Disney's Frozen, starring Kristen Bell, is set to melt hearts in cinemas this summer
REVIEW: Animated fantasy Frozen is a return to Disney's fairytale telling best and a film the whole family will enjoy.
Leigh Paatsch
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Directors: Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee
Rating: 4/5
Starring: The voices of Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Ciaran Hinds.
It is not hard to warm to what the new Disney animated fantasy Frozen has in store for its all-ages audience, even if it comes from a familiar place.
The premise is pure Cartooning 101. A feisty young heroine must embark on an odyssey to save her birthplace from ruin, and also keep what's left of her family together.
A non-threatening hunk is never that far away from the action. Nor are a wacky talking animal or two. Or three.
Where Frozen thaws the iciest resistance is by virtue of quality writing, vibrant visuals (well worth the 3D premium surcharge) and a brace of catchy musical setpieces.
If pushed, you could liken the experience to Pixar's Brave with a bit of a Broadway applied. In fact, it's a noted improvement on that movie. It is always fun, and never feels forced.
The plot is very faintly sourced from Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen.
When the royally bred Elsa (Idina Menzel) loses command of her mystical power to generate ice and snow - plunging the whole of her kingdom into an endless winter - she goes into hiding.
Elsa's plucky younger sister Anna (Kristen Bell) is understandably concerned, and commences an urgent search.
En route to the remote snow palace that houses Elsa in exile, Anna crosses paths with the strapping ice merchant Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and his clever reindeer sidekick Sven.
There are also several welcome interjections from Olaf (Josh Gad), a sun-worshipping snowman who also gets to warble the movie's standout song, In Summer.
As was the case with the underrated Tangled from a few years ago, Frozen continues a noted return by Disney's animation department to its core strengths.
The pacing is sprightly, the story is deceptively involving, and the voice cast meets the challenge of balancing comedy, drama and song with consummate ease.
Frozen screens in advance previews from Friday through Sunday, and opens in full release on Boxing Day.
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