How ‘Frozen 2′ Could Have Been Better
I didn’t care that much for Frozen 2. I didn’t hate it, but there was enough stuff that brought it down, that I can’t really say that I liked it either. So, for this review, instead of just saying what I liked and disliked, I’m going to do a little rewriting with explanations of why I would have preferred my version. Hopefully, it comes off as more than bias. Obviously, SPOILERS ahead.
The beginning I did like and I wouldn’t change most of it. We see Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff getting along together. There’s a song about celebrating autumn and everything. The one change I would make would be that we show Anna going around town helping the townspeople in a way that showed she understood their needs.
Other than that, everything stays the same, including the charades scene, up until “Into the Unknown” and the elemental disaster that forces Arendelle to evacuate. It’s here that most of the diverging happens. Mainly, when it comes to going on the quest to find out what is happening, Elsa and Anna don’t argue about whether Anna should go with her but rather who goes and who stays to protect the people. Anna claims that she is more of an adventurer and more qualified to go out and find what is the problem is. Elsa claims that the problem is magical and she’s the only one who knows anything about magic, so Anna, even if she figured out what was happening, wouldn’t be able to do anything. Elsa also points out that Anna has a better grasp on what the kingdom needs than she because Anna is always among them while Elsa, though does mingle often, has still been keeping herself distant.
Eventually, it’s decided, much to Anna’s and Kristoff’s worry, that Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf will stay in Arendelle to make sure the people are safe, and Elsa and Sven would go alone. Olaf isn’t sure why they should split up, but stays with Anna nonetheless.
This would be a much better version for several reasons. First, it sets up a more convincing plot line for Anna becoming queen. As the movie is, the people of Arendelle are forced out of their homes, but almost immediately, the queen and princess leave them. Sure, it’s to fix the problem, but that still leaves them to rule themselves. Not a great look for the royalty.
Second, the real film showed Elsa getting stronger when she left her sister. I don’t know if that was intentional, but that is what happened. My version could explore the idea that their familial, sisterly bond wouldn’t break because of distance. Which is what they showed at the end anyway. My version would explore it better, not just show it.
Thirdly, it would improve Kristoff’s story. As most of the characters, he had a shtick and that’s it. There really was no character development with him (or Anna, or Olaf, but it was more obvious with him. He was only there to try and fail at his proposal and sing an ill-fitting 80′s ballad.).
It would also better Olaf’s story line. He was so annoying in this one, but here his annoying nature would have a purpose, which I’ll get to later.
Finally, it would allow for better development of characters that were just kinda pushed to the side shortly after their introduction. Mainly almost everyone caught in the enchanted forest. We got Mattias the Arendelle guard and Yelena the tribe leader with some character, but for the most part everyone else was forgettable. Even Ryder and Honeymaren were mostly forgotten by the movie after the main crew left.
Anyway, back to my revision.
So, why is Sven going with Elsa? Well, a few reasons. Anna won’t let her go without a friend going along. Olaf won’t be that helpful, and Kristoff would be more helpful to the townspeople, which leaves Sven. Also, Elsa will need help carrying everything.
This would highlight an aspect of the films that should have had more light than what they got. Despite being different species, Sven and Kristoff are brothers. So just as the sisters are being separated, so, too, the brothers. This will lead to a heart wrenching scene where Sven and Kristoff say goodbye to each other. They’ve been together since they were children, so it’s a big deal that they are separating now.
The queen and reindeer finally leave after everyone says their goodbyes.
From here on out, the movie would go back and forth from Elsa and Sven’s adventure and Anna and Kristoff’s story with some Olaf thrown in.
Elsa and Sven come up to the entrance to the forest, Elsa does her thing. As they travel, they come across the Northuldra reindeer. They’re different then what Sven is used to. More free. Even though he never really thought of himself as not free and has enjoyed his life with Kristoff, he still admires these new reindeer and their lifestyle.
That’s when they come across the Northuldra tribe. They are, like Elsa, magic users, but none use ice magic. They are greeted warmly by the tribe’s leader, Yelena. After a brief intro into who they are, they are taken care of by the siblings Ryder and Honeymaren.
Ryder, who is in charge of the reindeer, takes care of Sven and introduces him to the other reindeer. Ryder talks to the reindeer in a similar manner as Kristoff, with just as much understanding. The reindeer take on Sven as if he’s already one of their group. Sven loves it, but is sad that Kristoff isn’t there.
Elsa is seen by Honeymaren who is very much infatuated by Elsa’s ice magic. Elsa, in turn, is fascinated by Honeymaren’s wind magic. Honeymaren is also a bit of a magical scholar, and thinks she knows what Elsa is hearing.
