Seriously: Go See Tangled ASAP.
TANGLED
(2010)
Starring the voices of: Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi, Donna Murphy, and Ron Perlman.
Directed by: Nathan Greno, Byron Howard.
Rated: PG
When I saw the first clips for Tangled, I must admit: I was underwhelmed. Yes, the animation looked nice, but the handful of scenes/jokes they showcased felt boring and far too juvenile to tempt me. And after talking with several people, it seems I wasn't the only one misled by the terrible trailers and poor marketing. Because believe me when I say that Disney severely undercut this solid little gem of a flick by releasing some very shoddy previews and allowing the negative press over the renaming/re-targeting for boys overshadow the film itself.
The first time I heard that Disney was going to be tackling the Rapunzel story, the project was entitled, rightly so, Rapunzel. Only a couple weeks later, the company announced it was being re-titled Tangled, and that the trailers would put more of a focus on Flynn Rider, the swashbuckling thief/love interest. Understandably so, the outcry was immediate and impassioned: dozens of critics and bloggers spoke out against these changes, angered that Disney felt a fairy tale story centered around a girl wouldn't attract a big enough male audience.
At the end of the day, I doubt even the thieving Flynn appreciated all of the bad press.
While I was certainly in the annoyed camp against all of these changes, I feel the need to say that the finished product does not undercut the character of Rapunzel, or make her less of a hero when compared to her love interest Flynn. I only hope that Disney has learned a little something from all of the outcry and will avoid making the same pitfalls with their next princess-focused project.
Almost everyone knows the basic premise of the Rapunzel story: a beautiful young woman is trapped inside of a tall tower, and the only way into the tower room is to climb up her impossibly long, magical hair. I've never been much of a fan of that fairy tale, in large part because I can't stand the fairy tales where the princess is a passive participant (which is why I’m not a fan of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, or Cinderella, either).
All that being said, Disney managed to make me fall in love with Rapunzel with this sweet and clever little re-telling. In this version, Rapunzel is a princess with fabulous hair thanks to a magical flower her mother ingested while pregnant. When the princess sings a special incantation, her hair glows and can heal wounds or keep people young. The greedy Mother Gothel kidnaps the young princess and locks her away in a tower to ensure that she will be the only one to benefit from this magic. But on Rapunzel's 18th birthday, the dashing and golden-hearted thief Flynn Rider climbs into her tower to hide from palace guards -- and soon finds himself agreeing to chaperon the sheltered young woman so she can fulfill her life-long dream of seeing the lighting of the kingdom's lanterns.
The smoulder won't work on her, Flynn. She won't hesitate to break it.
Since the 90s, Disney has done a good job of making their heroines feisty, fierce, and often more heroic than their prince/love interests. Rapunzel is no exception: yes, she's a bit naive and sheltered, but there's an obvious reason for that. When you've spent your entire life in a tower with only a vain, greedy "Mother" to talk to, wouldn't you believe her when she told you the outside world was full of plague and evil and cruelty? For all of that, Rapunzel doesn't hesitate to grab a frying pan to defend herself against a strange man and knows how to use her hair with all of the precision and gusto of a trained ninja. This isn't a girl who shrinks from danger -- yes, she's frightened by it, but she's more likely to brain you with her frying pan or lasso your feet with her hair than run away screaming.
The characters of Tangled are fun and well-crafted. Flynn Rider is charming, witty, and a sweetheart underneath the swagger -- his background story is pretty predictable, but c'mon, people! This is a fairy tale! Part of the fun is the retelling of classic tropes, and it's handled nicely here, without falling too far into sentimentalism or angst. He's easily one of the most handsome Disney protagonists, and we all have to agree that the fellows with great senses of humor are even more attractive. Zachary Levi was fabulous as Flynn; words can't properly convey how much I adored him in this role. And he can sing! WHY HAVE YOU BEEN HIDING THAT TALENT FROM US, MR. LEVI?
