Tag: review

Posted in Uncategorized

“Frozen” Cooled…

Posted on by Wick

If you’re like me, you’ve had people fillin’ up your Facebook feed with how incredible this new Disney classic, “Frozen” is.  I hope you haven’t gotten enough yet, because I’ve got a few things to add that you may not have thought of.  It seems Disney knew just how many of us needed to hear a great story about the bond between sisters, how triumph can rise through tragedy, and the importance of God’s creatures in the midst of it all.

It doesn’t hurt that the music itself is catchy too.  Especially one of the most popular tunes (Do you wanna build a snowman?), that is just too good to sing without imagining yourself knocking playfully on your sisters door.  The song also helps drive the action of the movie forward, by revealing how these sisters have an opportunity to become even closer.  Not that it was “great” to see their parents die, but we definitely could use more cartoon images of tragedy becoming transformed into something life-bringing.  In this case, a bond between sisters that many families never experience.  It’s obvious with all the redemptive messages, this story has it’s roots deeeeeply planted in Hans Christian Anderson’s “The Snow Queen“.

Even knowing all of this, I was content to “Let It Go” (pun intended) until this past week I was flooded with likes on this particular post, praising the “subversive nature” of the movie.  I was encouraged by his writing, and decided if there was something connecting our lives to the stories and songs of the movie – then it SHOULD be shared in case it connects with you as well!  As my 3 daughters belt out the words from every song off the soundtrack (of course, we’ve got it!), Frozen-movie-posterit’s obvious there are even more messages in the movie than we see at first glance!  Let’s take a moment, and appreciate, one song at a time, how powerful those messages are:

1. Frozen Heart – A song bursting with sexual equality.  Why else put a song about harvesting ice on a soundtrack for a movie so obviously geared towards young girls?  That’s right, daughters, even YOU can grow up to become ice harvesters, UFC champions, and extreme bikers!  As they swing their imaginary ice equipment to the rhythms of the song, I see a future president being formed…

2. Do You Want to Build a Snowman? – Point started above.  Here Disney has achieved an incredibly artistic balance of tragedy and hope, sprinkled with a bit of sisterly mischief and magic.  My daughters smile as they’re reminded – even when mommy and daddy are otherwise occupied, they have someone to play with!!

3. For the First Time in Forever – I smile as I imagine so many Freshmen in college singing this song in jest as they run down the hall in their dorm.  A proclamation of freedom from the things that used to bind us. Whether it’s controlling forces from outside, or our very own fears and hesitations.  Possibly even a message celebrating freedom from the trappings of sin!  Such a great song for our children to sing!

4. Love is An Open Door – I’m tearing up even thinking about these lyrics.  This song is so obviously a statement about how much an impact love can make.  To transform the life of an orphan.  To change the life of a selfish wanderer.  To make someone realize that so much can be made possible, through the doorway of Love.  Notice the title of the song begins with a capital “L”.  That means this song is talking about Jesus.  Boom.  Even more powerful now.   Sing away, kids!!

5. Let it Go – A song celebrating freedom.  We hold ourselves back, and push ourselves down far too often.  Fear of public speaking is number one?  Who doesn’t need to hear the message of this song?  Especially starting at a young age, our children need to know how incredibly precious their contributions are.  Even Jesus said, “Let the children come.”  This song is a great way for children to begin to internalize their worth, no matter how the world might respond.

6. Reindeers are Better Than People – In breakthrough research, Disney has decided that song is the best way to reveal new findings that yes, in fact, reindeers ARE better than people.  It makes sense.  Have YOU ever been lied to by a reindeer?  Ever seen a reindeer running for a political office?  Point made.

7. In Summer – Yes!!  We should all be so hopeful!  The snowman gets extremely excited about spending time in summer…even though he was made for winter.  We all can dream of places or experiences we’d love to have, and yet feel like we were “created for something less”.  Don’t believe it!  God wants nothing short of the Kingdom of Heaven for us…and we cannot buy the lie that we are doomed to live fallen lives, subject to the impact of sin.

8. For the First Time in Forever (reprise) – A sung dialogue where one sister finally understands her sibling, and offers her loving support.  She’s persistent in her love, even to the point of being chased away by a snow monster named Marshmallow.  It’s a great reminder to our children, that showing love to, and being there for family is worth any risk/effort.

9. Fixer Upper – Here Disney battles the famous myth of the “Perfect guy/girl for me”.  For anyone in a long-term committed relationship, we know that Love is required to endure.  It’s the only foundation for a life together.   Even “a little bit of love” is enough to transform a relationship, and help us to see what God sees…..the heart.  Not requiring that person to change so that we can love them…..but loving them in the direction of a Hope-filled future together.

10. Let it Go – (Demi Lovatto version)  Obviously this song was so incredible, they needed a current pop star with the vocal talent to really cement it as a “Song for the Times”.  You’ll look back on Christmas 2013 as the “Year I heard the song.”, thanks to Demi really making it shine.

So there ya’ go.  The actual soundtrack has a 2nd album with songs that didn’t make the cut, and lots of instrumentals.  But I think there’s plenty to gift our kids with right there.  In fact, there was so much packed into these songs, they didn’t want to overwhelm the audience by adding more to the significant and powerful ending moments of the movie.

