Despicable Me 2

"Just because everybody hates it doesn't mean it's not good."

When a secret laboratory is stolen by mystery villain with a giant magnet, the Anti-Villain League, "AVL", turns to reformed villain Gru (Carell) for help.  Gru has given up his villainy to focus on his adopted daughters Margo (Cosgrove), Edith (Gaier), and Agnes (Fisher), and make jam and jelly.  Dr. Nefario (Brand) misses the life of crime and quits.

The AVL pairs Gru with new agent Lucy Wilde (Wiig), and sends them to the mall to find the villain.  The mall is populated by strange characters, including Mexican restaurant owner Eduardo (Bratt) who resembles a legendary villain.  While Gru tries to save the day, everyone else is trying to find him a girlfriend.  With his Minions disappearing, can Gru capture the culprit and put things right?


Like most people, I fell in love with Despicable Me back in 2010.  A sequel was inevitable, with expanded screen time for the Minions (the Minions are getting their own film in 2015).

Like it's predecessor, this film is a lot of fun.  The voice cast is phenomenal : once again, the actors disappear into their characters and give them quirky personalities.  Steve Carell continues to nail it as Gru.  Carell is matched by Kristen Wiig.  Lucy is an interesting character, very different from her role in the first film as Miss Hattie.  She is the perfect foil for Gru.  Benjamin Bratt's Eduardo is hilarious and plays to the rafters.  Ken Jeong is funny as wig salesman Floyd Eagle-san (didn't know it was him until after the movie).

The Minions steal the show.  They get to sing together (about ice cream).  You get to know a little bit about the Minions, a few get names, and the even get a few surprises.

A delightful, entertaining family film.

Despicable Me 2 (2013) 98 minutes
Director: Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud
Starring: Steve Carell as Gru
Kristen Wiig as Lucy Wilde
Bejamin Bratt as Eduardo Perez
Miranda Cosgrove as Margo
Elsie Fisher as Agnes
Dana Gaier as Edith
Russell Brand as Dr. Nefario
Ken Jeong as Floyd Eagle-san
Steve Coogan as Silas Ramsbottom

The Mistle-Tones

"Under that corporate robot exterior beats the heart of a rockstar"

Holly (Mowry) loves to sing and dreams about the day that she will be able to join "The Snow Belles", a pop group that her mother founded.  The "Snow Belles" perform every Christmas Eve at the mall.  When a slot opens up, she auditions and expects to make the group, but diva Marci (Spelling) runs the group and refuses to even consider Holly.  Devastated, Holly convinces the Mall Manager (Tatum) to allow other groups to audition for the right to sing on Christmas Eve.  He agrees, infuriating Marci.

Holly's victory is short lived since she does not have a singing group, but recruits her friend and cubicle neighbor AJ (Gala).  They add lovable Larry (Rogel) and shy HR rep Bernie (Duffy) to the group and begin practicing their harmonies and dance moves, but something is missing.  Holly discovers that her boss, Nick (Moore), is a talented performer and blackmails him into helping the group.  Can they work together and win the competition?


Almost every year, ABC Family cranks out a new Christmas movie (or 2).  In 2012, they made a Christmas musical.  The film includes new arrangements of beloved Christmas songs (and the potential to release a soundtrack) and entertaining performances.  It also features beloved stars from my childhood.  Tia Mowry, best known for her role on Sister Sister and other TV roles with her twin sister Tamera Mowry, and as an adult appeared on BET's The Game.  She currently appears on reality show Tia & Tamera and Nick-at-Nite's Instant Mom.  Tori Spelling is also well-known for her television background, starring on Beverly Hills 90210, various reality shows with her husband, and many TV movies.

The characters are not well developed and can be annoying.  Mowry is the lead, but her teammates are more interesting.  The Snow Belles are mostly seen as a group and don't have any personality, with the exception of Spelling who is not likeable in the film.  The songs are good and are entertaining to watch.  It is a decent, mindless TV movie (if you don't look too hard).

