It's pretty insane looking back at how huge the first "Frozen" was after it came out. Before it came out in 2013, there was no hype behind it and not a lot of people were excited to see it. Then out of nowhere, the film exploded in popularity and went onto become a phenomenon. Now that six years have passed since then, Walt Disney Animation Studios decided to return to the world of "Frozen" with "Frozen 2". While it may not be as quite as good as the original, it is still a great sequel and it was nice to return to this world and see these characters again.
Three years have passed since the first film and Anna (Kristen Bell), Elsa (Idina Menzel), Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), Olaf (Josh Gad), and Sven have all been happily living in Arendelle knowing that the gates are open and Elsa has finally learned how to control her magical ice powers. One day though, Elsa begins to hear a strange voice that seems to be calling to her and inadvertently awakens magical spirits that put the entire kingdom in jeopardy. Hoping to save her people and figure out the source of the magical voice, Elsa, as well as the others, venture forth into a magical forest hoping to find answers and figure out how to save Arendelle from total destruction.
Before the film came out, the marketing promised that it would be much more daring and grand than the first film. Needless to say, that marketing which was some of the best for a modern animated movie ever, was right. While the story of this film isn't quite as fresh or unique as the first film, it still is fantastic in its own right. It is grand and adventurous while also not being afraid to add some darker moments. The film has a somewhat darker tone than the first film, but all the better for it. It's not afraid to show moments that will probably scare children yet also make them think. It also does have some sad moments in it and has a big part which I won't spoil almost making me cry. We also get to see more of the world outside of the kingdom which I also applaud. The element of the film that was stepped up the most in this film was easily the animation. Without a doubt, this film had the best animation I have seen the entire year. Every single frame was beautifully rendered with the elemental animation, in particular, standing out. The first film got to show off the beautiful winter landscapes and the vastly detailed snow and ice-covered lands while this film shows a gorgeous autumn forest where the colors are eye-popping and the water is photorealistic. It's without a doubt one of the most gorgeous CG animated films I have ever seen. I think the only problem I had with it was that during one scene, animation from the first film appeared on screen and while it certainly still looked good, it had shown its age and looked out of place amongst the rest of the film. Still though, that's probably a minor gripe I have since I've seen so many computer-animated movies over the years but I don't think the general public will mind it too much. As for the characters, I loved seeing all of them again. Anna is certainly a lot braver than she was in the first film, Elsa also is developed more and is far more complex and open, and Olaf was certainly just as charming and fun as he was in the first film and even gets a really fun scene. While Kristoff was not as developed out as much as I liked, he and Sven were still fun to see again. As much as I loved seeing the old characters again, I thought the newer ones were completely disposable and not fleshed out enough. They were very bland and didn't have much personality or stand out. It was disappointing especially given how the first film had some memorable side characters as well. This film, unfortunately, doesn't have any. Last but not least, I want to talk about the songs. Like the first film, every single one was top-notch and memorable. Kristen-Anderson and Robert Lopez once again bring their A-game here and make some fantastic songs guaranteed to give you an earworm. That's what a good animated musical does.
And all in all, "Frozen 2" really is a great animated sequel that does continue the original film well with a story that's exciting and adventurous, animation that's simply beautiful, older characters that are fun to see once again, and songs memorable and unforgettable. This was an animated sequel well worth the wait and even though it may not hold the same weight the first film does, I think it still pulls through in the end and leads for an unforgettable adventure. I really think it's worth venturing into the unknown for this.