Ps. If you missed it, this post is primarily a counter-balance for the one from a few days ago…

Posted in Uncategorized

“Frozen” Thawed…

Posted on by Wick

If you’re like me, you’ve had people fillin’ up your Facebook feed with how incredible this new Disney horror story, “Frozen” is.  Apparently a lot more people are into kids’ growing up without friends, experiencing the death of both parents, and men being intimate with reindeer than I realized.  A little girl realizes she’s a bit of a freak (I realize that’s harsh, but she hasn’t realized she’s a certain race/sexual preference/physically disabled/or whatever symbolism you wanted to give it……she’s realized she magically turns everything/everyone around her to ice.  THAT is freaky.), and to keep her and the world both safe, they’ve locked her up and taught her to keep her talent hidden.

Okay sure, the music is a bit catchy.  Until you realize that song you’re humming (Do you wanna build a snowman?) is the tune that told the story of two sisters being harshly separated, and containing a montage of scenes where their parents are both drowned off by Disney in an effort to force the story forward (such a force returns multiple times throughout the movie), leaving lonely girls in a dreary kingdom.   It’s silly that the credits even say “Based on (or Inspired by) ‘The Snow Queen’ by Hans Christian Anderson”.  The story has very little in common, beyond snow.

So I was content to “Let It Go” (pun intended) until this past week I was flooded with “likes” on this particular post, Frozen-movie-posterpraising the “subversive nature” of the movie.  Now I had to speak up.  Subversive?  Messages that teach my daughters how to be strong/healthy young women?  Let’s be honest, our kids aren’t paying attention to the underlying subversive psychologies hidden in the movie.  As my 3 daughters belt out the words from every song off the soundtrack (yup, we’ve got it), it’s obvious what messages they’ll be getting from this movie (beyond wanting freeze superpowers): The Songs.  Let’s take a moment and appreciate, one song at a time, how dangerous those messages are:

1. Frozen Heart – Okay this one is alright.  Although when they dance to it, my girls imagine themselves as masculine ice-cutters, swinging away their giant ice cutting devices to the rhythms.  Once again my point is made.  My daughters aren’t encouraged here to “break through” to any “frozen hearts”.  They’re encouraged to pretend they are ice harvesters.  Perhaps that IS subversive, as we all know how sexist the ice-harvesting industry can be.

2. Do You Want to Build a Snowman? – Point made above. And right when my girls “get into the song”, there comes a musical interlude where our 4 year old says, “This is where the mommy and daddy die, right dad?”  Thanks, Disney.  Nothing lifts spirits like hearing your daughters sing a song about being the sister who’s ignored.

3. For the First Time in Forever – How long before someone uses this song to make fun of homeschooled kids?  I do enjoy the confusion between being “elated or gassy”, though.  But it’s downhill from there, to a girl who can’t wait to meet “The One”, and hoping to be noticed by anyone to affirm her self-worth.  The song closes with her sister joining in, & seeds being planted about a future song bashing on self-control/temperence.  Can’t wait…

4. Love is An Open Door – Subversive indeed.  She meets a guy the first time she leaves the castle, and they fall instantly in love.  Such incredibly well-established love obviously opens the door to a life of bliss together…or at least, enough bliss to last the song.  Do we want daughters who get disappointed every time they leave the house, that they didn’t mean a man who swept them off their feet to music?  To look forward to finally finding the guy who will open up the life they’ve truly been waiting for?  That’s right….being single is nothing but a closed door, girls.

5. Let it Go – A song celebrating a lack of self-control, and celebrating being so far away from people you can do whatever you want without worrying about hurting them by being the horrible person you are.  Zero accountability means I can never do anything wrong, right?  Let my storm loose, and who cares about the consequences?  At least I’m being “who I really am”.

6. Reindeers Are Better Than People – Awkward animal-loving Hans, teaching our kids to distrust every other human being.  ‘Nuff said.

7. In Summer – Okay, so I actually love this song.  But my kids are learning to be horribly dishonest to talking snowmen as they snicker listening to it.  Someday that’ll come back to bite us.

8. For the First Time in Forever (reprise) – A sung dialogue where one sister finally understands her sibling, and offers her loving support.  Her sister refuses the help, and tells her to go away. “Dad, this is where she makes a snow monster, right?”  Once again…not behavior I’m wanting my kids to model.

9. Fixer Upper – Sure he walks funny, gets grumpy, has weird feet, smells gross, has a weird thing for reindeer, runs funny, and is socially impaired…but he’s sensitive and sweet!  And no matter that she’s already engaged to be married, as long as she’s not wearing a ring it’s insignificant.  A “little bit of love” is all you need to become blind to whatever is wrong.  The song even reminds us “people don’t really change”.

10. Let it Go – (Demi Lovatto version) Not even sure why this one was needed.  Perhaps to remind our older daughters who notice the difference, “Do anything you want like the princess, but understand that no matter how you do – they’ll eventually hire someone who can do it better.”  Nice.

So there ya’ go.  The actual soundtrack has a 2nd album with songs that didn’t make the cut, and lots of instrumentals.  But I think there’s enough to mess up our kids right there.  Sure, the story comes around to sisters loving each other, and warming hearts, and saying goodbye to the guy she thought was “The One” instead of gettin’ hitched. But none of those important bits of the movie are important enough to warrant a song….and thus….forgotten until next time they watch it.

Ps.  I mean very little of what I’ve said here.  I got carried away.  I think I just really love “Tangled” too much, although the music for Frozen is pretty darn catchy.  Can’t get it out of my head.  Almost….subliminal, actually.

Hmm…..

(PPS – If you really enjoyed “Frozen”, you may enjoy the post I wrote from the opposite perspective. Same exact approach. :))