actually enjoyed it very much.
Although one of the highlights of the film is on the sisterly bond between Anna and Elsa, I’m a bit of a sucker for romance, especially if its dorky, and it’s why Anna and Kristoff are among my favorite Disney couples.
Megan’s Thoughts
The music is amazing! I never get tired of it! Even people who’ve been burned by the constant replay of “Let It Go” have to admit that there is something truly inspiring and empowering about that song.
It passes the Bechdel test! While Anna and Elsa do have their moments where they talk about the boys in the film, not every conversation they have revolves around the guys. Of course, I would still like to see more female characters (for such a girl-power movie it is somewhat surprisingly short on female cast members when you pull the whole ensemble together…).
It has so much heart and so many layers to it that I can watch it again and again and find something new. For example, next time you watch, pay attention to the ways characters do or don’t touch each other. It says so much! Like how Elsa never touches Anna after their childhood accident…until Anna is frozen solid, and subsequently brought back to life, at which point the two seem to never stop hugging each other.
The Verdict
We both agree!
Kevin: 10
Megan: 10
Final score: 10 out of 10, would watch again…and again…and again…and again…
A Quick Review of Frozen Fever
Megan’s Thoughts
I love the music team that created the music of Frozen, but as with every creative endeavor, not every song you make is going to be a knockout. That’s kind of how I feel about the song in Frozen Fever. It has moments where it’s catchy and I’m on board…and then it has moments where it’s just okay.
I think the story concept is cute, and it’s a sweet little vignette of what life looks like for these characters after the events of Frozen. I love seeing the sisters reconnect, and watching the subtle milestone in Anna and Kristoff’s relationship as Kristoff belts out “I love you, baby!”
Kevin’s Thoughts
This is a fun little short. Anna and Elsa’s relationship here is sweet, and how everyone acts trying to put together a great birthday for Anna is both hilarious and adorable. On the whole, however, I’ve only seen this a couple of times and it’s nothing I really need to see again.
The Verdict
Megan: 7
Kevin: 6
Final score: 6.5
A Quick Review of Olaf’s Frozen Adventure
While everyone else in the movie theater seemed to be annoyed at the length of this “short” which debuted before Coco, we were perfectly happy to watch it (for the second time, since we’d seen a private screening of it days prior). Here’s a few reasons why:
Kevin’s Thoughts
So, honestly, I do get why people were put off by the length of the short. I think this would have suited better as a made-for-tv Christmas special, but I digress. This beats out Frozen Fever for me for sure. Megan and I share a love for “The Ballad of Flemmingrad.”
Even though Olaf is the central character, looking back on it now there are moments where you can see how they were setting up Anna and Elsa for the sequel. The writers could easily have kept all of that separate, but I appreciate the route they took since it helps expand the whole story even further.
Megan’s Thoughts
Not gonna lie, this soundtrack was on repeat for me for all of December last year, so I was totally singing along as we watched. I love how the music captures that feeling of traditional Christmas songs while also making something totally new. Also, “The Ballad of Flemmingrad” is hilarious!
I love that the story focuses on holiday traditions, and even pokes fun at some of them (“Breaking and entering? Okay on Christmas!”). I did notice in this viewing, though, that while the traditions are varied, the nationality of the villagers is…not. Perhaps the animators were trying to stay true to the nationalities that live in Norway? Still, this feels like a missed opportunity to add just a tad more diversity.
The Verdict
We agree again!
Kevin: 8
Megan: 8
Final score: 8
A Quick Review of Frozen 2
We both agree that we definitely have to go see this again while it’s still in theaters—it was that good! Here’s a few of our thoughts on just the first viewing:
Megan’s Thoughts
Without giving too much away, I just have to say “wow” at the level of emotional depth the writers and animators went to in this film. I don’t think I’ve seen a children’s film tackle such very real emotions in such a direct way before. One of my first creative writing professors in college once told me that kids are capable of handling more darkness than we give them credit for. Props to the Disney team for recognizing that and having the courage to go there and demonstrate how to handle those emotions with courage.
There may not be a “Let It Go” equivalent on this soundtrack, but that hasn’t stopped me from listening to the deluxe soundtrack on repeat ever since I saw the movie!
It passes the Bechdel test! And without spoiling anything, I appreciate the way they handled the development of Anna and Kristoff’s relationship.
Kevin’s Thoughts
As I said, I’m a sucker for dorky romance, and this movie satisfied my Kristanna shipper heart.
This isn’t a spoiler because it was already in the trailers and doesn’t reveal anything, but there’s this one wide angle shot with the North Mountain and Elsa’s ice castle in the background that is just breathtakingly beautiful. Heck, the visuals throughout this film are fantastic to look at.
I want to see this again in theaters in order to figure out my full thoughts. Unlike the original Frozen, I was not immediately blown away by the end of this. My initial thoughts are that I think the story is better than the first, but the music is not up to par. Still, that hasn’t stopped me from listening to the soundtrack over and over.
The Verdict:
Megan: 10
Kevin: 9
Final score: 9.5
Did you participate in our mini marathon? Did you see Frozen 2? Share your thoughts in the comments!