The Mistle-Tones (2012) 90 minutes
Director: Paul Hoen
Starring: Tia Mowry as Holly
Jonathan Patrick Moore as Nick Anderson
Andy Gala as AJ
Megan Kathleen Duffy as Bernie
Jason Rogel as Larry
Tammy Townsend as Grace
Reginald VelJohnson as Holly's Dad
Tori Spelling as Marci
Britani Bateman as Staci
Melanie Lewis as Barb
Tanisha Lang as Jennifer
Sydney Sorenson as Amber
Jason Tatum as Mall Manager

Saving Mr. Banks

"No, no, no, no, no! "Responstible" is not a word!"
"We made it up."
"Well, un-make it up."

In 1961, author P.L. Travers (Thompson), traveled to Los Angeles, CA to meet with Walt Disney (Hanks) and potentially sign over the rights to her Mary Poppins.  For the past twenty years Disney had been contacting Travers to turn Mary Poppins into a film.  Travers agreed to the meeting, with a few provisions: the film was not to be a musical, no animation, and she wanted script supervision.

Travers is underwhelmed by California and Disney.  She does not like the vision of the creative team: scriptwriter Dan DaGradi (Whitford) and songwriters Robert (Novak) and Richard (Schwartzman) Sherman.  She has each session recorded to make sure her specific wishes are met.

Hashing out the story causes her to think back on her childhood in Australia and her relationship with her beloved, alcoholic father (Farrell), who served as the inspiration for Mr. Banks.  Can she and Disney reach a compromise with the film?


Obviously we know the outcome, P.L. Travers granted Walt Disney the film rights and in 1964 Mary Poppins premiered in theaters.  The film was met with success and was nominated for 13 Academy Awards and won 5.  However, Travers did not like the film and refused to work with Disney again.  In fact, she was so upset with Disney that when she was approached about adapting the story for the stage, she refused to permit any reference to the Disney version.

The relationship and discussions between Travers and Disney was the subject of Travers' biography Mary Poppins She Wrote and 2 documentaries: The Real Mary Poppins and The Shadow of Mary Poppins.  The documentaries inspired a screenplay by Kelly Marcel, which was produced by Disney Studios.

The cast listened to the recordings from Travers sessions with the creative team and consulted with people that were there, including Richard Sherman.  Emma Thompson is incredible, an inspired casting choice.  She has a difficult role, but makes it look easy.  Tom Hanks disappears into the role of Walt Disney.  He watched footage of Disney and has the mannerisms and little tricks that make you forget that he is playing someone else.  Bradley Whitford, best known for his TV roles (on The West Wing and currently on Trophy Wife).  B.J. Novak is also known for TV (The Office).  Jason Schwartzman typically plays unique characters on film.  Whitford, Novak, and Schwartzman work well together and show a range of emotions.  Colin Farrell is an interesting choice for the father, but really connects with the role and shows the good and bad from Travers' memories.  Annie Rose Buckely tackles young Travers, known as Ginty, and nails the sadness and wonder of the role.

The film doesn't try to demonize Travers or Disney, or idolize them.  Both are shown in positive and negative light throughout the film, and they don't mind showing the humanity of the characters.

The film is a roller coaster of emotions: you'll laugh, you'll get frustrated, you might cry...  And you'll remember the songs of your youth.  Novak and Schwartzman perform a few of the Sherman Brothers original songs ("Let's Go Fly A Kite" and "Feed the Birds" are standouts).  In my Examiner article of the film, I included a video of the main cast singing "Let's Go Fly A Kite" with Richard Sherman.  And over the credits they show pictures of Travers' visit to Disney and pictures from the Mary Poppins premiere.  They also share a clip of the recording of Travers' meeting with the creative team.

A strong film.  You already know the result, but it is an interesting behind-the-scenes look at the making of an iconic film.

Saving Mr. Banks (2013) 125 minutes
Director: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Emma Thomson as P.L. Travers
Tom Hanks as Walt Disney
Annie Rose Buckley as Ginty
Colin Farrell as Travers Goff
Ruth Wilson as Margaret Goff
Paul Giamatti as Ralph
Rachel Griffiths as Aunt Ellie
Bradley Whitford as Don DaGradi
Jason Schwartzman as Richard Sherman
B.J. Novak as Robert Sherman
Kathy Baker as Tommie
Melanie Paxson as Dolly

Hatari!

"You have been drinking a little, hm?"

"No ma'am. I've been drinking a lot."

