her fingertips run rampant, the animation guided by directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee is stunning-- Elsa and Anna's parents perish in a single shot of a howling storm at sea, and the stony cliffs surrounding the village of Arrendel are dramatic even before coated in ice. Elsa revels in her powers as a little girl, but after a close call with Anna and a poorly aimed bolt of ice, she's convinced to hide her strengths and retreat from their tight sisterly bond. The death of the king and queen means Elsa must take over, but the stress of her coronation (and Anna's dumb-cluck decision to get engaged to a hunky prince she just met) makes her lose control. Elsa storms up into the mountains, leaving ice castlesThe beats of the story and the catchy songs can feel a bit factory-produced-- funny sidekicks in the form of mountain trolls show up at the exact right time for a laugh, and the old man villains are shipped directly from Gaston's mob in Beauty and the Beast. But Frozen has all the right modern touches too, without falling into winky-wink Shrek territory.

It also pulls off a miracle in Olaf, the buck-toothed snowman you've seen in every ad and voiced by Book of Mormon's Josh Gad. The goofy sidekick is usually an exasperating pander to younger kids who might get restless after too much story, and even in the brilliant Mormon Gad tended to overplay his schlubby goofball hand. But Olaf is consistently, actually funny, and even has