Frozen was a kid's movie with a simple theme of familial love aimed at kids to dispel the superficial notion of the idea of true-love's-kiss...well...I think Maleficent also did that...but yeah, cynical reinforcement through animated entertainment is always a good idea. Frozen 2 keeps the theme that true love's kiss is still stupid as in the paraphrased words of Idina, "I wouldn't idolize Ariel. Giving up her voice for a boy wasn't a very good idea." Although it wasn't a kiss that saved her, her naivety with boys caused her well deserved struggle. Let's admit it, a lot of Disney princesses were not very good role models prior to the last few ones. I want to throw an apple at Snow White, prick Aurora, cut Ariel's tongue, enslave Cinderella, and bury Jasmine in the desert...Belle...I like, she's a bit of an exception without discussing the whole Stockholm Syndrome thing.
Growing up in the 90's, my Disney princess was Belle because unlike the others, her love story didn't take 3 days to turn into a full fledged romance, it took seasons. Although I do understand the timeline because we're talking about falling in love with a beast and not some prince charming...but you get the idea. There was friendship before love, and I'm an advocate of that! Puppy love is a pet peeve of mine, while love at first sight is overrated. And yeah, beast turning into a prince has always been my favorite Disney scene but was later ruined by Dan Stevens because the cartoon version was the embodiment of how I imagined prince charming should look like, not the lanky guy who doesn't suit well with a long blonde hair. Dan Stevens wasn't it. On the upside, I loved Emma Watson as Belle and liked the live-action version, it was a missed opportunity to capture that magical transformation moment. And so when Elsa came in as this regal but socially awkward super queen with a knack for design, I said screw Belle, I'm going with Elsa. She is by far the most powerful princess out there and she don't need a man to complete that point. This is repeatedly shown with her overcoming other elementals and taking on a tidal wave, twice. What I find fascinating in Elsa's character though is her impression on romantic love because she is where I'm at right now. There's nothing more fulfilling than going on an adventure of self-discovery without having to be a damsel in distress to any man.