American Sean Mercer (Wayne) leads a team that spends several months in African capturing wild animals for zoos around the world.  The team consists of Pockets (Buttons) who drives the main truck and is afraid of animals, Kurt (Kruger) a former race car driver who drives the catching car, Luis (deVargas) a former bull fighter, Little Wolf (Cabot) "The Indian" who is a womanizer, and Brandy (Giardon) who was raised in Africa.  The team works well together, until The Indian is stabbed by a rhino and hospitalized.

Meanwhile, the San Diego zoo sends photographer Dallas (Martinelli), to ride along on the captures and take pictures of the catching experience.  She has never been in Africa, can't speak the language, doesn't know the work, and doesn't want to carry a gun.  They also need to hire a replacement for The Indian, so they hire Chips (Blain), his blood donor who is quick with a gun.  Will they fill all their orders and survive the summer, or will egos and romance get in the way?


As I mentioned (in my Top 10 John Wayne Films), I have a healthy love for John Wayne films and this is one of my favorites!  It has a little bit of everything: action, suspense, humor, romance, and a great score by Henry Mancini.  Mancini wrote the song "Baby Elephant Walk" for the film, which continues to be a well-known song.

Each character has a personality (and nationality) and gets some funny quotes.  Comedian Red Buttons stands out with some funny reactions and little comments throughout the film, especially when it comes to catching the monkeys.  They work well as a group, but all stand out.  The animals are also a big part of the film.  The baby elephants are cute and have their own show stopping moment in the film.

The movie was filmed in Africa, and the settings are beautiful.  It is a funny film and outside of the Duke's usual repertoire (of Westerns).

Hatari! (1962) 157 minutes
Director: Howard Hawks
Starring: John Wayne as Sean Mercer
Hardy Kruger as Kurt Muller
Elsa Martinelli as Anna Maria "Dallas" D'Allesandro
Red Buttons as Pockets
Gerard Blain as Chips
Bruce Cabot as Little Wolf "The Indian"
Michele Girardon as Brandy de la Court
Valentin de Vargas as Luis

Click here to see more reviews of Wayne films.

Babes in Toyland

"I don't mind a double-cross and I don't mind a triple-cross, but see that you execute no quadruple-cross. For this, to me, is insincerity."

The people of Mother Goose Village are preparing for the wedding of Tom (Sands) the Piper's son and Mary Contrary (Funicello).  Everyone is happy about the wedding, except for Barnaby (Bolger).  He hires 2 mercenaries, Gonzorgo (Calvin) who's clothes are too small and mute Roderigo (Sheldon) who's clothes are too large, to get rid of Tom.  With Tom out of the picture, he plans to marry Mary and steal her sizable inheritance.

Gonzorgo and Roderigo sell Tom to gypsies and steal Mary's sheep.  Tom manages to escape and reunite with Mary, but they must search for her missing siblings, Bo Peep (Jillian), Boy Blue (Corcoran), Willie (Brian Corcoran), the Twins (Marilee Arnold and Melanie Arnold), and her missing sheep.  With Barnaby chasing after them, can the lovebirds get their happy ending?


I first saw this film as a child... I remember parts of the film (like the ending sequence) and Barnaby's repeated line "come pussyfoot with me" (and the weird walk that accompanies the line).  I remembered enjoying the film and decided to give it a try as an adult.  If definitely loses something with time.

The film is based on Victor Herbert's operetta "Babes in Toyland" from 1903.  The operetta was also the basis for a 1934 film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.  Disney's version is very different from other versions.  The story is different and the songs were re-written to fit their vision.

Annette Funicello was a major Disney star and popular Mouseketeer.  She is paired with pop singer Tommy Sands.  Both are fine in their roles, but Mary and Tom are not particularly interesting characters.  Their singing and dancing is great, but the villains are more interesting.  Ray Bolger is best known for his role as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz.  Here he is having a blast as the mustache twirling villain and gets an extended dance sequence.  Henry Calvin and Gene Sheldon, best known for their roles on Disney's Zorro TV show, are funny as the incompetent henchmen.  They are a great team and do a solid Laurel and Hardy impression.  The rest of the main cast are Disney regulars.  Ed Wynn appeared in numerous Disney films and provided the voice of several animated Disney characters.  Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran regularly worked together in Disney films, although their characters do not interact in this film.  Two years before this film, Kirk and Corcoran appeared in The Shaggy Dog with Funicello.

