Tangled
If thereâs one thing that Disney has gotten right over all these years when it comes to their animated movies, itâs their depiction of female characters. From Snow White to Cinderella to Ariel to Belle to Jessica Rabbit, the Disney animators have crafted some absolutely BEAUTIFUL âdream womenâ and brought them to life in such a way that only the most repressed male viewer couldnât wind up having a crush on at least one of them. That tradition is happily continued in their newest classic from 2010 with Rapunzel, the lost princess trapped in her tower with long golden blonde hair which can not only be used for climbing, but has magical healing powers as well (thus making her nothing short of a literal goddess). As designed and brought to life with the latest in state of the art CGI and voiced by Mandy Moore, Rapunzel is literally gorgeous and adorable in every way, and as a character wonderfully anchors the story while winning the hearts of viewers with her winsome personality as well as her tender vulnerability and insecurity. And thus the Disney animated production line gets back on track with this cute and charming effort as Rapunzel is whisked away from her royal parents as a baby by the evil witch Gothel (voice of Donna Murphy) where she is raised to believe the witch is her mother when really all she cares about is using Rapunzelâs hair to stay young and beautiful. One day a devil may care thief named Flynn Rider (voice of Chuckâs Zachary Levi) stumbles across the tower and uses it as a place to hide only to get liberal doses of Rapunzelâs frying pan. When he comes to, she makes a deal with him to give back his latest prized steal that she has hidden if he agrees to take her out into the world specifically so she can see the floating lanterns that her real parents release into the air every year on her birthday as a reminder that they still long for her to come home. And so we get everything that a starstruck little girl could ever get in a movie, including the budding romance, heart lifting songs, and silly humor from such characters as Rapunzelâs little pet chameleon that she takes everywhere with her to the military horse named Maximus whoâs actually a far better soldier than his human counterparts. It can be said that the Gothel character is a little too reminiscent of female Disney villains in the past like The Queen and Maleficent, and also that the Flynn Rider character is imbued with a little too much self-referential humor for his own good, but donât tell that to the legions of females who go crazy for this kind of fairy tale princess stuff or the males that just canât take their eyes off the screen whenever Rapunzel is on it. When the filmâs timing is on target, the funny moments are quite hilarious and perfectly done, and as for the songs by legendary composer Alan Menken, they do the trick just magnificently, bringing their own sense of style to the proceedings without overwhelming the film as a whole. It all adds up to a sumptuous, beautifully rendered vision of delight, a sure sign that the Disney animated line is returning to the classic style of storytelling that originally made their name as the finest in family entertainment, while utilizing the latest in state of the art technology in making their settings, landscapes, and character designs more beautiful than it has ever been in the pastâŚ
8/10