REVIEW: Frozen II

Courtesy of Disney

After six excruciating years of waiting, children who drove their parents insane by singing “Let It Go” nonstop and collecting bedrooms full of merchandise finally have a sequel to Disney’s animated blockbuster Frozen. Of course, many of the kids who fell in love the film are in high school now. Others – like my oldest daughter – were toddlers and don’t remember the original experience of seeing it in a theater.

Will Frozen II pack the same magical punch after all this time? Or is the spell broken? From a financial standpoint, there’s no mystery. This follow-up is going to make an insane amount of money. (How much? Odds are quite good that it will be Disney’s sixth movie this year to gross over $1 billion. And the studio still has the latest Star Wars installment opening next month.)

However, when it comes to the film’s quality, the answer’s more complicated. Frozen II isn’t on the level of the original, but I don’t think most people were expecting that. After all, the continuing quality of the Toy Story franchise is the exception, not the rule. That being said, the fact that it’s pretty good and not a total letdown is a small victory.

After a sluggish start and far too much exposition to set up the narrative, things pick up once the gang embarks on their big quest. I won’t get too specific with the “whys” and “hows” to preserve the story’s mysteries, but I was surprised at how returning screenwriter Jennifer Lee (who once again co-directed with Chris Buck) managed to weave the characters’ pasts with their present, throwing in some metaphysical obstacles along the way.

Basically, Frozen II offers insight into the origin of Queen Elsa’s (Idina Menzel) magical powers. The journey kicks off when she begins to hear an eerie sound calling to her from an enchanted forest that has been blocked to the outside world for decades.

For a while, she’s able to resist the voice’s call. But when a combination of events threatens the kingdom of Arendelle, Elsa and her sister Anna (Kristen Bell); ice harvester Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and his reindeer Sven; and adorable snowman Olaf (Josh Gad) set out on a dangerous journey to set things right. Along the way, they meet a few new faces (including a soldier voiced by Sterling K. Brown and indigenous villagers voiced by Martha Plimpton and Jason Ritter), but the focus remains primarily on characters the audience have come to know and love.

The good news is that the returning cast is still fantastic, maintaining the camaraderie that made the original Frozen so special. Bell and Menzel have voices that sound like they were always supposed to be Disney princesses, and they put them to excellent use once again.

The actresses get plenty more opportunities to sing and their chemistry remains the strong foundation upon which these films are built. The bond between Anna and Elsa has been quietly revolutionary for Disney, proving that “true love” isn’t limited to romantic relationships with Prince Charming.

Surprisingly enough, the MVP of Frozen II – in terms of both comedy and pathos – is Olaf. The childlike snowman was mostly a gag the first time around, but the character serves as the audience surrogate here. Like the kids in the audience, he has aged in the time between films, growing more mature and asking questions about complex subjects that don’t have easy answers. As such, Gad’s commendable performance has subtly changed to match Olaf’s evolution.

Unfortunately, aside from a crowd-pleasing sequence, Kristoff is the odd man out. He’s essentially there to pine for Anna, which is a mixed bag. On one hand, it’s great that Anna isn’t a damsel in distress relying on Kristoff to come save the say. On the other hand, the film is squandering Groff, who’s a terrific performer. Oh, well – at least the script gives him an amusing song to show off his range. He didn’t get that in the first one.

Speaking of songs, they’re the most disappointing aspect of Frozen II, weirdly enough. They’re not awful by any stretch of the imagination – returning songwriters Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez craft complex melodies with emotionally resonant themes. But none of them are particularly memorable, even though there are more in this installment.

When Elsa belted out “Let It Go” while building her ice palace, audiences cheered and brushed away tears. Oscar prognosticators basically declared that year’s Best Song category unnecessary. There was no question that it was an instant classic. I get that it’s hard to make lightning strike twice creatively, but I was struggling to remember these tunes a short time later in the parking lot.

Finally, I admired Frozen II going to some dark places narratively, but it ultimately lacks the courage of its convictions. There’s a sense of inevitability to the proceedings, but it pulls its punches right when the story could’ve ended on a downbeat, yet appropriate ending. I guess that’s not an option when Disney still needs to sell billions of dollars in merchandise.

On the other hand, the animation is gorgeous, and I appreciated that there’s not a traditional villain. Instead, the “antagonists” are the more relatable fears of the future and changing your worldview when presented with painful new information. So, for every misstep, there’s another creatively interesting decision that balances things out.

I’m almost certain kids will love Frozen II and want to see it repeatedly. I’m just not sure if parents and other adults will be drawn in as much as before. Considering the insane amount of money it’s guaranteed to make, however, there’s a good chance we’ll be talking about the possibility of a Frozen III within the next few years.

Frozen II is rated PG for action/peril and some thematic elements.

Grade: B