The film mostly jumps from song to song, with minimal dialogue in between.  None of the songs are particularly memorable, with the exception of the title song (which comes towards the end of the film).  The story moves very slowly and feels twice as long.  There are funny moments and the final battle is entertaining, but it isn't enough to make up for the rest of the film.  This film was a flop for Disney (and was Disney's musical until Mary Poppins 3 years later).  Children will enjoy the film more than adults.

Babes in Toyland (1961) 106 minutes
Director: Jack Donohue
Starring: Ray Bolger as Barnaby
Tommy Sands as Tom Piper
Annette Funicello as Mary Contrary
Ed Wynn as Toymaker
Tommy Kirk as Grumio
Kevin Corcoran as Boy Blue
Henry Calvin as Gonzorgo
Gene Sheldon as Roderigo
Mary McCarty as Mother Goose
Ann Jillian as Bo Peep

Mary Poppins (600th post!)

Happy 600th post!  To celebrate, let's keep with the tradition of reviewing a musical made before I was born: 100 ... 200 ... 300 ... 400 ... 500

"Kindly do not attempt to cloud the issue with facts."

The Banks family of Cherry Tree Lane do not communicate.  Mr. Banks (Tomlinson) works in a bank and desires a strict schedule for his life.  His wife, Mrs. Banks (Johns), is a leader of the suffragette movement and spends her days at rallies.  Their children, Jane (Dotrice) and Michael (Garber), continually escape the care of their nanny, who quits without notice.  The children write an ad for the qualities they want in a new nanny, which their father dismisses as childish nonsense.

The following day the ad is answered by Mary Poppins (Andrews), who meets all of their qualifications and impresses their father.   Mary Poppins is practically perfect in every way and with the help of her friend Bert (Van Dyke) takes the children on a series of adventures.  Can she shake up the Banks family before the wind changes?

I have a deep love for this film.  I grew up watching it and have watched it countless times in my 20+ years (I know all the songs and can quote portions of the film).  Within the last year or so, the film has gained a new place in my heart since it my 2 year old niece's favorite film (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a close second favorite).  She sings the songs and likes to quote Admiral Boom, talking about "hottentots" and "cheeky devils," it is adorable.

The film is a well-loved Disney classic, but making the film was not easy.  The story is based on P.L. Travers "Mary Poppins" books.  Travers published “Mary Poppins” in 1934.  For over 20 years Walt Disney tried to convince Travers to allow him to make the film.  She finally agreed in the 1960s, but often disagreed with Disney over the tone and other details of the film.  The relationship / discussions between Travers and Disney have produced a book (Travers’ biography Mary Poppins She Wrote), 2 documentaries (The Real Mary Poppins and The Shadow of Mary Poppins), and the upcoming film Saving Mr. Banks (starring Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson).


Ultimately, Disney made a musical, with original songs by Robert Sherman and Richard Sherman.  The film won 5 Academy Awards (out of 13 nominations), including wins for the Sherman Brothers and Julie Andrews.  The film endures as a family favorite and was turned into a West End and Broadway musical.

Julie Andrews is incredible as Mary Poppins.  Prior to making the film, she was a star of Broadway, wowing crowds in The Boyfriend, originating the role of Eliza in My Fair Lady, Rogers & Hammerstein's Cinderella, and Camelot.  She has an incredible voice and owns every scene of the film... and somehow she was overlooked for the film version My Fair Lady, but at the end of the day, she got the last laugh when she won the Oscar over Audrey Hepburn (who played Eliza in MFL).  Dick Van Dyke is funny as Bert, and gets to lead the great "Step In Time" song and dance, and he completely disappears into the role of Mr. Dawes Senior.  The kids are Disney regulars and are cute in their roles.  David Tomlinson is great as Mr. Banks.

I still love this film after all these years, and I look forward to seeing the Broadway musical in a few weeks!

Mary Poppins (1964) 139 minutes
Director: Robert Stevenson
Starring: Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins
Dick Van Dyke as Bert / Mr. Dawes Senior
David Tomlinson as Mr. Banks
Glynis Johns as Mrs. Banks
Hermione Baddeley as Ellen
Reta Shaw as Mrs. Brill
Karen Dotrice as Jane Banks
Matthew Garber as Michael Banks
Arthur Treacher as The Constable
Reginald Owen as Admiral Boom
Ed Wynn as Uncle Albert
Jane Darwell as The Bird Woman
Arthur Malet as Mr. Dawes Junior

Red 2

"You gave her a gun?"

