Take A Look at Disney

7/22/14

Power of The Princesses: Elsa (with Fusionater)







Moviefan12:  Hello & welcome  back to Power of The Princesses and today, we enter  the home stretch as we look at the first  of the final  two princesses as we start with Queen Elsa.   I know,  it's a little weird  that I'm looking at her  but  Disney marketing added her to the princess line up.  Joining  me today because the cold never  bothered  him  anyway  is Fusionater.  Per  usual,  we will  be looking  at  Original  Voice Actress,  Personality,  Favorite  Moment,  Later Appearances,  and finally, Is  Elsa  A Good Character?  Fusionater,  are  you ready to  Let It Go? 



Fusionater: Funnily enough, the cold never actually did bother me anyway...I think I must have a skin condition, not even joking. And no Moviefan, I'm not prepared to Let it Go, I'll never forgive you for what you...oh...ha ha...reference...ha...let's begin!
ha...



Moviefan12:  Hey, that's my line.   Anyways, let's begin.


Original  Voice  Actress

Idina  Menzel















Moviefan12:   Squee,  sorry  but  I've  been  a fan  of Idina Menzel  long before  Frozen. She was in two  of my  favorite  Broadway  musicals,  RENT  and Wicked.  She  had a recurring role on Glee,  one of my favorite TV  shows and  was in the film adaption of RENT  and before Elsa,  she played two other  Disney characters.   She  was Nancy  in Enchanted, the less  said about that  movie,  the better  (I can't  believe, it's  getting a sequel)   and   if you  go all  the way back  to  Hercules:  The Animated Series,  she  had  a one  off role  in an episode  playing  the character  of Circe.   I've  never seen  this episode  but I may  have to track  it  down  because   she's  in it.    






When  I heard that Indina  Menzel  was going  to be voicing a character in a Disney movie,  I was ecstatic because  one  of  Broadway's  greatest  stars working with  one of the best animation studios  felt like  a dream come  true and  the way,  she plays  Elsa is  just  fantastic.   I don't  know what  more  I could  say about  her work  as Elsa,   I did an entire  Frozen  Week.   In  one regard as  a fan  of Indina  Menzel,  I  can see why  Disney  cast  her  as Elsa  because  Elsa  is similar  to her greatest  role  of Elphaba Thropp  from Wicked.  












They  are  both  outcasts  that  have  powers,  who  only  want to do good but  the people  around   them  have  declared  them  a monster or wicked.   Honestly,   listen  to  Defying  Gravity,  and  that  should  make  you understand  why  I say  that  Frozen  is Disney's  Wicked.  That  song  and  Let  It  Go  share  a  lot  in common  of  the ladies  singing  them, setting  a new path  in  life  and putting their  past  behind them.     



Fusionater: You didn't like Enchanted? Awww man, that movie was hilarious!


The voice actress is definitely a spot where you have a 1-up on me, I don't know much about Idina Menzel's work, I do know that she was in an episode of the Wonderpets (I Like that show!) Which I remember, but aside from that, there's not much to say from my end.



Moviefan12:  Yes well,  it's  now time  to move onto  First Appearance.  IE, when  we first see the character both as a child  and in their adult form.



First Appearance

 we first see  Elsa  and her little sister as little  girl, when the adorableness that is Anna  uses  kid logic  in saying that  because the sky's awake,  she's awake and they have to play.  


 












At  first, Elsa  objects but Anna being a kid knows the right things to say and asks her sister,  if she wants to build a snowman and boom, that works. And we get the tragic events that lead to Anna's  memory being wiped and  "Do You Want To Build A Snowman" gives  us a montage of the girls  growing up but also growing apart.  We first see  Elsa  as an adult  at 21 years of  age during  "For The First Time In Forever".  


 











And  right here, with that face you can see that  all  the years of keeping her powers bottled up and a secret  has affected her and made her cold and distant.   Now,  if you had  purchased the Deluxe Edition soundtrack for Frozen (I highly recommend) it,  you would get to hear the  song that was originally  meant to introduce us to Elsa and Anna  in the film with "We Know Better".   This  is actually the first  song that  the Lopezes wrote for Frozen and  I really like it but  I can see why, it was cut.  


