Pihla Pekkarinen reviews the much-anticipated Disney sequel.

Frozen, when it was first released six years ago, gripped the world. Frozen paraphernalia was inescapable. Anyone who had or spent time with young children in the first few years after its release was haunted by the spectres of Anna and Elsa. At the small preschool I taught at, there were at least three Elsas or Annas at Halloween and Carnival.

Frozen was hailed by parents and critics alike for its feminist undertones. The leads were two strong, independent women, and the film prioritized the relationship of sisterly love over romantic love. It depicted the difference between a manipulative romantic relationship and a supportive one, making clear how not all romantic relationships are equal. It embraced femininity as a strength rather than a weakness. Criticism arose too, with some claiming that the stereotypically princess-like appearances of Elsa and Anna contribute to unattainable beauty standards, particularly shameless in their targeting of young girls. Overall, however, the release of Frozen in 2013 was recognised as a huge step in the right direction for Disney.

Frozen II follows nearly the same path as its predecessor. Anna and Elsa set off on another quest for the truth, meet guiding characters, and eventually succeed in saving their people from peril once again. It is a heartfelt film with a formulaic plot and the occasional chuckle-provoking joke. The characters grapple with moral dilemmas but are never themselves at the center of them. The film reprises almost all the elements of the smash-hit “Let it Go” in a similar power ballad, with the main difference being that Elsa has graduated to letting her hair fall fully down this time. (One wonders what the next step will be: perhaps Frozen III’s Elsa will shave her head, or even dye it pink?) Frozen II is hardly revolutionary. Or is it?

In one scene, the beloved snowman-friend Olaf turns to Anna, confessing he feels angry at Elsa for letting him down. Instead of dismissing him, or encouraging Olaf to sympathise with and forgive Elsa, Anna immediately acknowledges and validates his hurt. Olaf’s anger is not treated as negativity to be suppressed, but rathe an emotion as valid and important as any other. In another poignant moment, as Anna rides into battle, instead of questioning her judgement or trying to protect her, Kristoff asks what she needs and follows through on her request. He later tells her, in one of the more memorable lines of the film, “My love is not fragile.” Their relationship is depicted as one of partnership and collaboration, rather than patriarchal oppression and imbalanced power. The film also features an indigenous community modelled after the Sami people of Northern Europe. The portrayal has been lauded by its Sami audience as both accurate and respectful. Frozen II acknowledges (in a limited, Disneyfied way) a history of oppression and violence against global Indigenous communities.

Frozen II actively responds to Disney’s troubling social legacy, toying with the stereotypes and tropes associated with the genre. The film is aware of the susceptibility of its young audience, and consciously attempts to send empowering messages. However, they are not particularly well-integrated into what is essentially a standard Disney princess plot, and older audiences may find this constant moral nudging slightly grating. But the film cannot and should not be faulted for trying to do better: the effort to create a more inclusive and empowering future for Disney is explicit.

Frozen II is unlikely to have the all-consuming legacy of its predecessor. The songs are less catchy, the new characters less compelling (due partly to their limited screen time), and the plot more convoluted. It is nevertheless a charming and heartwarming piece of entertainment which will undoubtedly prove popular amongst its young audience. At least Frozen II has some originality and is not a live action remake of an already existing film. Ultimately, Frozen II represents an effort on Disney’s part to do better–which counts for something in this wintery political climate.

Frozen II is still showing in cinemas worldwide. Check out the trailer below:

Editor KC Wingert critiques Disney’s video-game based animated sequel and its relationship to today’s consumerist media landscape.

Ralph Breaks the Internet, the follow-up to Disney’s 2012 animated feature Wreck-It Ralph, finds Ralph (John C. Reilly) and Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) six years later. Now best friends, the two spend their days hopping from game to game in their small arcade, but Vanellope secretly longs for something more. Ralph, in an attempt to bring some excitement to the arcade for Vanellope’s sake, accidentally sets off a chain of events that breaks the Sugar Rush game’s steering wheel, shuts down the game console, and displaces all of its characters. In order to replace the broken wheel and save Sugar Rush from permanent retirement, Ralph and Vanellope must venture into the unknown world of the internet to buy the only Sugar Rush steering wheel available in the world, which happens to be listed on ebay.

