Review: ‘Frozen 2’ may melt kids’ hearts, but not adults’

By George Haerle

For Grays Harbor News Group

While the box office numbers have already proved “Frozen 2” is raking in all the money, how much you’ll like it might depend on your age. The sequel to one of Disney’s biggest animated hits of this decade seems particularly tailored more to kids than anybody — even more so than its predecessor.

The visuals and animation are incredible, and the voice work by Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad (Elsa, Anna, Kristoff and Olaf, respectively) is just as good as the first. But those of us who are used to such great Disney animated movies as “Moana” and the first “Frozen” might be underwhelmed.

First off, the musical numbers are downright forgettable. They’re well sung and executed, but they don’t have a drop of the catchiness of the original movie, which had a soundtrack I couldn’t get out of my head for a year even if I wanted to. I remembered maybe one song after leaving the theater last weekend, and even then it hasn’t quite stuck.

Second, the fun is far more childish and geared toward the little ones this time. The kind of humor adults might have enjoyed watching the first film isn’t nearly as prevalent, and the stakes in this movie compared to the first seem to pack little to no punch, with the complete lack of any real antagonist.

These two significant components, combined with little to no tension or sense of danger to our heroes, starts to become a bit obvious in its reasoning as the movie reaches its third act. Disney and the directors knew there was a built-in audience for “Frozen” after its huge success, and knew they wouldn’t have to try nearly as hard.

And while the storyline involving an enchanted forest and elemental spirits is a decent fairytale, there are all sorts of gaps in plot and explanation for various events, with the vague assumption that Elsa’s magic is the cause and solution to these different situations.

There is a whole subplot involving five elemental spirits, with the fifth one being hidden. The introduction to these spirits comes up suddenly and is never really explained. And this isn’t the only time something like this happens, so either some significant half-measures were taken in this movie’s creation, or there is some deleted footage that would help it a lot more.

“Frozen 2” isn’t a bad movie by any means. It will entertain you more than likely; just don’t expect anything nearly as good as other things Disney has put out in recent memory. This sequel is about on par with “Wreck It Ralph 2” if you are an adult — a decent watch, but only a single viewing will ever be needed and most probably forgotten.

Still, the reaction from families and children last weekend at the local cinema show that none of these criticisms will matter. The kids loved this movie as it is filled with a decent dose of wonder and embraces a beautiful fairytale aesthetic that is quite visually appealing.

It’s just that when you’ve received so many instant classics from Disney Animation Studios and Pixar combined, a B-grade sequel to one of them might not cut it for us avid Disney nerds.

* * *

“Frozen 2” is currently playing at the Riverside Cinemas, 1017 S. Boone St. in Aberdeen.

George Haerle holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing for media and lives in Cosmopolis.