Fusionater: When I watch movies, I have this nervous tick for whenever something seems to be going to well for the characters, it comes from experience watching these kind of cutesy scenes, I get morbid in the face and just end up thinking "Something bads happening, soon". That's how I felt watching the scene with them as kids, and I was right to feel that way, pretty Intense stuff.

Fusionater: When Anna and Elsa are full grown, it's not only the power being bottled up, but any form of human contact becoming more and more difficult for her, not only with her sister, but she seems to have difficulty with the rest of the world as well, she just seems very short with people (The Duke of Weselton, and Hans being chief examples), I think it's a great start for the character.





Personality


Moviefan12:   I think  the best  way to describe  Elsa  at the beginning  of the film  is  being  cold and distant.  But  she was  distant  because  she was trying  to protect her little sister but  sadly,  that caused a drift.   Now, Elsa  never stopped  loving Elsa.  While  she  is reserved,  she does finally  open  up  at the end  and allows  herself  to show  Anna,  the love  that  she  hadn't  been   showing  shown  her all those  years.   This   can be tied  back  to   the line.


Conceal, Don't  Feel


For  all  of Elsa's  life,  she was   told  not to show her true  emotions  because  her  parents  while  they  meant well,   didn't  give their  daughter  the best advice.   The death  of the girls'   mother and father  only  caused  the  drift  to grow  even larger.   By  the end of the movie,  Elsa   was  able  to show  her  fun side  and that  she  can be a bit  silly  and enjoy  time with her sister. 










Now,  there  is another  important  aspect  that needs  to be brought up,   Elsa   is  a subversion  of the trope  of  Queens  being the bad guy. Something  Disney  is known for but  that almost wasn't  the case.  You see in the original  draft  of Frozen,  Elsa  was the villain.  














However, this was changed   due  to  the  song that everyone loves from  this movie.   You see, after  Jennifer  Lee and Chris  Buck  heard Let It Go, they decided that they  had to rework  the film, so that Elsa could be one  of the protagonists.   And in my opinion, that worked out for the better but   you can find the deleted Evil Elsa scene on YouTube. Here's  a link to it.



Fusionater: From early on, you can tell how hard Elsa is struggling to follow the advice her parents had given her and how much she has had to put up with. Her parents death(Hooray Disney families!), is what I believe to be the final catalyst for Elsa's complete detachment from others. When coronation day arrives, she is clearly trying to keep a brave face on but the anticipation is getting to her.

After she is crowned queen, as the movie might say "for the first time in forever", she was relaxed, something had gone right for her, she was talking to her sister, and being cheerful, all was well. But reality begins crushing her once again when Anna says,

"I wish it could be like this all the time"

and Elsa replies,

"Me to...But it can't"

In that moment, the anxiety and sadness that she has always felt starts creeping back into her...not helped by her sister being a bit of a dumb dumb love wise soon after.

Speaking of, there's Hans (SPOILER!!!!!!!), the villain of the movie, AKA the least well written and worst villain in Disney animated history, Alameda Slim all the way if this guys the only other option, seriously, just bad.

And that's one point where I do have to disagree with you Moviefan, I believe that Elsa should have been the villain of the movie, not an evil villain or anything like that, but maybe more like a "This movie has no villains" type deal. I believe that Hans and the Duke of Weselton could have been almost entirely cut out to give more time for us to understand Elsa's character(1 or 2 more scenes for her in place of all the extra Anna and Kristoff got would have helped), and that would have made them coming together in the end all the more special.


Moviefan12:    See,  I don't like Hans  either  and  I do agree that this film would've been better  if it had no villain but  maybe it's  because I love this Elsa,  I can't fathom the idea  of an evil Elsa.   Now,  I guess it could have worked  but  as we see from the clip,  an evil Elsa  wouldn't have been the same  as Elsa  dealing with her scared emotions.  


 Fusionater: Not evil...just...not perfect, throw a little bit of redemption story in there to make it work maybe.


Moviefan12: The movie  does  do what you suggest until... that stupid third act reveal.   If that reveal  had not been part of the film,  this movie would've been in my top 3 but that kept  it back. Anyways, let's  move onto  Favorite Moment.


Favorite  Moment


Moviefan12:  This was easy to pick,  my  favorite  Elsa  moment is....

