A Spoiler-Free Review of "Tangled"

First of all, let me just say it right away: I LOVED this movie. It is now my third-favorite Disney princess film, after "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Little Mermaid". Perhaps even tied with "The Little Mermaid". There's only one thing holding it back from placing higher than Mermaid: the songs. They're fun, and sometimes beautiful, and fit just fine within the framework of the film, but they aren't Ashman/Menken quality. I'm still absolutely buying the soundtrack and have had a few songs stuck in my head the past few days, particularly "Mother Knows Best (Reprise)", "I See the Light", and one pricelessly hilarious line from "I've Got a Dream". I also was a little disappointed that the last shot of the film *MINOR SPOILER* was of a character other than the two protagonists, *END SPOILER* but I can forgive the film that because the rest of it was so splendid.

All right, now a brief summary of reasons why I loved "Tangled". I do mention a couple extremely minor spoilers, but have included warnings where they appear, so if you don't want to read them, you can easily navigate around them. They do not give away anything essential to the plot. :)

1. Rapunzel. Not much is really given away about her personality in the trailers. It was a surprise to me, therefore, to realize at the end of the film that she's somehow become my second-favorite Disney princess--yes, beating out Ariel! I think the difference between her and Ariel is while Ariel was willful, Rapunzel is sweeter, though no less brave. Rapunzel is both hilarious and heartwrenching to watch because she is constantly attempting to define herself throughout the film, having been trapped in her tower all her life without any way of connecting with other people, apart from being emotionally abused by the villain of the story, Mother Gothel. What I really liked about her is how often she acts not on rationalized thought, but instead upon intuition, a 'gut feeling', if you will. Interacting outside her tower is an entirely new experience to her, and sometimes she's scared, and sometimes she's confused, but she's quick and intelligent and even though she has to slowly gain confidence in herself, she never hesitates in moments of trouble to do what she instinctively feels she must. The entire movie she's basically making one leap of faith after another, and that's sometimes taken advantage of by other characters, but it also is what saves her and develops her. One of my favorite moments of the film *MINOR SPOILER* is where she starts an impromptu dance in a market square and ends the dance in Flynn's arms; there's this shot of her dancing with a blissful smile on her face, her eyes closed and face uplifted, which to me was pure poetry, and really summarized her character for me. After trying to meet him throughout the dance, she only manages it with her eyes closed, letting her feet carry her as they will. *END SPOILER* She's a wonderfully endearing, complex, sometimes sad, sometimes hilarious character.

2. Flynn. I can't say too much about his character without heading into spoiler territory, but it was very enjoyable to watch his character arc progress. He and Rapunzel basically make the cutest couple ever, and he's both a hilarious character in his own right and surprisingly easy to form an emotional attachment to considering how little backstory he gets in comparison to Rapunzel. After watching some trailers I was worried he would be obnoxious, but he wasn't at all, so no worries there.

3. Mother Gothel. Again, I cannot say too much about this villian without giving away important plot points. I will mention something I found very interesting, however; I thought she was an extremely wicked villain, and quite scary, definitely one of my favorite Disney antagonists now. My brother, however, wasn't that impressed by her; he prefers Frollo and Ursula. So what I'm wondering, is whether she was designed specifically to work better with a female audience? I loved her subtleties and sweet venom, but he didn't find them that interesting I think. I won't say more for fear of spoilering, so just let me know what you think, if you've watched the movie.

4. The music. Alan Menken can do no wrong? Eh, maybe. There were moments where I missed the chillingly powerful beauty of "Beauty and the Beast"'s score, sure. But the more I think on the music in this film--a slightly more intimate, fun feel pervaded most of it--, the more it seems to fit it. And there were plenty of chill-inducing moments, too *MINOR SPOILER*; watch for the dancing scene, a beautiful moment involving Rapunzel's parents, and many of the darker scenes in the film, as well as one sweet romantic moment too. *END SPOILER* The magic is still there, definitely. The track 'Kingdom Dance' on the soundtrack is one of my favorite pieces of music ever.

