***Spoilers***
My Feelings On First Watching The Movie
Honestly, I watched the first movie when I was 12 years old. I was within the demography that would like Disney movies the most. I loved it to death and I thought that no other (Disney) movie could be better. I know that since then, a wide range of beautifully animated Disney and Pixar movies have come out but, at the time, it really was the best of the best.
When I watched Frozen II for the first time, I was going in with all my feelings for the first movie and the nostalgia that was bound to be present at watching the sequel of a movie, I’d first seen at age 12, as an adult. I was too busy comparing the two movies to truly appreciate the second one. Unsurprisingly, I did not like this movie on first viewing. I thought it didn’t compare to the first one and was a waste of nearly two hours. I accepted that it was still a good quality movie but I was still disappointed.
It wasn’t until I watched it again with my housemates that I could truly appreciate just how well crafted a movie it is. On second viewing, I wasn’t worried about whether or not it was like the first one, I knew it wasn’t because I’d already seen it. All I did on my second viewing was just enjoy it for what it is.
And I realised something. This is one hell of a good movie. And on top of that, while being one of the most entertaining movies I have seen this year, it still manages to integrate better morals within itself than half the movies produced by the entertainment industry.
The Healthiest Portrayal of Love I Have Ever Seen
This is a great movie, not just for kids but for everyone. This movie has so many perfectly executed morals and values weaved through it. But most importantly, Frozen II has one of the best and healthiest perceptions of love that I have ever seen.
“Why Doesn’t That Make Me Happy?”
This single line, spoken by Lieutenant Mattias is a better portrayal of true love than the vast majority of “classic” romantic stories. For context, he says this upon hearing that his lover from decades ago never married after he was trapped in the forest.
And it didn’t make him happy. Why? Because he realised that he cared more about her being happy than he did about her being loyal to his memory. So many love stories portray jealousy and territorial behaviour as romantic. There’s a perception that if someone (more often than not, a guy) refuses to let you go, that means they truly love you and you should be happy for it.
Love is not about jealousy. It is not about binding people to you. It is feeling something for someone that is so pure that all you want is for them to be happy. (Now, I know that even healthy relationships have an element of jealousy within them but that is a flaw. Constantly portraying jealousy as romantic is dangerous).
Obviously, Mattias wanted to be with her but he did not want her to pine after him for decades. He genuinely did want her to be happy, even if it meant that it wasn’t with him. Mattias understood that it was more important for the woman he loved to move on and find someone else than proving her loyalty to him by spending decades alone.
“My Love Is Not Fragile.”
This is another line, spoken by Kristoff, that shocked me at how beautifully adorable it is. Yes, Kristoff spends most of the movie having misunderstanding after misunderstanding with Anna and it’s hilarious. While it’s a little concerning that they can’t seem to communicate, it is understandable. Anna is distracted and insecure from her fear of losing her sister. Kristoff, unwittingly, brought up her past flaws and failures and she’s so tense that she can’t truly listen to him long enough to understand he’s not insulting her.
Despite this, however, when it really comes down to it, Kristoff is there for Anna. He supports her when she’s doing something she can’t do alone and tells her when she’s being swept away in her quest to protect her sister.
She doesn’t need him to constantly save her or remind her to do the right thing. She’s capable of doing that on her own. But when she needs him, he’s there for her without having to be asked.
At the end of the day, you can’t carry someone else’s burden for them, you can merely support them while they figure out a way to carry it with their own strength. Having someone strongarm you into being on the sidelines or giving you ultimatums when they don’t agree with your actions is not helpful. It is merely a guilt trip.
Now, by no means am I saying that you should blindly support someone who is intent on destroying themself but there’s a difference between protecting yourself from falling victim to someone else’s self inflicted destruction and guilt tripping a person who is struggling with trying to do the right thing and knowing what to do in the midst of trauma. (If you think Anna isn’t severely traumatised from being isolated for most of her formative years and losing both her parents and her sister at the same time, you need to brush up on your psychology).
Kristoff is one of my favourite love interests and for good reason. Instead of discouraging Anna from taking risks, he is able to support her in her time of need because he trusts her judgement enough to know that despite her flaws, she is truly just looking out for her family and kingdom.
A Beautiful Illustration of Moving On From Grief In Order To Do The Right Thing
It is difficult to find a balance between showing realistic depictions of peoples’ reactions to a crisis (which may often be selfish) and also depicting a character who puts themselves aside for the greater good. While Anna, in this scene, definitely prioritises the greater good and doing the right thing over herself, she is still hindered by the guilt she feels at learning of Elsa’s “death”.
Despite the conflict in their past, Elsa is a huge part of her identity and her sense of belonging. Without Elsa (and by extension Olaf), all she has left to protect is her kingdom. It would be naive to assume that no part of her is at least a little intent on being genuinely hurt in the process of freeing the Northuldra people.
While she still manages to set aside her grief in a relatively short amount of time, it has a heavy impact on her. I would argue, that it makes her even more reckless. While she needs to break the dam to right the past wrong and break the curse, waking the rock giants is still a great danger to her. She might not have been inclined to risk her own life in so great a way if not for being blinded by the loss of her sister. I’m not saying that she wouldn’t have tried to break the dam if Elsa hadn’t frozen but I’m willing to bet she wouldn’t have rushed to put herself at risk by waking sleeping giants who could kill her with a fingertip.
More Reasons Why This Is An Amazing Movie
Beautiful Animation
Now, I have no professional qualifications in film critique but even I can tell that the animation is beautifully executed. From the sheer amount of detail to the photorealistic backgrounds. I think I annoyed my housemates to no end by constantly mentioning how beautiful the background is and how I wanted to congratulate the artists involved (even in the middle of really intense scenes).
I know Disney is a major player in the film industry and this is just par for the course but dear lord, this may be their best movie yet.
It’s Such A Hopeful Movie
Yeah, there are scenes in this movie that are straight up heartbreaking but it’s so damn hopeful. I agree that Arendelle should probably have been destroyed or at the very least severely damaged but at times like this, it’s important to have movies that are hopeful even if it doesn’t align with reality. Reality is terrifying (especially now) and I’m grateful to be able to escape it.
Basically What I’m Trying To Say Is
If you watched Frozen II for the first time and was disappointed, I suggest you watch it again. There may be something you missed that will change your mind.
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