With last week’s Academy Awards nominations announced, I was reminded again of how pleasantly surprised I was by “Frozen,” the Disney animated movie that’s a very loose retelling of the Snow Queen. It was a sweet, fun, completely enjoyable movie in its own right (and goodness knows I have sat through plenty of formulaic stinkers in the quest of a few hours’ respite with the kids). But what made it even better was how utterly awesome it was for girls.
Far more than Pixar’s “Brave” (which I found something of a disappointment), “Frozen” is girl-centered and empowering.
1. Anna, the heroine, goes off to rescue her sister – she’s the one driving the action, and at heart the plot is all about their bond.
2. Her sister (the snow queen) shakes off her fear about not being like everyone else and builds herself this cool ass ice crystal palace where she lets her hair down and belts out a song about being – and loving – yourself (“Let It Go”)
3. There’s insta-love, but amazingly, the movie pulls the rug out from under it. Finding a man is actually secondary!
I’m not saying this is some heavy-handed feminist treatise. Just, it’s nice to take the kids to a popcorn movie and feel like there’s something up there for my daughter.