Starting at 9 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 21, you can make a online reservation to watch Walt Disney Studios’ “Frozen II” for free at the Convention Center parking lot. The showing is part of the Port of Long Beach’s popular Twilight Cinema series, and since “Frozen II” opened to record box office in 2019, you probably want to grab a spot soon. Like now.<\/p>\n
Following the success of “Frozen,” “Frozen II” had the highest all-time worldwide opening for an animated film, and went on to become the third highest-grossing film of 2019 taking in $1.45 billion worldwide. So parents, now may be the time to appreciate the silence before your kids remember all the songs, from Frozen’s “Let it Go” to the sequel’s “Show Yourself,” during next week’s showing.<\/p>\n
The thing with “Frozen II” is that for both Disney fanatics and film buffs alike, the origins of the film mark a definitive moment in animation. After facing a multitude of issues with Pixar, including threatening to leave Disney<\/a> to do its own thing in the early 2000s\u2014it was eventually bought by Disney\u2014Disney Animation was facing a massive identity and economic crisis: its traditional animation was not garnering the box office generated by films like “Toy Story 2” or “Monsters, Inc.” Disney Animation pivoted toward computer animation, waving goodbye to what is largely considered Disney Animation’s Golden Era, stretching from “The Little Mermaid” to “The Lion King.”<\/p>\n In 2010, the animation arm took a major risk that ultimately paid off: “Tangled,” at the time the most expensive animated ever made ($260 million), became a worldwide smash, and began to give Disney Animation the clout that Pixar had.<\/p>\n With “Frozen,” however, Disney Animation broke the mold and world records. With a plot that put strong female leads front and center and mocked toxic masculinity, “Frozen” went on to become the highest-grossing animated film of 2013. And of all time.<\/p>\n All. Time.<\/p>\n Yep. Not “Toy Story.” Not “Lion King.” Not “Beauty and the Beast.”<\/p>\n Little ‘ol “Frozen.”<\/p>\n Come “Frozen II,” there was an unbelievable weight on both its creators and producers. The original “Frozen” is filled with song<\/a> after song<\/a> not only beloved but likely to live in the musical canon for decades, like this little diddy<\/a>.<\/p>\n With that in mind, the creators faced a dilemma: cater to the audience that first saw “Frozen,” now young adults and older teens, or cater to the kid audience the first film did? They decided to stick with the original audience who saw “Frozen,” which is why “Frozen II” has a darker, more mature feel along with songs that are lyrically more complex and intellectual. (Olaf’s existential ponderings in “When I Am Older”<\/a> are both heartwarming and hilarious.)<\/p>\n “Frozen II” is the culmination of not just a corporate war but a cultural war\u2014and it is worth every second of its gorgeous animation, incredible detail, and beautiful artistry.<\/p>\n Disney’s “Frozen II” features Idina Menzel as Elsa and Kirsten Bell as Anna, Princess of Arendelle and Elsa’s younger sister, Josh Gad as Olaf the snowman, and Jonathan Groff as Kristoff as well as Sven the reindeer.<\/p>\n