What I loved the most about Flynn is that he really isn't the true hero of the picture -- and neither is Rapunzel, for that matter! In terms of true, action heroics, another character trumps them both; but I won't reveal who it is, because it's a pretty hilarious and fun realization when you watch the film yourself.
Rapunzel has a lot of fire and youthful enthusiasm, and is incredibly artistic and sweet. I know there's a lot of hate for Mandy Moore out there, but I must say: she won me over completely in this role. She was wonderful at imbuing Rapunzel with all of the fear and longing and sweetness the part called for, and her singing was quite nice. It's lovely to watch Rapunzel's growth as a character throughout the film, and her relationship with Flynn feels a bit more organic and sweet than most fairy tale set-ups, where the couple fall in love almost immediately. Here, they have their moments of friction and doubt, and there's a great sense of partnership between them by the final scene.
Mother Gothel is a great villain -- she avoids a lot of the stereotypical villain cliches, and you even get the sense at times that a part of her actually does care about Rapunzel, be it in a twisted, selfish way. She builds her whole life around this young girl with magical hair, and spends most of her time with her. And although Rapunzel is sheltered and habitually lied to or belittled (see: "Mother Knows Best"), at least you never get the sense that she's been horribly treated. It seems Gothel encouraged her hobbies, and the tower is a rather lovely little home. And she's great fun to watch/hear. Donna Murphy did a fabulous job with the voice-acting, instilling a lot of sass to the character, and her big song and dance number is belted with all of the gusto of a Broadway diva.
It wouldn't be a Disney picture without some animal sidekicks, and Tangled is no different: for Rapunzel there’s the loyal pet chameleon Pascal, and as a foil for Flynn is the dedicated palace horse Maximus. While both have plenty of human characteristics, they don't fall into the "annoying animal sidekick" roles, in large part because neither of them speak, which I think was a wise choice. The humor is even funnier with Pascal and Maximus because they don't crack wise or throw around puns/pop culture references -- all of the laughs are elicited by the body language and facial expressions.
The animation is gorgeous, particularly of the kingdom. I'm almost 100% convinced that the inspiration for the island was Mont St. Michel in France, especially during the nighttime lantern scenes: with all of the lights, it's almost a perfect copy of the French island. The houses of the town are very cute and detailed, very gingerbread-y and quaint. With the clothes, architecture, and sailing ships in the harbor, there's a definite sense that we're watching a fairy tale unfold in the 1700s, and I love it. There's a great usage of colours and lighting, and the action scenes are fun and thrilling (I saw this in 2D, though I'm sure a lot of the sequences would have looked even neater in 3D).
The film's only real flaw, if you want to call it that, is that the music and songs aren't incredibly memorable. The songs are definitely written more in a musical style, wherein they forward the plot or explain a character rather than serve as a singular piece of memorable music. The Tangled soundtrack will never compare to the other great Disney soundtracks, like Beauty and the Beast or Aladdin; but I think we need to accept that there's a chance we won't see such stellar music in a Disney film again -- or if we do, it won't be for several more pictures/years. The 90s were a golden age for Disney, and it's been pretty clear that the films since haven't quite lived up to that standard.
Ultimately, what I enjoyed the most about Tangled was how unexpectedly sweet and funny it was. There are a lot of genuinely amusing moments -- Ashlee and I laughed hysterically through most of the film the first time we saw it. By avoiding pop culture references that wouldn't age well over time and sticking to funny reactions and observations, Tangled was easily as funny as The Princess and the Frog. And then there were moments of sincere emotion that struck me in a way I wasn't prepared for: the King, Rapunzel's father, made me sob unrestrainedly without ever speaking a word. Watch and you'll understand.
Tangled is a real little gem of a film -- if you're a fan of Disney, fairy tales, or just cute animated pictures in general, don't miss this one. Trust me, you'll think about it long after you leave the theater.
On a scale of 1 to 10: Tangled gets a solid 8 from Angie B.
Click to viewEasily the best trailer I've found for this. IT ACTUALLY GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT THE STORY REALLY IS.