♪♪ For the first time in forever, there'll be music, there'll be love ♪♪
Hi, my name is Gabe and in this video I'll be looking into Frozen.
♪♪ For the first time in forever... ♪♪
Thanks right, Frozen. The film everyone either loves or hates, and if you're a hater get out of here,
because I think this film is great!
Before I get into why, here is your warning that spoilers are ahead.
Alright, let's do this.
Now you may be thinking: I know what Frozen is about; it's about this:
♪♪ Let it go. Let it go. And I'll rise like the break of dawn. ♪♪
♪♪ Let it go. Let it go. That perfect girl is gone. ♪♪
It's about embracing your true self, not holding it in or being what you're "supposed" to be.
And yes, this is an important aspect of the film.
But consider this: for Hans, embracing his true self reveals him to be a psychopath,
this guy's true self is a pathetic and cowardly jerk,
and even the trolls, good creatures who never even remotely shy away from their true selves,
are really annoying.
Because of these characters, I would argue that while "embracing your true self" is an important aspect
of Frozen, it is not the deepest level that governs what the film is about.
But there's another moment in Frozen, just as powerful as Elsa embracing her true self.
I'm talking about here, where Frozen flies in the face of centuries of storytelling
by emphasizing love between siblings, not soulmates.
This moment, Anna looking at what normally would be the love she needs, then choosing
something else, something that's not romantic, not a hero, that says so much.
And yet, everything it says is contradicted by other parts of the film.
Like this song.
♪♪ Everyone's a bit of a fixer-upper But when push comes to shove ♪♪
♪♪ The only fixer-upper fixer than can fix a fixer-upper ♪♪
♪♪ Is true true true true true, love true love love love love love love, love true love, true... ♪♪
I mean, these lyrics are in the same film that has this,
and this,
She's with her true love.
and this.
Oh Anna. If only there was someone out there who loved you.
And then there's this scene, not necessary for the story but still added to be crowdpleasing.
By doing this, the filmmakers play straight into the conventions they subverted earlier in the movie.
All this may seem like Frozen is trying to have it both ways. And in a way, it is.
For, in addition to these contradictions, the film also has matriarchy and patriarchy;
feudalism and capitalism;
See, this is from our winter stock, where supply and demand have a big problem.
peasants and royalty;
traditional and alternative relationships,
Yoohoo! Hi family!
Yoohoo!
Parts of this film are ridiculous, and the film both relies on and makes fun of this.
Hello!
AHHH!!! IT'S ALIVE!!!
Even Elsa's storyline, rejecting who she's supposed to be in favor of who she is,
is contradicted when she embraces her dictated-by-society role as queen.
But really, Frozen isn't having it both ways, it's having it the way that is deeper down,
the way all these dynamics are connected.
To uncover this, let's look at the third of the three most important sequences in this movie.
The classic Hollywood director Howard Hawks one said that a good film is three great scenes
You know how to whistle don't you Steve?
You just put your lips together and blow.
and no bad ones.
In Frozen, we've already looked at two great scenes, but what is its third?
What's at the same level as the climax and Let It Go?
For me, there's no question. It's this:
♪♪ Do you want to build a snowman? Come on, let's go and play ♪♪
Frozen's music is interesting; its songs aren't just songs, each one represents an idea explored by the movie.
Let It Go is the embrace your true self song,
First Time In Forever is the looking forward to the future song,
In Summer is the positivity and optimism song,
Love Is An Open Door is the romance song (or romance subverted when you know how things turn out),
Fixer Upper is about love and relationships,
and Do You Want To Build A Snowman is about wonder and innocence.
♪♪ Do you want to build a snowman? It doesn't have to be a snowman. ♪♪
♪♪ Go away Anna. Okay bye ♪♪
It is Do You Want To Build A Snowman's wonder and innocence that goes to the heart
of what Frozen is about.
It governs every aspect of the film,
including the drama,
the resolution,
the entire conflict.
