Blu-ray Review: Frozen II

Synopsis:

In “Frozen 2,” the answer to why Elsa was born with magical powers is calling her and threatening her kingdom. Together with Anna, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, she sets out on a dangerous but remarkable journey. In “Frozen,” Elsa feared her powers were too much for the world. In the highly anticipated sequel, she must hope they are enough. From the Academy Award®-winning team—directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, producer Peter Del Vecho and songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez—“Frozen 2” features the voices of Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad.

What We Thought:

I’m clearly not the target audience for Disney’s Frozen II. I didn’t particularly care for the first film and passed on seeing this sequel when it was in theaters. But it went on to do huge money at the box office so I decided to check it out here on Blu-ray. With the main voice cast returning I figured I was in for a similar movie and it is, but isn’t at the same time.

Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven all return and the film is filled with music (garnering an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song) and colors like the first movie. The animation is top-notch with great visual effects and costuming and set design. Fairy tale type worlds make for great animated visuals. Add in that one of the main characters is a snowman and well, it has a ton of style that adults can appreciate and kids will enjoy.

What makes this film different is it felt darker. Kristoff’s bit felt super weird and out of place. Some of the jokes seemed geared towards an older crowd or at least seemed like they wouldn’t land with a younger audience. Anna and Elsa’s parents are reintroduced through a bedtime story. The overall story arc feels heavier as well. There is still adventure, but instead of Elsa figuring out her full potential like in the first film, she seems to have more doubt and questions in this. The characters have grown and I think the audience needed to as well to enjoy the movie as much as they did the original.

Frozen II has many positives. Olaf telling us what happened in Frozen made me laugh and the visual effects are pretty darn gem perfect. I may not love the songs from these films, but you couldn’t escape Let It Go from the first movie and I have a feeling kids will be singing Into the Unknown on repeat viewings of this one at home. It was a monster at the theater and will be popular on home video as well. Disney’s animated Blu-rays are fantastic to look at and this one is no different. It looks and sounds great in HD and comes with a slew of bonus features (listed below). It’s pretty clear what I think of the film is irrelevant. It’s not for me and I’m fine with that. It’s a nice movie families can sit down and watch together especially fans of the first one. I’m not a Disney die-hard like a lot of people, but if your kids/family are, pick this up and enjoy.

Bonus Features  

• Sing-Along Version of the Movie – Sing along with your favorite songs as you watch the movie.
• Song Selection – Jump to your favorite musical moments, with on-screen lyrics. Songs include Oscar®-nominated “Into The Unknown,” “All Is Found,” “Some Things Never Change,” “When I Am Older,” “Lost in the Woods,” “Show Yourself,” and “The Next Right Thing”
• Outtakes – Laugh along with the cast of “Frozen 2” as they record their lines, sing their songs and have fun in the recording booth.
• Deleted Scenes – Check out a few scenes that never made the final cut.
  • Intro – Directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck offer a glimpse into their filmmaking process with scenes that didn’t make the final cut.
  • Prologue – A battle rages between Arendelle and the Northuldra while a mysterious figure challenges King Agnarr.
  • Secret Room – A secret room reveals even more of Anna and Elsa’s past, including a shocking revelation about their mother.

• • Elsa’s Dream – Anna’s playful glimpse into Elsa’s dream takes a dark turn.
  • Hard Nokks – Kristoff reveals his true feelings about life in Arendelle when the Nokk won’t take no for an answer.
  • A Place of Our Own – Elsa uses her magic to relieve Anna’s lingering doubts about their parents’ faith in her.
• Deleted Songs – When it comes to “Frozen 2,” there can never be too much music. Hear some of the songs that got cut from the final film.
  • Intro – Directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck revel in the chance to share a few songs that didn’t make it into the final film.
  • “Home” – Anna savors every moment as she wanders through this kingdom she calls home.
  • “I Wanna Get This Right” – Kristoff wants everything to be perfect before he proposes, leaving Anna to wonder, “Will it ever be just right?”
• The Spirits of “Frozen 2” – Cast and crew explore the Scandinavian and Nordic mythology that inspired the spirits inhabiting the enchanted forest of “Frozen 2.”
• Did You Know??? – Olaf asks us the question “Did You Know” as we discover “Frozen 2” fun facts, Easter eggs and tidbits about the making of the film.
• Scoring a Sequel – Composer Christophe Beck combines a 91-piece orchestra with 30 choral voices to create the compelling score for “Frozen 2.”
• Gale Tests – They say you can’t see the wind. Only its effects. Filmmakers give it a shot while creating the playful wind spirit, Gale.
  • Gale Test – A young girl and boy play tag in this fully animated effort to “give personality to something that’s invisible.”
  • Hand-Drawn Gale Test – A hand-drawn test to bring the precocious wind spirit to life.

• Multi-Language Reel
  • “Into the Unknown” in 29 Languages – Hear Elsa’s soaring call to adventure in 29 different languages
• Music Videos – Weezer and Panic! at the Disco lend their voices to a few of the soaring melodies from “Frozen 2.”
  • “Into the Unkown” (Panic! at the Disco version) – Panic! at the Disco frontman Brendon Urie stars in their version of “Into The Unknown” from “Frozen 2.”
  • “Lost in the Woods” (Weezer version) – Weezer puts their spin on Kristoff’s epic ballad, “Lost In the Woods.”