A new Disney movie always elicits a mixture of anticipation and anxiety: Will this one have the magic touch? For Frozen, the answer is yes, quite literally. Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Snow Queen, the movie follows royal sisters Anna and Elsa, the latter of whom turns everything she touches to ice. Elsa’s power is secret, and when she flees after accidentally plunging their Scandinavian kingdom into eternal winter, Anna and a motley crew venture through the frozen wilderness to bring her back and melt the ice. The film is visually beautiful, and the perky animated characters, though not instant classics, are lovable. Although the songs were a little more popinfluenced than I prefer in Disney, they clearly struck a chord with the kids who were humming the tunes as they bounded out of the theater. (And they’ve been stuck in my head ever since.)
Should You See It? Yes. —R.K.
Viewed at Wehrenberg Ronnie’s 20 Cine