The two of them, along with Sven, traverse the land trying to find the source of the voice.
Back in Arendelle, Anna is checking on the people. They have set up temporary shelter, with the help of the trolls, and have fires going to protect against the cold. While Anna is doing her rounds, Kristoff is resting, looking at the ring he wanted to give to Anna. Olaf asks him what he’s holding, and Kristoff tells him. Olaf wonders why he doesn’t just ask Anna to marry him, and Kristoff tells him that she’s busy and shouldn’t be distracted by their engagement when she’s trying to help the kingdom. Olaf doesn’t really understand, but ultimately leaves the decision to Kristoff. The two go and help Anna.
The next day, Anna and Kristoff realize the supplies are getting low. Anna decides to ask for help from a neighboring kingdom (possible Tangled reference maybe), but realizes that they wouldn’t get what they need soon enough. She decides to take Kristoff and go back into the city to get more supplies. They ask the people who has anything that the town could use, and more than a few offer up what they can. Olaf is told to stay with the people, but as they enter the town, they realize he followed them. He tells them he doesn’t want to lose any more friends. They realize he doesn’t think Elsa will come back and allow him to come along.
Elsa, Honeymaren, and Sven are travelling the woods, Elsa and Honeymaren learning about each other and clearly enjoying each other’s company, when they are accosted by soldiers. Honeymaren realizes that they have accidentally wondered into their territory. As they are being led to their camp, Elsa realizes they are wearing old uniforms with Arendelle’s colors.
When they reach the camp, the soldiers’ leader, Mattias, scolds them for treating the girls with disrespect. He apologizes for them, claiming they keep forgetting they aren’t fighting a war anymore. He recognizes Honeymaren and assures her she will be unharmed and will be allowed to go back to the tribe. He notes that Elsa isn’t from the tribe and asks her who she is. She tells him she is the queen of Arendelle. Many of the men laugh, saying they saw her use magic and that no one in Arendelle could use magic. However, Mattias seems to understand something and asks of her parents. She tells them who they are and that they died at sea. Mattias tells her he knew them and is saddened by their loss. This seemed to confirm her story, so he genuflects. Most other soldiers follow, but there are still those that don’t believe her.
Elsa and Mattias talk inside his tent with Honeymaren standing to the side and Sven waiting outside, glaring at the soldiers, trying to act tough in front of the horses. He tells her what happened to the city and how she found herself in the enchanted forest. He explains the situation that caused the rift between the soldiers and the tribe. He knows there was a disagreement between The king and the tribe’s leader at the time, but he didn’t know what. In a flash, the two started fighting. This caused a fight between the villagers and the soldiers. When the barrier was discovered, the soldiers set up camp to wait it out, but do to a lack of resources, they had to move farther and farther away until they found the spot they were at. After hearing about Honeymaren’s idea of what’s happening and her plan for fixing it, he lets the two go, warning them, especially Elsa, that it will be dangerous.
As Anna and her team travel through the city, they are a little creeped out by the emptiness. There are flareups from the elemental attack, which startles them, especially Olaf. Anna suggests he tell the group some of the facts he’s been learning about with all his reading. Kristoff agrees. We then get a montage of Olaf’s facts and Anna and Kristoff becoming increasingly agitated with their own plan. Anna watches Olaf while Kristoff checks the houses for supplies.
The two get attacked by fire, and are unsure what to do. As a line of fire comes at them, they dodge only for us to realize that they were standing in front of a light post. The flame runs into it knocking himself out. It turns out to be a salamander. Anna realizes all the elements haven’t been acting as randomly as she originally thought and believes they are all some kind of elemental creatures. She only sees the salamander though.
While Elsa and Honeymaren are passing through a plain, the wind starts picking up. Elsa thinks it’s Honeymaren being playful, but as the winds pick up she turns to see Honeymaren struggling to control it. Having a feeling, Elsa uses her magic to slow the wind down. Honeymaren is surprised that she could do that. She believes it was an elemental that attacked them, then describes what the elementals are.
Later, the three have to cross a river. They make a makeshift boat for the crossing. Like the wind, the water started acting up. Honeymaren is thrown overboard and is dragged in a different direction, landing on the wrong shore. Before Elsa can call out to her, Honeymaren gestures to stay quiet. She points to nearby hills and Elsa and Sven realize that they are actually rock giants. These are the Earth elementals. Honeymaren uses her magic to spell out a message with leaves. The first is “FOLLOW YOUR INSTINCTS” and the second is “I’LL MEET YOU THERE.” Elsa nods and continues on, worry on her face.
