'Frozen-mania: how Elsa, Anna and Olaf conquered the world' the guardian article

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/may/13/frozen-mania-elsa-anna-olaf-disney-emo-princess-let-it-go

24/10/2017

'Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Frozen has grossed almost $1.2bn worldwide. It has won Oscars for best song and best animated feature' 

'Margita Thompson from Disney Consumer Products says in her defence: "Frozen is a global phenomenon that has truly exceeded expectations on every level," ' (selling merch) 

'Variety called it "longer on striking visuals than on truly engaging or memorable characters". 

'The Onion AV Club overdosed on faint praise: "Frozen isn't quite as accomplished as The Princess and the Frog, Wreck-It Ralph, or Tangled. But in its simple pleasures, it's every bit as enjoyable as Winnie The Pooh."' 

'the New York Daily News critic complained: "What's crucially missing, however, is a hissable villain. Nor are there any memorable tunes."'  

'To complain that there isn't a clear-cut villain is to miss the innovation that makes Frozen so fresh and resonant. The villains aren't people but emotions: fear and shame.' 

'"Up until then, Elsa was pretty much a straightforward villain," said Lee. "After that, she was much more complex, more interesting and sympathetic."' 

'In plot terms, we know that Elsa is deluded when she sings Let It Go. Her explosive liberation comes at the cost of lifelong solitude and, not that she realises it yet, eternal winter for her kingdom. But the song is so good at conveying the rush of reckless self-empowerment that it suspends our knowledge of the dire consequences for a few minutes. To Anderson-Lopez, the message of the song is: "Screw fear and shame, be yourself, be powerful."'  

'Within the constraints of big-eyed, wasp-waisted princesses and the need for old-fashioned charm, Frozen is progressive in a surprising number of ways. Playing with the viewer's assumptions, it mocks the idea of love at first sight and the magical powers of "true love's kiss", making the handsome prince a "sociopathic" fraud and good-natured Kristoff a helper rather than a hero. It passes the Bechdel Test by having scenes in which women talk to each other about something other than men. Its men are either devious or daft while its women are outspoken and powerful. With so many female-friendly innovations, you suspect that the role of comic-relief snowman Olaf was deliberately overstated in the first trailer so as to lure boys in as well.' 

'part of a long overdue shift addressed by Cate Blanchett at the Oscars when she taunted "those of us in the industry who are still foolishly clinging to the idea that female films with women at the centre are niche experiences. They're not. Audiences want to see them, and in fact, they earn money." '

'They're being swept up in an obsession that, echoing my own childhood fixations, feels both communal and deeply personal. Better still, the object of the obsession has powerful things to say about sisterhood, storytelling, adolescence and female autonomy.' (children)