5. The animal characters. I don't really have a peeve against animal sidekicks like so many people seem to, but whatever. These guys don't talk, but their facial and body language is plenty eloquent enough. I was worried they'd distract from the human story, but overall they enhance it, so yay :)

6. The animation. I watched "Tangled" in 3d, and I would say it is definitely worth spending the extra money for. The animation is astounding. The characters are as expressively and gracefully animated as hand-drawn characters from the Disney Golden Age, and that old artistic feel of 2d is somehow apparent in the scenery and location designs too, but all with the added warmth and detail and vibrant color of CGI. I honestly don't know how they did it. This is a CGI film that feels 100% fairytale, and I thank Glen Keane for that fervently. Rapunzel's hair is gorgeous, and speaking as a girl with very long hair I really liked watching how it moved and how it looked when it was wet, etc. All very well done. I no longer can really say I wish it was in 2d, hand-drawn animation, which I suppose is the highest praise I can bestow.

7. The story. Obviously I can't say anything about this really. But let's just say that I'm a sucker for romance, adventure, and self-sacrifice, and this story had them all.


All right, so that's all I'm going to say right now! I might have been able to think of more earlier, but I'm tired now and it's late so I'm just going to end here and get back to NaNoWriMo-ing. If you have watched "Tangled", comment and let me know what you thought! And if you have not watched it--what are you waiting for? Go ASAP; this is not a film you want to miss.

"Tangled" Tomorrow!

I am so extremely excited about this film, it's unbelievable. It's an obsession. I'm terrified it won't live up to my expectations. Augh, why do I do this to myself?

Here's a shiny new trailer--Japanese, no less!--which is a million times better than the standard American trailers. Why couldn't the American trailer been more like this one in tone? It gave both me AND my 16-year old brother goosebumps. Take a look. The audio is in English, never fear, although the voiceover is Japanese. I tried to get my brother to translate for me, but he was able to manage translating only about 60% of it.



I've been kidding my younger sister and saying that we shouldn't comb our hair until we watch the film. My younger sister is 10 and has never had a haircut, and my own hair is down to my knees, so we are major Rapunzel fans.

Sacramento was gorgeous and fun. The drive there and back went pretty well, all things considered--we got a new 12-seater van, which was really strange, especially since I was sitting in the back and found out the hard way that my parents in the front seats can't hear me when I'm way back there unless I yell at the top of my lungs. HR, my 6-week-old baby sister, cried sporadically but overall was extremely well-behaved. I'm very proud of her.

I did not recall in my championship, but I did place 22nd. To be ranked 22nd in the entire Western Region is not a bad thing; sure I wish I had placed high enough to be recalled, but I am grateful I was able to dance at all, and enjoyed myself. I haven't been to any big competitions in a long while.

My little siblings weren't that excited about the competitions, since they go to feises all the time; dance is old news now. Instead, they were excited about other things: a horde of cows we saw (and smelled) on the drive; trying to translate the Latin painted on the walls of the cathedral we attended Mass in; howling with laughter when the wind blew my umbrella inside-out during a rainstorm; seeing magpies for the first time; collecting the bright-red fallen maple leaves. I liked all that too, as well as the cold weather; it was nippy, but so refreshing a change, especially seeing all the fall colors.

There was a basketball court at the hotel we stayed at, so my dad got a basketball from the front desk and we all trooped outside to play. The littlest kids have never played basketball before, so it was fun teaching them and seeing them attempt to dribble and shoot a ball which is basically as big as them. Then we had an impromptu game after dividing up into teams. It was fun until my 16-year old brother for some reason decided to pass the ball to me by throwing it as hard as he could at my face while I was standing about two feet away from him. I was afraid I had broken my nose at first, but it seems okay now, though still very sore if I touch it. That was the end of the game for me, anyway.