Let  It  Go














Moviefan12:  Yeah,  who didn't  see this one coming?  I  love this song,  this to  me is what a Disney  song is all about.   It  just  gives you a  "YEAH"  moment.  Also,  this  song like  so many things   subverts  classic Disney  tropes.  Typically  in Disney  films,  you have a character who  sings  an "I Want"  song and don't  misunderstand me,  we still get with Anna and "For The First Time In Forever" but with Elsa and "Let It Go", we get a song with a powerful message of don't  listen to what others say, own who you are and be proud of it.  In  other words, Let It Go and if they don't  like it, that's their problem.   This  song  is  a grade  A example of why Elsa  is one of the greatest  role models for   people  of all ages.  Also, the ice palace is really cool.
















Seriously though,  there's  a reason that this  song  has a  billion covers  on YouTube.   It's  just  that good and it has resonated with people all over the world.   I mean,  I can  constantly  listen to this song and I have found myself listening to 10 times in a row on the same day.  While  The Nostalgia Critic may be sick of  Let It  Go,  I'll never tire of this song.    



Fusionater: Now uh...I...uh...I don't think Let it Go is that great.

















Now don't get me wrong! It's a good song and all and it's got the emotional impact that it tries to get across...but I just don't get it man...Sure the message of the song is unique...but the song itself is meh compared to many other great Disney songs. so ah...big controversial thing out of the way...

My Favorite Moment

I have 3 great moments with Elsa to choose from, the part of the movie where Elsa learns that Erendale has frozen over and can't keep her thoughts straight, the part where she save Anna from icy doom with true love and all that, but the one I like to go with is first rendition of for the first time in forever, where, as I said before, Elsa is putting on her brave face and prepares to live up to all of the peoples expectations about her. and her rationalization that's it's only for today is great foreshadowing and works well with the character.


Moviefan12:  Now let's  move onto  Later Appearances.  However, seeing as this film is  still relatively new,  not everything that'll be discussed here has been  confirmed as of yet.  Let's begin.


Later Appearances


Moviefan12:  The big one to get out of the way right now  is that  is a  rumor  of planned  stage adaption  for Frozen.  Nothing has been seen for this as of yet.  I'm wary  on reporting it because we do not  have the full details but I do find that it's worth mentioning.  Now  Elsa and her sis  had a cameo in  It's A Small World: The Animated Series.













Elsa  is also  in the game,  Disney Infinity




  












You  can also see the sisters  at the parks.  They were originally  at EPCOT  for Disney World and  I had heard  reports that lines to meet Anna and Elsa  could be up to five hours  long.   They  have been added to the Festival of Fantasy parade.











You  can also see Elsa  in World of Color  at Disney  California Adventure

  











And right at now,  at Disney's Hollywood  Studios, they are doing an event called Frozen Summer.  This'll be going  until September 












A podcast, I listen to WDW News Today  had some audio from the event, it includes a Frozen Sing-Along that ends with Elsa coming out and singing a reprise of "Let It Go" with the audience,  there's a Frozen fireworks  show, where at the end, Elsa has to put Olaf back together because the fireworks have caused him to melt.  There's an ice rink and snow area to play in, with Oaken's shop for all your  Frozen merch.  There's a Frozen parade.  











When  I first  learned about Frozen Summer,   my first thought was "Man,  I wish I was at  Disney World for this".  and my second thought was "Please make this annual event like Star Wars Weekend".  because I'd  rather go to a Frozen event than a Star Wars event.  Speaking of which,  there  have also been reports that there be  a Frozen attraction in development.  Last I heard,  it's most likely going to go in EPCOT.    Now,  it's  not just the parks as Disney On Ice  has announced that their  next show is Disney On Ice Presents  Frozen.













Okay,  I have to say  something about the special guests for this show, I get the princesses and I get Mickey and Minnie as they host the Ice shows but what connection does The Lion King Toy Story, and Finding Nemo have to Frozen.  Those seem like really odd characters to have at a Frozen ice show.   



Fusionater: Hm, do you think the ride they are working on will involve the scene in the sled? I think that would be nice, sort of like a haunted hayride type thing.

Well...uh...the Toys pretend to be "Frozen" I suppose...but I think Finding Nemo and Lion King are sort of anti-frozen characters...fish die and the Lino King characters live in Africa for god sakes.



Now let's  move onto one that  had me super excited...






Elsa On Once Upon A Time














Moviefan12:  In the last  minutes of the season 3 finale,  Elsa  made her Once debut.  I remember clearly, when watching this scene.