Elsa, we were so close. We can be like that again.
Catch me!
Slow down!
Anna!
No, we can't.
I mean, just check out how the film ends:
I like the open gates
it's a looking forward to the future ending and there's a looking forward to the future song,
Oh Elsa, they're beautiful but you know I don't skate.
Come on, you can do it!
but the last thing we hear before we fade to black is Do You Want To Build A Snowman.
And then there's Elsa herself.
In the beginning, she is filled with wonder and innocence, and she has complete control of her powers.
It is only when distress kicks in,
Slow down!
distress followed by concealment and repression, that her powers control her.
No! Don't touch me!
Please, I don't want to hurt you.
And even as an adult, she controls her powers when she is happy and free,
and her powers control her when she is controlled by negativity.
As for Anna, despite doing everything she can to retain her wonder and innocence,
her life is ripped apart by negativity.
First there was this error in judgement,
I recommend we remove all magic, even memories of magic
followed by multiple unbelievably cruel decisions,
decisions that continue into adulthood and culminate in a dagger straight through her heart.
Please! I can't live like this anymore!
Then leave.
It doesn't matter that these decisions were made with good intentions,
because they didn't come from a place of wonder or positivity.
It's no surprise then that Anna is so easily manipulated:
her innocence has turned to naiveness
because she refuses to be negative in a life controlled by negativity.
Even Hans and Christof, who weren't part of the Do You Want To Build A Snowman sequence,
have their own equivalents, Hans in parallel
Three of them pretended I was invisible, literally, for two years.
and Christof in opposite.
Cuties! I'm gonna keep you.
Looking at Hans, in true psychopath form, there's not much explanation for why he is the way he is,
but the one thing we get definitely hints at a lost innocence.
As for Christof, despite being a good guy, he actually straddles between wonder
Now that's ice.
and negativity.
Now back up, while I deal with this crook here.
And whenever he is negative,
What did you call me?
the result is a bad thing.
And then there's Olaf.
Filled with wonder and positivity, he's literally the snowman the song is about.
You built me. Remember that?
But Olaf should not be dismissed as a cheesy Disney creation,
because there's a reason he is the way he is:
everything Elsa lost, all that wonder and innocence,
Hi, I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs.
she put it in him.
Hi everyone, I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs.
This is why Olaf is so silly,
I've been impaled.
so sweet,
Some people are worth melting for.
and also naive,
I'm guessing you don't have much experience with heat.
Nope!
and it is also why nothing but good comes to him.
Taking this wonder and positivity idea even further, we see that every dynamic in Frozen is governed by it.
Matriarchy and patriarchy,
feudalism and capitalism,
peasants and royalty,
traditional and alternative relationships,
Meet my family.
embracing yourself, embracing expectations, embracing responsibility, these may be opposites
and they may be contradictory, but all are good when embraced with positivity.
And that brings us to the true meaning of Frozen.
The film's most powerful moment, Let It Go, is about being true to yourself,
but the film as a whole is about being true to your best self.
Be true to the you that is governed by wonder, by optimism, by love, not fear.
It doesn't matter who that you is, as long as it is those things.
This is a really profound statement, especially coming from Disney, whose films have generally
been about expectations, about being who you'resupposed to be.
Prove yourself brave, truthful, and unselfish, and someday you will be a real boy.
There's nothing you can do about it, so why worry?
Because it's your responsibility!
To say you can be anyone, do anything, live any way you please?
That's pretty radical, and adding the wonder and positivity aspect?
That's where the brilliance of this film kicks in.
You can be anything you want, do anything you please, as long as it is good.
And what is good?
Anything guided by wonder and positivity.
What is bad?
Anything controlled by fear or negativity.
And while this may not be true for everything, it is true for most things.
It's also is a great belief to live by, not just for kids, but for everybody.
It's a great belief and a powerful message, and it is what makes Frozen an amazing and powerful movie.