As Anna and her team return to the camp, Kristoff, being the dork he is, does something goofy to bring Anna’s spirits up, trips and falls. Unknown to him, the ring falls out of his pocket. Anna picks it up and immediately realizes what it is, but like Olaf, wonders why he hasn’t asked yet. She plans to confront him at camp.
Before she does, the salamander wakes up, but before he can return to the city, Anna feeds him. He immediately changes his mind, and becomes much like a pet for the princess. Kristoff is too busy passing out supplies to confront about the ring. She gets busy doing the same.
Elsa expresses her concerns with Sven. She doesn’t know what she’s supposed to do, her instincts failing her. She misses Honeymaren, which she clarifies is only as a guide and a friend, far too flustered for Sven to believe. She also misses everyone in Arendelle. She says she’s glad that Sven is with her, hesitates, then attempting to mimic Kristoff, says as Sven that he’s glad to be there too. It turns out to be more embarrassing for the two of them, and Elsa apologizes. Sven gestures his agreement anyway.
Elsa then hears the voice again and, with a little exploring, comes to the coast and sees an island. She senses a great power coming from the island. It seems to be creating storm-like waves. She uses her ice powers to try to cross, but it proves impossible. After one particularly strong push out to sea, she falls deep into the water and sees the water spirit, a horse-like being. She tries to tame it, struggling, but in the end she succeeds and rides around the stormy waters, ecstatic at her success. She manages to convince the elemental to calm the seas and she creates an ice bridge for Sven, who seems a little intimidated by the magical steed.
Kristoff is talking to a bunch of people, again too busy for Anna to talk to him, Olaf continues to bring up random facts and bouts of wisdom he read about. Given the frustration she has been having trying to talk to Kristoff, she snaps at Olaf and storms off. She finds a cave that appears to be made of ice, reminding her of Elsa, and hunkers down in it.
Elsa and Sven come across a wrecked ship that looks like the one her parents died on. The ship is empty, but a little exploring shows that it was the same ship. She finds her mother’s journal and finds out that she was originally from the Northuldra tribe. In fact, it was her that saved Elsa and Anna’s father. She tells the story of how the tribe and kingdom had made a treaty to work together with Arendelle using the magic provided by the Northuldra. However, King Runeard, Agnarr’s father and Elsa and Anna’s grandfather, wanted to control the magic. Northuldra refused and a fight broke out. The breaking of the treaty caused the barrier around the forest. Iduna (the girls’ mother) barely got Agnarr out in time, but he was so distraught about everything. The two went to the trolls for help, and they used a spell to have Agnarr to forget what exactly happened. When Iduna tried to use her magic, the people who she tried to help were afraid of her, which caused her to hide who she was.
When Elsa showed her magic, Iduna was worried she would be shunned like she was, so they kept her busy inside the palace. She was curious about Elsa using ice. After what happened with Anna, she looked deeper into the manner and discovered information about the fifth spirit. She knew Elsa must be connected somehow, and she and Agnarr went to the island to find help.
Suddenly, Honeymaren shows up, proud that she found them, and thankful for the ice bridge. Elsa rushes to her and hugs her tight. She then starts to cry and explains about her parents. Honeymaren holds Elsa and comforts her.
The three enter the island caves.
While Anna is sitting on the cave floor, Olaf comes in. He apologizes to Anna for being annoying, but Anna brushes it away, apologizing herself for snapping. She confesses that she misses Elsa and wishes she could talk to Kristoff about the ring. Olaf confesses that he knew about Kristoff’s plan and that he held off proposing to Anna to help the kingdom. She realizes that he put off his own happiness for Arendelle, which would make him an honorable king, and now can’t wait for him to ask her.
In the island caves, Elsa can feel the energy of the elementals. It starts to become overpowering. She hears the voice again, but hears other voices as well, voices that appear to be saying something. She rushes ahead, finding it hard to concentrate and finds herself alone on an odd design that references the four elements on the outside and another on the inside. There’s writing that on the wall that says only the one who can unite tribe and kingdom in love can be the fifth spirit. However, while reading it, she accidentally steps in the center of the design, and becomes frozen. This is witnessed by Honeymaren and Sven.
Honeymaren rushes to the now frozen Elsa, but can do nothing to save her. She cries over her. Elsa remains frozen. Sven and Honeymaren leave.
In the ice cave, Olaf says he’s becoming sleepy. In front of Anna, he loses his magic and turns into a normal snowman.
