My Take – FROZEN Sequel

My take on the Disney FROZEN sequel: the motivators, the hype, and your hopes for the second. The money, lawsuits, the crazies – all of it is covered, with a movie trivia game and a few funny memes thrown in for good measure!

So Jen’s Guy mentioned me in an article he penned for JENerally Informed and threw out a suggestion that he’d like to hear my take on an actual newsworthy item. He’s totally made me famous now (thanks for that) and he must be a brilliant, handsome, and talented man to have included me in such a round up. But this post isn’t about Jen’s Guy and his genius.

I’m sure my “people” will be arriving soon to do my hair and make up, but before they get here I’ve decided to take his advice and comment on something my insomnia-induced (and don’t forget, fabulously famous) mind gobbled up. When I read this ‘news,’ I thought it would have been better announced with a bit of snark and sarcasm. Is it real news? Define real, JEN’sGuy – this totally counts.

My Take: Disney Announces a FROZEN Sequel

dramatic pause

No-kidding-wow-that-comes-as-a-shock-I-would’ve-never-seen-that-coming.

This ‘announcement‘ is not news. To quote Agent Smith from The Matrix, “…This is the sound of inevitability.” I’d like to have a bit of fun with a movie our kids love, and discuss why they could possibly be making a sequel and why the announcement took so very long to reach our ever-attentive ears. #sarcasm

The Money

It couldn’t have been the $1.3 billion at the box office, could it? No, that’s not enough to warrant a FROZEN sequel even though the movie took in more than 25 countries’ annual GDP. And after all, FROZEN only ranks a paltry 5th place in all-time, worldwide grosses. #underachiever

But let’s look beyond the green, shall we?

The Lawsuits

Not new to making “inspired” Disney, Pixar, and Dreamworks films, Phase 4 Films’ “Frozen Land” was sued by Disney for blatantly renaming and repackaging a film to look strikingly similar to FROZEN’s. Yeah, I never would’ve seen that litigation coming…

And how can we forget that an attorney actually filed this woman’s $250 million lawsuit? It was recently dismissed, despite her claims of 18 separate similarities between her – ahem – autobiographical accounts, but the best part is the Disney spokesperson who replied to the claim: “This is beyond ridiculous, she needs to let it go.” #scoreonefortheMouseHouse

To sum up what her lawyer should have told her, I’ll quote John Travolta: her “odds of winning a game of Russian roulette are better.” Not to poke too much fun at lawyers ‘cuz we have quite a few in the family, but…

The Unbelievable

One might think this deserves to fall under the money section above, but I think it can only be classed as unbelievable. When parents are shelling out $1200 for an Elsa doll and $500 for an Elsa dress, there should have been a conversation about delayed gratification with kids, not a news story. Or maybe Disney decided we could hear about a sequel after the world breathed a collective sigh of relief when it was announced that the FROZEN toy shortage was finally over? #firstworldproblems

Then again, this pair of dolls is going for $5,649 on amazon.com – you would think they’d throw in the free shipping, but that $4.49 must be VITAL in helping them recover the $200 cost they actually incurred for their original purchase of the dolls. This is an affiliate link and I promise to be your absolute bestest friend if you buy them.

It might have been the deeply moving, inspiring video the world saw of these women fighting each other for Frozen swag.  Or wait, was it these women fighting over children’s toys? I find it inconceivable, but perhaps “that word does not mean what [I] think it means.”

The Hatred

Disney took some flack for their successful film, too, so maybe that has something to do with delaying the announcement. They could have been biding time for some hype to recede, with hate-filled speakers preaching that “FROZEN will teach kids to be gay and is the work of the devil,” and Disney’s “gay agenda to normalize homosexuality.”**

I am still laughing after reading this hilarious response to the position, “Disney’s FROZEN turns men into villains and fools” and “is a threat to masculinity and must be stopped.” The author’s satirical take pokes just a smidge of fun – my favorite part is when he sympathizes with them:

**If you want the links to those atrocious positions spewing hatred, please search for their disgusting quotes. I refuse to back link to anything that preaches hate.

Moving On

All of those possible reasons for Disney finally announcing a FROZEN sequel make me think about what they will deliver. Let’s just hope it’s along the same lines as the quality of the Harry Potter movies and not Ghostbusters 2.

I took the question to others, asking what they would like to see in Disney’s FROZEN sequel:

• A friend of mine begs, “Please Disney, don’t re-brand all the FROZEN stuff to new colors or new themes! We have everything from dresses to dinnerware and we will not be replacing it for the sequel.” Preach, sister, but I’m pretty sure that one’s gonna fall on deaf mouse ears.
• Facebook friends said more Olaf. Kids, parents, my sister’s French Bulldog who watches television – everyone adores that snarky little snowman. Sometimes his comic relief is the only thing keeping us hanging on during that 7,234th viewing. Please deliver more Olaf. Speaking of Olaf, have you seen this amazing, short slide show put together by Carry On Starkid? I think I’d like Starkid to take a look into my soul.

• A Ruffles and Rain Boots reader emailed me to say she wants the original writers of the soundtrack back, saying it wouldn’t be the same if they weren’t included. I doubt FROZEN would have had the same appeal if “Let It Go,” “Do You Wanna Build a Snowman,” and “In Summer” were not penned.
• Another reader wrote: “I’d like to see a bit more color. I know it’s ice and snow, but that was the whitest movie I’ve seen in a while. We teach our little ones that the world is a colorful place, so let’s throw in some diversity.”

Side note: I know how to sing Let It Go in quite a few languages now because of the extra videos on the DVD. I need to make a reminder to add that to my resume.

Do you have any advice for Disney about the sequel? What would you like to see? For those of you who are movie buffs, can you name all of the movie references in this post? Let me know in the comments!