Note: This article is the con position of a point-counterpoint. To read Mateo Flores’s pro position, click here.
Disney’s Frozen is one of the greatest animated films of 2013. The well-developed characters, perfectly detailed scenery, powerful musical numbers and strong storyline make it a film that anyone can enjoy. Not only does it have that classic Disney film touch, but it’s also very unique in its story. Queen Elsa, one of the main characters, has special powers where she can make snow and ice with the flick of her hand. Anna, her sister, has to go after her when Elsa accidentally brings a permanent winter upon their kingdom of Arendelle. A prince, Hans, and an ice-seller, Kristoff, are both potential suitors for Anna.
At the end of the film, Elsa’s true love for Anna unfreezes her sister’s frozen heart. This new twist on Disney classics make the film so much more lovable. Yes, there is a happily-ever-after couple, but the climax is sparked by sisterly love, which is totally new. There are two comedic characters who lighten the mood, but in a modern and hysterical way. Plus, it’s impossible not to love Olaf. His innocence and naïveté make the storyline much more cheerful.
Which brings me to my next point. Disney confirmed that Elsa, throughout the film, is actually a metaphor for depression. She feels helpless, as though no one cares about her. She loses interest in her daily life, especially in building a snowman with Anna, and pushes everyone away, from her family to her whole kingdom. These are all symptoms of depression, and it’s a very new take on character development for Disney. I thought Elsa was the most interesting character, but without Anna, Frozen would be incomplete. She is crucial in the storyline, because it is the injury to her head by Elsa’s ice that makes her older sister conceal her powers. Additionally, if it weren’t for her short relationship with Prince Hans, he wouldn’t try to kill her, and hence Elsa wouldn’t figure out the secret to defrosting Arendelle. Disney knows how to put the characters together in such a way that without one another, the film would be meaningless. It’s true that there has been a lot of excitement over it for the past seven months, but it has died down just as any film’s does over time.
People tend to react negatively to popular pieces of pop culture simply because lots of people like them. There is no reason to start criticizing the movie as a whole just because it’s been popular for so long. Some exasperated critics see Frozen as akin to an overexposed song that comes on the radio more times than they’d like (“Happy” by Pharrell Williams, I’m looking at you). The way I see it, Frozen is a movie to be watched at your own leisureand liked by your own standards. I doubt that fans will be ready to “let it go” anytime soon.