This film uniquely imagines the internet as a real, physical place where humanoid avatars represent all internet users’ data footprints; where juggernaut brands like Google and Pinterest occupy giant skyscaper-esque structures; and where pop-up ads pester people on the sidewalk like annoying street hawkers. Many of the film’s jokes are references to memes—even the film’s title refers to Kim Kardashian’s now legendary half-nude PAPER Magazine cover—that will feel outdated to someone watching in ten years. With jokes dependent on content from a rapidly changing media sphere dominating the film’s humor, writers Phil Johnston and Pamela Ribon have essentially cemented their screenplay’s eventual obsolescence. Even the bonus scenes at the end of the film are references to memes and the film’s own marketing campaign. These extratextual references may prove delightful to children eager to be in on the joke, but they only serve as marketing for various websites and apps and feel unnecessary to the story.

Clearly the intention behind this film was not to create the lasting power of a positive message, as one usually expects out of a children’s film, but rather its purpose was to create another franchise designed to milk as much money out of loyal fans as possible. The only ultimately positive messages that could be eked out of this nearly 2-hour ode to the coterie of companies that profit from invading people’s privacy are: 1) don’t read the comments on the internet, because people can be mean, and 2) don’t try to prevent your friends from following their dreams.

Moreover, Ralph Breaks the Internet acts as a tool to promote brand familiarity in children, with happy-go-lucky shout-outs to Google, Instagram, Amazon, and other internet behemoths which we now know to be engaging in less-than-ethical moneymaking practices. With a children’s film about the internet, directors Phil Johnston and Rick Moore could have created a teaching tool for parents to broach the subjects of data harvesting, identity protection, cyberbullying, and other issues their kids might encounter online. However, Disney, a media conglomerate in and of itself, seems to view Ralph Breaks the Internet as an opportunity to tout its own influence over today’s media landscape.

A large segment of the film is dedicated to Vanellope’s newfound friendship with the Disney Princesses, whose cheeky introduction in the movie’s trailer went viral among delighted feminists and Disney-philes alike. The princesses, after hearing that Vanellope is also royal, try to find out what type of princess she is by interrogating with a line of questioning—“Were you poisoned? Cursed? Kidnapped or enslaved?”—to which Vanellope responds, “Are you guys okay? Should I call the police?” When Vanellope says that people assume her problems were solved when a man showed up in her life, they exclaim, “She is a princess!” But this humorously metatextual, feminist moment shouldn’t fool anyone hoping to find radical themes within the rest of the film. This portion of the movie also includes cameos from other Disney films—from Winnie the Pooh to Zootopia—as well as from Disney-owned subsidiaries like the Marvel universe and Star Wars. In this critic’s opinion, this clearly shows how the film serves as a tool for Disney to essentially trumpet its own media empire within one of its films, with thinly-veiled product placement. Ralph Breaks the Internet therefore becomes no more than a Disney marketing campaign that will inevitably pay for itself.

Ultimately, Ralph Breaks the Internet is a blatant initiative to sell, sell, sell to those among us who aren’t able to make informed decisions about their consumption: children. The film is a 2-hour long advertisement that would leave any children’s media literacy educator aghast. While the film’s story, visuals, and performances were well-executed, it is fundamentally a tool for indoctrinating children into complacency in a media landscape that serves massive companies, not individuals.

Ralph Breaks The Internet is currently out in cinemas everywhere, check out its trailer below:

Srishti Chakraborty reviews Pixar’s much anticipated sequel to a childhood favourite. 