"It is America, Frank."

"Everyone else has a gun."

Frank Moses (Willis) is enjoying the normal life with his girlfriend Sarah (Parker), but both long for a little excitement.  Their peace is interrupted by Frank's friend Marvin (Malkovich), who claims they are being hunted by government agents.  The government agents, led by Jack Horton (McDonough), believe Frank has information about a secret government operation called Nightshade.  They manage to escape and travel to Paris to hunt down information dealer The Frog (David Thewlis) for information about Nightshade.

Meanwhile, top assassin Han Cho Bai (Lee) is recruited to kill them.  Han has a history with Frank and holds a long standing grudge against him.  MI6 hires their friend Victoria (Mirren) for the same job.  While in Paris, they discover that Nightshade can be traced back to physicist Dr. Edward Bailey (Hopkins), who has been locked up for decades and is now insane.  The information about Nightshade is also sought by Frank's ex, Russian secret agent Katja (Zeta-Jones).  Can they save the day or will they fall to their younger foes?


After the success of 2010's Red, it was inevitable that they would make a sequel.  Both films are based on the DC Comic "Red" from 2003-2004, created by Warren Ellis and Cully Hammer.  The film had the same writers as the original, Jon & Erich Hoeber and feels like a companion to it's predecessor.  The main cast returned for the sequel, with some shiny new additions and a new director.

Once again, the action sequences are intense (and implausible, but that's part of the fun) but the language is minimal.  Once again, the cast is great.  Helen Mirren steals the show and you look forward to seeing her on the screen.  John Malkovich is also entertaining.  Byung-hun Lee is a welcome addition to the cast and is a well-known Korean action star (I have had The Good, The Bad, and The Weird in my Netflix queue for a few months and look forward to watching it sometime soon).  Anthony Hopkins is fine.  Catherine Zeta-Jones is eh.

Overall, the film is an enjoyable action flick with a great cast.

Red 2 (2013) 116 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for pervasive action and violence including frenetic gunplay, and for some language and drug material
Director: Dean Parisot
Starring: Bruce Willis as Frank
John Malkovich as Marvin
Mary-Louise Parker as Sarah
Helen Mirren as Victoria
Anthony Hopkins as Bailey
Byung-hun Lee as Han Cho Bai
Catherine Zeta-Jones as Katja
Neal McDonough as Jack Horton

The Way Way Back

"Where were you Duncan?"

"Nowhere."

"That's a long time to be nowhere?"

"Well that's where I was!"

Shy teen Duncan (James) is forced to spend the summer with his mom, Pam (Collette), her boyfriend Trent (Carell), and his daughter Steph (Levin).  Trent consistently belittles and humiliates Duncan.  Duncan is content to spend his summer avoiding Trent and doing as little as possible, but their neighbors have other plans.  Recently divorced Betty (Janney) and her children live next door and continually get involved in everyone's affairs.  They also spend a significant amount of time with Trent's good friends, Kip (Corddry) and Joan (Peet).

Duncan finds a bike in the garage and begins exploring the town.  On one of his trips he discovers the local water park called Water Wizz.  The manager, Owen (Rockwell), takes Duncan under his wing and hires him to do odd jobs around the park.  Duncan is happy at the park and learns to have fun with people who accept him as he is, even as his home life gets more complicated.


Nat Faxon and Jim Rash wrote 2011's The Descendants and won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.  For this film, they decided to direct and write the story from scratch, based in part on their own teen years.  The story balances deep emotional moments, uncomfortable situations, and comedy well.  Faxon and Rash are also comedy actors.  Faxon was the star of TV's Ben and Kate (which was cancelled after 1 season) and has had small roles in other films (including several Broken Lizard Films).  Rash plays Dean Pelton on TV's Community and has had many small roles in other films and TV shows.  They have funny, but small acting parts in the film as Water Wizz employees.

The cast is excellent.  Steve Carell completely abandons comedy and embraces an unlikeable character.  Toni Collette also delivers a solid performance as a woman torn between defending her son and sustaining the relationship with her boyfriend.  Allison Janney is a delight playing a character that could be seen as annoying in the hands of another actress.  She is loud and brash, but still extremely caring.  The film focuses more on Liam James' Duncan, who takes a while to warm to, but grows on you.  Sam Rockwell also kills it as Owen.  But the performances as a whole are tremendous.