That  I wasn't  sure that it was Elsa.  Bare in mind, it was almost  midnight, when I was watching this but then I saw this and knew it was her.  















Now from  what I can gather, Elsa  may appear to have a score to settle  with Rumpelstiltskin as  Emma  Swan and Hook  found  an urn  in his  vault of magic that he didn't understand and that said urn had Elsa trapped in it. I am curious to see what they do with Elsa.  It has been confirmed that the Frozen storyline for Once is set after the movie and that we will see Arendelle on the show.  The only thing from Frozen that won't be on Once will be Olaf. Boo!  And yes, Elsa has officially been cast and she will be played by Georgina Haig  and some  pictures  of Elsa  on the set  of Once  have already been   released.





















Not too shabby,    I totally  see  Elsa  there.    And  Once could  you please  avoid  making  her related  to anyone  else on the show.  You have already cast Anna and that's the only family member, Elsa needs.  Please avoid that pitfall.   The family tree on this show is confusing enough.  Fus, seeing as you are also a Once  fan.   What are your thoughts on Elsa being in the next season of Once Upon A Time?





Fusionater: I think the release of Frozen was a blessing for Once, I think they were running low on characters to introduce, and I agree on your assessment of the family tree...


















Personally, I worry that it's to soon after the release of the movie, and that because of that, the Once writers will be hesitant to change as much as they change every other character from the source material. If done right, this could add an interesting new layer to things.


Moviefan12:  As  much as I am looking forward to seeing what show does with Frozen,  I too am a bit hesitant on this for the same reason.  By bringing Elsa,  the show will be bringing in Frozen fans that may otherwise have never watched Once Upon A Time before and if Once's Elsa strays too far  from the one in Frozen, well there are going to be a lot of unhappy  Frozen fans that won't let it go.   To many people, Elsa  is more than just a character.  She's something special.   Now,  it's  time  to move onto  the final part...

Is Elsa A Good Character? 


Moviefan12:   Honestly , yes she is.  Elsa  is  a unique  character for Disney.   She  is  one   of  the bravest,  most intelligent and complex  characters  to come from Disney  in their  entire  canon  of films.   While  Elsa   isn't   in the top  of my  princess  list,  ( my  Top  3  go  Rapunzel,  Ariel, Anna.),  she   is an important  character to the company who  breaks the mold  and shows that  queens  in Disney movies don't  always have to be evil  and her  internal  struggle with her  powers  is quite interesting  to watch.   You feel  for her as  she  tries  to keep  her  powers   under  control.    This  again goes  back  to ideology  of "Conceal, Don't Feel".  but  Elsa  through  her act  of true  love  of saving her younger sister finally  opens  up.   Elsa  may  start the film out  as a tragic figure but as Let  It  Go rolls  around,  she  becomes a strong female.   Now,   she still  has her moments  of worry and being scared such as  the reprise of For The First Time In Forever, where she doesn't  know  how  to fix  the snow  or when she is chained  up  in the dungeon and has a look  on her face of what did I do?

     











That's  the thing being a strong  character doesn't  mean not showing emotions.   Some of the best Disney characters are quite vulnerable and show emotion,  and Elsa is no exception.  Think back to this line from "Let It Go".

You'll Never See Me Cry


Here  Elsa  is  putting  on a brave face because she finally  feels free but  when she sees  what  has happened to Anna  at the end of the film with her sister frozen, she finally relents  and lets all of her emotions out that she has kept bottled up for all those years.

 










This to me  shows how  Elsa  grows  throughout the film  as she  is  opening  up and  this contributes to her in my opinion being one of the best characters to come along in a long time from Disney. 

Fusionater: To me, one of the things that makes Elsa such an excellent character is how much you believe her torment, and how much you want to see her pull through. Metaphors aside, she has the complete and total power to rain destruction on her entire kingdom by accident. That's gotta get to you sometimes, this worry is further fueled by her having almost Frozen her sister when she was just a little kid. Her parents tried their best, albeit making poor decisions, but I don't think anyone could teach someone to get past that.



Moviefan12:  Fusionater,  thank you  for joining me for this rather extensive look at  Elsa.  


 Fusionater: I look forward to working with you sometime again in the future, for now, take care.

 






No comments:

Post a Comment