While I might not remember the first time I ever watched Pixar’s The Incredibles, I remember all the other times I’ve watched it since. I remember watching it before Christmas when I was about 6 and asking Santa for superpowers, even though I was Hindu and didn’t actually celebrate Christmas. I remember forcing my poor babysitter to watch it with my younger sister and I every time our parents went for a night out. To be fair, I remember cancelling Saturday night plans to watch The Incredibles and eat pizza just a few months ago. In fact, if I’ve flaked on plans with you, it was probably to eat pizza and watch The Incredibles.

So, needless to say, when Incredibles 2 was announced, I was ecstatic. But with great films don’t necessarily come great sequels (see: Mean Girls 2), and with 14 years of anticipation building up to it, Incredibles 2 had a lot to live up to. That being said, there is no doubt that the film does not disappoint – from hilarious and punchy dialogue to thrilling action sequences to all around good storytelling, Incredibles 2 is just as brilliant as it’s predecessor, if not even better.

The film picks up directly from the ending of its prequel, with the Parr family ready to take on ‘The Underminer’ and save Metroville from destruction once again, bringing the audience right back into the action from the get-go. Like all sequels, the plot line of Incredibles 2 is essentially the same as that of the first film: superheroes are illegal, the family is undercover, and a mysterious benefactor asks for their help to set in motion a chain of events that puts the Parr family through the ringer. Where the last film saw Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) jump into action against fan-turned-villain Syndrome, in Incredibles 2, Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) takes the helm as the poster girl for a pro-superhero campaign funded by billionaires and hero sympathisers Winston and Evelyn Deaver (Bob Odenkirk, Catherine Keener). Despite this, Incredibles 2 does not feel like some corporate rehash of its prequel but instead, is able to use its old tropes and quirks to explore a new side of its premise and characters.

Much of the beauty of the first film lay in the fact that it was so much more than a film about superheroes – it was a film about family. Siblings who constantly annoyed each other, an adorable baby, a cool uncle, awkward dinner conversations, parents fighting about who needs to yell at their kids: all of these were woven into the film’s thrilling adventure plot, making it relatable and layered. As such, the latest instalment is able to show you even more of the Parrs’ recognisable family life: Mr. Incredible learning to play house husband and second fiddle to his wife, Elastigirl learning to trust her husband to manage the kids, Violet starting to date – the film remains a realistically grounded family-comedy full of scenes you will recognise from real life. It is funny and engaging, and makes you love its characters even more than you already did.

The film’s action sequences are a joyride. The Deavers’ plan to make superheroes legal again involves Elastigirl openly fighting crime across the country; in her first altercation, she confronts her new nemesis, the ‘Screenslaver’, a villain using screens to hypnotise and brainwash people. Though you can smell the film’s plot twist from a mile away, this does little to hamper your enjoyment of the action. Given the trend of gritty and realistic superhero movies, the dynamic and unapologetically far-fetched action of Incredibles 2 is a breath of fresh air, and there’s an odd satisfaction in seeing Elastigirl save the day by making herself into a parachute once again. The slapstick sight gags that intercut the action are equally as wonderfully animated, and the dialogue is as funny as ever. Though the sequel has none of the quotability of “I’m your wife, I’m the greatest good you’re ever going to get” (and perhaps the most awkward moment of the film is the missed beat where they tried to recreate this iconic line), the snappy punchlines and witty one-liners are just as hilarious. 

Director Brad Bird has allowed the Incredibles franchise to evolve in all the right ways. While the animation, comedy, and the family values at the heart of the first film have not changed, and everyone’s favourite characters and moments are given their due respect, Incredibles 2’s undercutting commentary is on feminism, capitalism, and the difficulty of family life. It feels as if the franchise has grown in the same way that its original fans have. In a world where, spoilers, Thanos has wiped out half of the MCU while real life can get pretty dark and scary, Incredibles 2 is the familiar woke superhero comedy we all need.

Incredibles 2 is showing in cinemas across the UK now. Watch the trailer below.