Movie Review: ‘Tangled’

Disney has done it. The same studio that brought you the animated classics that you know and love performed a miracle with its newest film, “Tangled,” and brought back hope for a renaissance of its brand of cinematic magic.

The plot of the movie roughly follows the tale of Rapunzel, who is voiced by Mandy Moore. But the studio brought a twist, which transformed the movie from another simple tale of a wayward princess finding her proverbial “knight in shining armor” into an action-adventure worthy of the old Disney name.

Mandy Moore delivers an exemplary performance as Rapunzel, which is a testament more to her singing voice than her acting talent—after all, it can’t be that hard to act like a Disney princess. Am I right, adolescent girls?

The other lead voice performer also adds another dynamic to the film. Zachary Levi, star of the NBC action-comedy “Chuck,” brings his inescapable wit to the story as he plays the thief Flynn Ryder and narrates. While on the run from the royal army, thief Ryder takes refuge in a tower where he finds much more than sanctuary. He is hit several times in the head with a skillet and restrained to a chair by Rapunzel’s hair—which of course is the beginning of any beautiful love relationship. We’ve all been there.

I wouldn’t want to spoil the movie, but what ensues after Rapunzel meets Ryder is tantamount to the plots of many other Disney movies. However “Tangled” still is able to capture the spark that made “Aladdin” and “The Lion King” classics. This is the same spark whose lack of presence has made more recent movies like “The Princess and the Frog” and “Tinker Bell” into box office flops.

This spark comes from films’ ability to have a multi-generational appeal and makes “Tangled” into a movie that the whole family would want to see instead of one that children have to drag their parents to. This appeal has been a big part of the difference between Disney and Pixar lately. Pixar just seems to get it, and Disney is just starting to figure it out again.

There are plenty of aspects of old Disney movies present in “Tangled” to deliver that spark. For example, the figure of Princess Rapunzel is absurdly disproportionate—that is, unless having a three inch-wide waist is healthy these days. And, of course, any viewer cannot resist the urge to imagine themselves in the shoes of the stereotypical perfect Disney prince or princess role.

Since my intended audience is college students, I believe that it is important to note that we all have to grow up from this shared dream of becoming Disney royalty at some point. For example, for college girls to whisper and giggle in the theater and bother the rest of the audience will not get you any closer to achieving that dream. In fact, audibly begging the movie to let Ryder kiss Rapunzel only makes you more immature and obnoxious to the people around you and furthers you from reaching this dream. So, if this moviegoer is you, please grow up.

As a college student myself, I feel that “Tangled” would be a great first date-movie. Or, if not that, it would be perfect to watch with your cousins as your aunt and uncle come into town for the holidays and unload the brats on you to watch. In this holiday season, full of love and festivity, everyone will be sure to enjoy “Tangled.”

Posted by Ryan Del Campo on Dec 2 2010. Filed under Features, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.