Review for Frozen

Frozen is a retelling of the classic The Snow Queen story with a dash of Disney magic. To paraphrase one of its many songs, for the first time in forever Disney made a Princess film that worked. And boy does it work!

In the kingdom of Arendelle, Princess Elsa has been born with the magical power to create ice, but during a childhood game with sister Anna she accidentally hurts her sister. Saved by some magic from trolls it is decided to keep the castle doors shut. Elsa is kept away from everyone including Anna, who only wants to build a snowman, or ride a bike around the halls.

After the tragic death of their parents, Elsa takes the throne as Queen and finally Anna is able to meet 'the one' in the shape of Hans. However, Elsa forbids her to get married and after a bitter confrontation reveals her powers to whole kingdom. Running away, Elsa creates a frost that covers the whole land. Anna goes to try and bring back summer with the help of local ice merchant Kristoff and his trusty reindeer Sven. They also encounter a magical snowman named Olaf who likes warm hugs. The four go to confront Elsa, but this leads to even more woe and a race against time before it is too late for Anna, Elsa and Arendelle.

Frozen is the best film of the year. No, not just Animated Film, but of any film released in the past twelve months. I think I have seen this film more times than any other, not just because I have a three year old daughter (though that is one of the reasons), but genuinely because I enjoyed it. This is one of the few films in recent years that made me go out and buy the soundtrack and not just because Adele Dazeem... I mean Idina Menzel's performance of the Oscar-winning song Let It Go is so infectious. The rest of the music is perfect and this is one of the few Disney films that could easily be adapted to a stage musical without having to change a single thing about it.

The animation is simply wonderful, improving on the groundwork of Tangled and Wreck it Ralph. Like both of these films, the animators are able to use computer animation, without it looking like it. Voice work by everyone brings these characters to life so much that you do feel genuine emotion for them and this is something that hasn't happened in a Disney film since the days of The Lion King.

Kristen Bell and Adele Dazeem... I mean Idina Menzel (Seriously how did Travolta mess that up?) as Anna and Elsa are simply perfect with Menzel blowing everyone away with her amazing voice. Bell's performance as Anna is spunky and fun, as you would expect, but without being too over the top. Josh Gad as Olaf is the perfect animated comic relief and obviously Disney's soft toy mascot for this film. However, the highlight for me is Jonathan Groff as Kristoff and also the voice of Reindeer Sven. There is just something about the way Groff performs as Kristoff which reminds me of Scott Weinger's performance as Aladdin which is just great. His voice as Sven and their interactions is some of the best parts of the film.

It would be difficult to criticise the film without being nitpicky and petty. I won't do that as that only opens up the can of worms which is the plot holes this film suffers from. Instead, I chose to ignore them and go along for the ride. If you do this you will enjoy every last moment of it.

Only one feature is one the single disk set and that is the Oscar-nominated Get A Horse. This is a wonderful mix of old style animation and CGI featuring Mickey Mouse (voiced by Walt Disney!). This animation features the character of Pete trying to kidnap Minnie Mouse, which invlves Mickey Mouse being trapped on the other side of the cinema screen. This is such a wonderful looking piece and one that could have easily been its own feature.

Frozen is simply perfect. I can't remember the last time Disney created a film this good, without it being made by Pixar. This is a return to their 'Princess' roots and its success in every form whether it be box office or critically shows just how perfect it is. If you have heard all the hype and have chosen to ignore it then my advice is to... let it go, let it go and just watch this film. You will thank me for it.