The worldwide hit of Frozen (2013) captured the hearts of adults and children alike and now has returned six years later. Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) and Anna (voiced by Kristen Bell) return along with Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad), Kristoff (voiced by Jonathon Groff) and Sven as they journey into an enchanted forest where they search for the truth behind Elsa’s powers. Elsa no longer hides her powers and rules Arendelle as a beloved Queen. The bond with her sister Anna is tested however as Elsa seeks out a voice that calls out only to her. Along the way, they uncover truths about the past that may change the way they see their world.
Frozen II takes a new approach to storytelling moving away from the traditional fairy-tale princess approach of the original; focusing on the journey the characters must take into the Enchanted forest rather than a task that must be overcome. The team behind Frozen have ensured the characters and story have grown with their original audience and I really enjoyed this story more than the first one as this is more action-packed. I felt this was a much more poignant story in areas, especially in relation to Elsa finding herself and using her powers with confidence.
The songs composed by the same duo responsible Frozen, Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez were not as catchy or memorable as the modern classics found in the original. This was, however, to be expected given the strength of the original soundtrack. Into the Unknown may not be the next Let it go but was still an excellent, powerful song. I also enjoyed Show Yourself as it really did touch me in ways Let it Go didn’t. In and out of a song I was impressed by the actresses and actors voice acting as I could hear the characters through the way they sang and spoke.
The ageing of the characters was good in the way they aged up the cast, so they didn’t look quite so doe-eyed. In my opinion, Frozen II was visually spectacular and you could definitely see that animation techniques had improved over the last six years and the creators of Frozen were taking full advantage of that. The ice diamonds that Elsa creates along with the rest of the magic in the film was visually outstanding.
Frozen II is one for the whole family to enjoy and is a fantastic sequel to the original and deserves its success.
The Life of Sophie 