Posted April 3, 2014
By ASHLEY MCBRIDE
Disney has once again produced a quality film that is sure to capture its audiences with a tale of magic, family, music and a hint of romance.
“Frozen,” Disney’s newest animated film, hit theaters in November and has since earned many accolades and nominations, as well as broken a few records.
Adapted from a tale called “The Snow Queen” written by Hans Christian Andersen, “Frozen” tells the story of two sisters, Elsa and Anna, growing up as princesses of the Kingdom of Arendelle, in what seems to be a Nordic country in Europe, at some time in the past.
Elsa, the eldest, was born with the ability to produce ice and snow from her hands and she can freeze things with her touch. the story opens with a song, sung by men mining ice and, although the lyrics seem inconsequential, they do have some foreshadowing elements.
During the opening scenes, there are also views of Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights, which further confirms that the story takes place in a northern area. We then make our way to Anna and Elsa’s castle, where they live with their parents, and the girls are very young.
Anna loves playing in the snow created by her sister, so the girls wake up one morning to use their palace as a snow playground. At one point, Elsa accidentally shoots Anna in the head with an icicle and she is hurt badly. The king and queen take their daughters to the forest, where they meet trolls who camouflage themselves as rocks, and they are also capable of magic. the elder troll is able to cure Anna, but emphasizes the fact that if she had been hit in the heart, he wouldn’t have been able to save her.
From that point on, Elsa hides her powers from everyone, until her coronation day when she is crowned king o the kingdom and tragedy strikes. Elsa runs away from the kingdom and Anna leaves to find her and bring her back, which is where the adventure begins.
Throughout Anna’s quest to retrieve her sister, she meets some characters who play important roles in trying to win back Elsa, the kingdom of Arendelle and Anna as well, but not without a necessary amount of music and songs along the way “Frozen” is a classic tale of love and good triumphing over evil intentions and shady characters.
Although it was released in November, “Frozen” is still in theaters. it has grossed more than $980 million worldwide to date, and is racking up the accolades during award season. Most notably, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, better known as the Oscars, have nominated “Frozen” for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year and Best Music, Original Song.
It has also won a British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) for Best Animated Film and a Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature Film, among many others. In addition, the soundtrack to “Frozen” has been atop the Billboard 200 list longer than any other movie soundtrack since “Titanic” 16 years ago.
It does share some common ground with “The Snow Queen,” but the two are loosely similar. “The Snow Queen” has heavy Christian religious overtones, which are not found in “Frozen.” However, the creators of “Frozen” do pay homage to Andersen, with four characters’ names that represent the famed poet: Hans, Kristoff, Anna and Sven. But, do not let these names fool you into assuming what qualities the characters themselves hold.
Disney has been making waves with this film and even integrated it into the company’s newest app, “Disney Movies Anywhere.” As of late the app is only available for iOS devices, but it allows users to purchase Disney, Pixar and Marvel films through iTunes for $19.99 each. With the new app, “Frozen” is currently available for purchase and download while it is still in theaters, which is new territory for Disney.