![]() ![]() The romance doesn't match the visual splendor, but no matter: The lushness is enough. The animation, overseen by Glen Keane ("Beauty and the Beast," "The Little Mermaid," "Aladdin"), reaches its apogee in a row boat scene, reminiscent of "Kiss the Girl" from "Mermaid." Flynn and Rapunzel are surrounded by countless floating lanterns in the nighttime sky and reflected in the water. And we can't help but wonder how Rapunzel's lifetime locked-away didn't produce a disorder or two. His slacker nature works better when he, without much fanfare, tells Rapunzel that famous line, "Let down your hair" - the fairy tale equivalent of "Release the Kraken!"īoth Rapunzel and Flynn too much resemble Barbie and Ken, lacking both superficial and emotional individuality. When he tells Rapunzel, "Sorry blondie, I don't do back story," we think: She can do better. It is, of course, a predictable arc, but it's managed without much feeling. He's uncertain of himself, but he's slowly pulled in by Rapunzel's goodness. Gamely totting around her long trail of hair, she uses it inventively - like an Indiana Jones with a built-in whip.įlynn is less memorable. Rapunzel takes it all in with the curiosity of a wide-eyed innocent. The screenplay by Dan Fogelman ("Bolt," "Cars") gets the tale out of the tower, bounding across cartoon woodlands. Rapunzel and Flynn set out on a journey that will include a tavern full of theatrical thugs, chase scenes and moments of budding romance. Finally out of the tower, she's wonderfully bipolar: a montage switches between her utter glee at freedom, and dramatic swoons of shame in disobeying who she thinks is her mother. Though resistant at first, Rapunzel takes to him and let's him lead her, for the first time, on to solid ground. Instead of the prince of the Grimm fairy tale, we get Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi), a rogue on the run who seeks a hiding place in the tower. When Rapunzel is hurt after Mother Gothel tells her she won't ever leave the tower, she sighs: "Oh, great. Darkly manipulative and passive-aggressive, she's a classic villain and one of Disney's best. Her only friend is Pascal, a loyal chameleon who doesn't speak, but manages to convey himself with eye-rolls and changes of color.Īt first, Mother Gothel acts as though she might take Rapunzel out into the world, but she quickly reneges, insisting Rapunzel isn't ready yet. Rapunzel, with big green eyes and 70-feet of blonde hair, is turning 18 and her birthday wish is to see the kingdom's annual floating lantern festival. That villain is Mother Gothel (Broadway veteran Donna Murphy), who steals Rapunzel as a baby, locking her away in a remote tower where Rapunzel's magical hair preserves her youth. Thus "Tangled" is the first Pixar-ish Disney film, though it still contains all the familiar Disney hallmarks: song-and-dance numbers, amusing sidekicks and a frightfully cruel villain. The film is digitally animated (though with some hand-drawn aspects) and was one of the first projects led by Pixar chief John Lasseter once he became head of Disney animation. The Brothers Grimm have been very good to Disney over the years and returning to one of their tales has very much the feel of "go with what you know." While "Tangled" is not in the league of Disney's best, it's still a sturdy, pleasant execution by the animation machine, retooled slightly for digital times. "Tangled," directed by "Bolt" helmer Byron Howard and Nathan Greno (head of story on "Bolt"), finally arrives as the much ballyhooed 50th animated feature from Disney, and the last animated fairy tale currently planned by the studio. Since the 1940s, Disney has toyed with the story of Rapunzel. ![]() Describing her situation (trapped for all her life in a tower), Rapunzel (Mandy Moore) explains herself like a Facebook page: "It's complicated." "Tangled," which is in 3-D, gives ample opportunity to grimace at its blatant updating. Walt Disney's modernizing of the Grimm fairy tale is thorough enough that even the original title, "Rapunzel," has been swapped for "Tangled." One can't help but wonder if in today's Hollywood, we might look forward to other contempo fairy tales like "Heeled" ("Cinderella"), "Ambiened" ("Sleeping Beauty") and "Twilight 5" ("Little Red Riding Hood"). ![]()
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