An enjoyable film.

The Way Way Back (2013) 103 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements, language, some sexual content and brief drug material
Director: Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
Starring: Steve Carell as Trent
Toni Collette as Pam
Allison Janney as Betty
AnnaSophia Robb as Susanna
Sam Rockwell as Owen
Maya Rudolph as Caitlin
Liam James as Duncan
Rob Corddry as Kip
Amanda Peet as Joan
River Alexander as Peter
Zoe Levin as Steph
Nat Faxon as Roddy
Jim Rash as Lewis

Frozen (2013)

"Some people are worth melting for."

The idyllic kingdom of Arendelle is prepared to celebrate the coronation of their new queen, Elsa (Menzel).  Unbeknownst to the kingdom, or her sister Anna (Bell), Elsa has a secret: she can create snow and ice, but can't control her power, so she has stayed locked away from the world.  The coronation means opening the castle gates, which fills Elsa with dread and Anna with joy.

During the coronation Elsa loses control and accidentally and plunges the kingdom into perpetual winter.  She flees to the mountains and vows to stay away from people.  With the kingdom in trouble, Anna puts her new fiance Prince Hans (Fontana) in charge of the kingdom and chases after Elsa.  But finding Elsa is harder than she expected and she enlists some help: rugged loner / ice salesman Kristoff (Groff), his loyal reindeer Sven, and loveable snowman Olaf (Gad).  Meanwhile, the Duke of Weselton (Tudyk) believes Elsa is a monster and sends some men to destroy her.  Can Anna find Elsa and save the kingdom in time?

 

As an avid Disney fan, I have been excited about this film since it was first announced.  I loved the teasers and the trailers and couldn't wait for it to hit theaters.  My mom and I went to see it and we loved it!

Frozen is the 53rd film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series.  The story is based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Snow Queen.”  Disney tried to adapt the story multiple times, but due to various complications the project was shelved.  In 2008, director Chris Buck presented a new take on the story, but they couldn't figure out how to make the film work with traditional animation.  In 2011, they announced that the film would be made using computer animation.

Directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee (the first woman to direct a Disney animated feature film) also wrote the film.  Buck was a Disney animator in the 1980s-early 2000s and co-directed Disney's Tarzan.  Lee was a screenwriter for Disney's Wreck-It Ralph.   They brought on Tony Award winning songwriter Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez to write all the original songs.  Lopez and Anderson-Lopez previously wrote the songs for Disney's Winnie the Pooh in 2011.  The nine original songs are infectious and reminiscent of the classic age of Disney animation (since seeing the film on Tuesday, I have listened to "Let It Go", "The First Time In Forever", "In Summer", "Love Is An Open Door", and "Fixer Upper" many times... planning to buy the soundtrack).

The songs and characters are brought to life by a strong cast.  The 5 main characters are all Broadway vets.  Kristen Bell (best known for TV’s “Veronica Mars”) makes Anna quirky and endearing.  She isn't known for her singing (despite appearing in Reefer Madness, and in on Broadway in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer), but she is excellent here and  holds her own with her co-stars.  Idina Menzel is known for her powerhouse voice (Original Broadway Cast of Rent and won a Tony Award for Wicked, and her turns on TV's "Glee"), and brings down the house with her powerful vocals.  Josh Gad (from Broadway’s “Book of Mormon”) brings a lot of heart and humor to the role of Olaf.  He has the funniest song (embedded below) and gets the best lines.

Jonathan Groff (won a Tony for Spring Awakening, and known for TV's "Glee") gets a short, forgettable song, but is still an entertaining character.  Santino Fontana (Tony nominated for Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella) is entertaining as Prince Hans, and gets a funny duet with Bell.  Alan Tudyk as the Duke of Weselton.

The backgrounds are gorgeous and definitely worth seeing on the big screen.  Looking forward to seeing it again.  The story is a great story for girls and has a nice, unexpected twist towards the end.  A wonderful addition to the Disney family! 

Frozen (2013) 108 minutes
Director: Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee
Starring: Kristen Bell as Anna
Idina Menzel as Elsa
Jonathan Groff as Kristoff
Josh Gad as Olaf
Santino Fontana as Hans
Alan Tudyk as Duke of Weselton