Honeymaren and Sven are walking down the ice bridge when they realize it’s collapsing into the sea. They rush to get to shore.
Arendelle has another attack of elements. Kristoff and the rest of the team try to keep everyone safe, but it’s actually the salamander who is able to fight off everything. Eventually the attack stops, and everyone is safe.
As the elements get more violent, Yelena realizes that the village is going to need the help of the soldiers. Before she leaves to discuss it with Mattias, he and the soldiers arrive, having come to the same conclusion, and believing they would need the magic of the village to survive. Working together, they do just that.
Kristoff finds Anna in the cave, trying to keep Olaf cold to stop him from melting. Kristoff asks why Elsa’s magic isn’t working, and the realization hits Anna hard, knocking her down. Kristoff also realizes it, and comforts Anna.
Honeymaren and Sven return to the tribe and Honeymaren tells everyone what happened to Elsa.
Kristoff is standing in front of the people of Arendelle telling them of the loss of Elsa.
The people of both mourn the loss, and their cries reach the heavens. Then another elemental attack comes.
Fires begin to rage around the village, and those that can use fire magic find their abilities to be utterly useless. When the soldiers try to escape with some of the village children, at the request of the villagers, they find that they are completely surrounded. The fires close in on the village.
While the wind blows everything every which way, it is relatively harmless, but then some of the townsfolk realize there is a huge tidal wave heading straight for them. There is no time to escape.
As the fire reaches the edge of the village, it begins to go out. It turns to steam, starting in one location and going all around. When the villagers and soldiers realize they had been saved, they celebrate, forgetting the distance that had grown between them. Honeymaren smiled when she realized there was snow falling, believing she knew who had saved them.
As the wave approached the coast of Arendelle, the people huddled together. Kristoff noticed a strange sight. A woman on horseback was riding on the water itself. He almost didn’t believe what he was seeing. He asks Anna if she was seeing what he was. She realizes immediately who is there.
Elsa uses her knew found water abilities to stop the wave and calm the seas. In her presence, the other elements calm, and the salamander gets excited.
As the town watches and cheers, Olaf waddles up to Anna and Kristoff and asks what he missed. Anna picks him up and laughs with tears in her eyes.
When Elsa reaches shore and dismounts from the water elemental, Anna tackles her. The two make up for lost time, telling each other what happened. Elsa comes to a conclusion. She realizes that Anna is really the queen that Arendelle needs.
At the Northundra village, Mattias is speaking with his soldiers. When he is done, they approach the tribe and genuflect in apology for how they treated them. Mattias knew it was King Runear who struck the first blow but was too ashamed to do anything about it. Yelena, speaking for the tribe, forgives them and wishes for the animosity to end. The two groups celebrate.
Elsa, this time with Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf, revisits the tribe. Some soldiers are returning to Arendelle, but many are staying to live in the forest with the tribe to help make up for everything, despite the villagers telling them it won’t be necessary. Sven and Kristoff have a heart to heart, with Sven deciding to stay with the tribe. Ryder walks by with some of the reindeer and talks to them like Kristoff. Kristoff asks if he sounds like that, which Sven nods yes. Kristoff thinks he sounds awesome.
Anna gets along well with Honeymaren. When she is called away, Elsa asks Anna what she thinks of Honeymaren. Anna gives Elsa a big smile and says she doesn’t think Elsa should marry someone she just met. Elsa blushes and playfully shoves Anna.
As Anna and the rest leave, Elsa, the tribe and the remaining soldiers wave them off. Anna and Kristoff are holding hands. Elsa and Honeymaren are doing the same.
Some mid/post-credit scenes could be:
Anna walking beside Kristoff then stepping back, saying he dropped something. When Kristoff turns around, Anna is on her knee with the ring. After saying yes, Anna, forgetting the ring was originally meant for her, tries to eagerly put the ring on Kristoff’s finger, painfully succeeding.
Sven getting to know the other reindeer, then seeing the girl of his dreams.
Elsa and Honeymaren riding the water elemental to go to charades with Anna and Kristoff.
Elsa and Honeymaren leaving the ice palace. Honeymaren is impressed with all of the creatures that Elsa had made. Elsa apparently reiterating that most of them was by accident. She then calls to Olaf. Cut to Olaf telling all the creatures from Frozen and the shorts that he’ll be back to tell the a story or teach them about something.
Anyway, I’ve been working on this for hours, which, since I didn’t even have the idea to do something like this today, l wasn’t planning on spending so much time on it. I actually thought I would just do a short summary of what I was thinking, but I should have known better. 🤣 Hope you like!