Now I will spend the rest of the month focusing on exercising, "Tangled" (I am saving to buy the soundtrack and graphic novel), Thanksgiving, and my NaNoWriMo novel. Said novel is currently only at 15,000 words, partly because I spent the last week or so devoting all my writing energies to writing a birthday story for one of my sisters (it ended up being 38 pages long), and partly because of how dance has been eating up my time this month. I wrote a lot more on the car trip though, and I'm determined to get back on track. Somehow. I'll do it. I WILL.

"Tangled"!

First of all, I am soooooo excited for this movie, it's almost absurd. As a "Beauty and the Beast" devotee I have the bar raised incredibly high for "Tangled", but I honestly think it'll clear that bar just fine. Everything I know about it just makes me fall in love with it more. Have you seen the clips Disney has released?



Only three words really to say about this clip: ALAN MENKEN MUSIC. Oh, and Rapunzel is adorable.



And the animation is beautiful too!



As for the characters? I LOVE them.

And the songs?



I can't wait to hear them in full! I'm going to be like a little kid at the theater.

If anyone else out there is as excited about this film as I am, here's a few giveaway contests you might be interested in; follow the links for the details: http://tanisharenee.blogspot.com/2010/11/disneys-tangled-giveaway.html and http://thedirtytshirt.com/walt-disney-pictures-tangled-giveaway

Before I can watch "Tangled", however, I have to get through Oireachtas, which is next weekend! I'm extremely nervous, and I'm not sure if it's more terrifying or reassuring to know that this time next week it will all be over. Today was a five-hour dance practice, and I'm still exhausted from that.

So, this will be a very busy week for me. I might not even post again until after the Oireachtas is finished! If that is the case, wish me luck everyone, and see you again on the other side!

I've been wondering today about what book Belle is reading in the beginning of 'Beauty and the BEast'. I mean, Belle is one of my heroes (heroines?) and so I've wanted to know what her favorite book is since I was very small, but for some reason the question has returned to puzzle me today, I'm not sure why. When I was small, I was convinced that the book was "The Princess and the Goblin" by George MacDonald, but I couldn't really tell you why that is.

Three more weeks until "Tangled" is released, and I can't wait! A song, a romantic duet, has been released online by Disney, and it's utterly charming. I'm trying to not remember that before I can watch the film, I have to get through Oireachtas, which is the weekend previous . . . too scary a notion, that!

Another scary notion? The idea that NaNoWriMo is only 2 days in, and I'm already behind. Only by 700 words or so, but . . . eesh. I'm going to stay up now before bed to get caught up. Yes. Song currently running through my head: "Hushabye Mountain" from "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang". One of my favorite movies, but I haven't seen it in a while, I wonder why I'm thinking of it now?

Book reviews for October coming up soon! And there's actually quite a lot of reviews this time, too!

The Hobbit!

Aaaaah, so 'The Hobbit' is FINALLY greenlit, and yesterday the first round of casting was announced. We now know who our Bilbo, Thorin, Fili, Kili, Dwalin, Gloin, Ori, and Bombur are. I, being a devoted Tolkien fan and scholar, am absolutely thrilled. I read 'The Hobbit' for the first time when I was five, so it's been a dear friend of mine for a long time. Can't wait to see what the films are going to be like! My only difficulty now is not going onto spoiler-y sites to look up set photos, clips, interviews, etc; I want to see the two movies relatively unspoiled, but I also have zilch patience. I guess I'll just see what happens and how much I can resist the siren call of theonering.net. I'm even debating with myself about whether I want to look up the rest of the casting announcements when they arrive or whether I want to remain blind about the rest of the cast. I don't know!

