Tangled

We all remember the classic Disney films like Cinderella, Snow White, and Beauty and the Beast, right?  Let's ask ourselves, if we hadn't grown up watching these films, would they still have the same impact on us as they do today?  Probably not...

Tangled is just another example of a Disney film that you'd have to watch as a child in order to completely fall in love with it.  It brought me back to the old days with the silly jokes, the adorable pets, and the princess and her prince.  It's hard not to enjoy this light, happy film with its little chameleon.  But, just as it brought me back, it also reminded me exactly how far I've come.  Oh, how I wish I was still 5 years old when I could have really loved this film and all that it had.  But sadly, I am not.

So, down to business.
Tangled focused on a narrow audience group (children under the age of 10), not really broadening its horizons.  Sure, it had the adorable animals, the arrogant thief turned prince, the pretty princess, the musical numbers and the adventure that comes along with that, but, it seemed like it was seriously holding back.  It was so censored with its jokes and so careful that it almost became obnoxious how innocent it was.  None of the adults really laughed and I don't blame them.  I can understand to an extent why this film would be so careful, but it is also so limiting.

Thinking back on films like Aladdin, Shrek, Finding Nemo, I just didn't see why Tangled couldn't rank itself along with them, as a film that everyone can enjoy, young or old.  It needed to take more risks with its humour in order to take away from the predictable structure of a Disney film.  That was really my only issue with this take on Rapunzel. 

Now, the good notes.  The voices were well done, Mandy Moore in particular as Rapunzel, but my favourite voice I have to say was Zachary Levi who voiced Flynn.  The songs were decent - maybe nothing I would find myself singing in the shower - but still, definitely original.  Overall, the film was delightful to watch.

One last thing to note.  Now, I'm not necessarily sure this is a criticism, but it's something I noticed.  Usually, in a Disney film, there is always some sort of lesson that makes its way through to the audience.  In The Lion King, for example, the basic lesson was the circle of life, thoroughly sung in the opening scene.  In Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast, the lesson is don't judge a book by its cover or in more familiar words "the diamond in the rough".  Even in Peter Pan, the lesson is that we all must grow up, accept responsibility and consequences.  But this film, Tangled, had less obvious lessons for the kids to learn.  You would have to look deep for one, and kids aren't known to search for something that isn't right in front of their faces.  So, I guess what I'm saying is, that I would have preferred that there was some sort of lesson that made Tangled a kid classic.  But that's my opinion.

I give this film a 8/10 for being a good Disney film about Rapunzel that has surprisingly never been attempted before.