Anyway, Martin Freeman is Bilbo. I was, originally, rooting for James McAvoy to have the role, but then he got cast in a X-Men movie of some sort so I figured that was out of the question now . . . And I also watched the new BBC miniseries 'Sherlock' over the summer. In 'Sherlock', Freeman plays John Watson, and it was my first time watching him act. Basically, based on his performance in the miniseries, I'm absolutely happy with him as Bilbo, and think he will do a great job. If you haven't watched the series, maybe check it out (I think it premieres in America soon) so you can craft your own opinion.

Also, Richard Armitage is Thorin. Something I'm loving about the casting so far is how varied all the actors look, not only physically but also age-wise. The thirteen dwarves will really be an ensemble of thirteen characters who will hopefully be all distinct and nuanced persons we can really connect with, and not just thirteen Gimli-clones, which I'm very pleased about. I liked Rhys-Davies as Gimli in LotR, but he mostly left the emotional weight of the story to other characters like Aragorn or Sam, and so dwarves based solely around his character just wouldn't work in 'The Hobbit'. Armitage is actually a tall, stately-looking fellow, but I love that he'll be Thorin. He's a great actor. If you like period costume dramas in the tradition of 'Pride and Prejudice' or 'Jane Eyre', do yourself a favor and check out the 2004 BBC production 'North and South'. It's a beautifully done miniseries, and the male lead is played by Armitage. Although the performance is a little old now, it'll still give you an idea of his capabilities.

I made a pact with some friends that when 'The Hobbit' comes out I'm going in costume, dressed as the Lonely Mountain, so now I can actually look forward to that, hahaha. Not sure how I'll pull it off yet, but I'll do it! It's a little sad that my most-anticipated film is still two years away, but at least it's finally getting made now after so many years of stagnancy. It'll be twelve years since FotR first opened in theatres, can you believe it? Wow.

Speaking of movies I'm looking forward to, there's a few left this year that I'm eagerly anticipating:

• Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I love the Narnia books, and have liked both Narnia films pretty well so far, so I really want to see this. I've heard rumors about plot changes that are a bit weird though, and I doubt it can beat the awesomeness of the original BBC miniseries from years ago. Still, I want to watch it, partially because I hope it'll be good anyway, and partly because I just want to support the Narnia franchise so that later books in the series--most notably The Horse and his Boy and my favorite, The Silver Chair--will also get the film treatment. I really like the Edmund and Lucy actors, and Eustace looks like he'll be great, so hopefully it'll be a fun film!
  
• Tron: Legacy. I like the original 'Tron', and so I'm stoked about this. I'm not usually one to put visuals over story, but--The effects look amazing in this movie! That's all I'm going on at the moment because I don't know much about the plot, but hopefully with Pixar helping out it'll be worth watching. Anyway: Cool music, cool visuals, fun actors, sequel to a film I already like--Yeah, I wanna see this one.
• Tangled. This is a later addition to the 'I want to watch this' party, but I'm actually more excited for it now than I am for the other two. The reason? I have chosen to believe the directors, numerous early reviewers, and the evidence of my own eyes from reading an already released junior novelization of the film that this movie is going to be a humorous fairytale musical but in the tradition of classic Disney, instead of choosing to believe it will be the kind of Shrek-esque movie that the trailers apparently want viewers to think it is. I am so in love with the movie I hope this movie to ultimately be, I'm worried I'll be disappointed even if it's good. But anyway. Do I wish it was animated in traditional 2d? Well, yeah. Am I going to hold that against it? Not at all. I'm hoping they managed to get an artistic look from their 3d animation, since art is of course not limited to one dimension specifically. I linked to a trailer even though I think the trailers are doing an atrocious job of teasing what the film will actually be like (I mean, pop music? What??), but I'm also going to link to some interviews and reviews (here, here, and here) so you can get an idea of why I'm actually excited for this film. Also, Alan Menken's score is apparently a fusion of medieval style and 1960's folk rock. YES.

What do you think of 'The Hobbit' casting? And are there any films you're excited to see in the last few months of this year, or does nothing look appealing? Leave a comment! ^_^