Frozen II - 2019

IMDb

Frozen II, or Frozen 2, is an American 3D computer-animated musical fantasy film that was produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios in 2019. It is the 58th animated film produced by the studio and serves as a sequel to the 2013 blockbuster hit, Frozen. The movie features the same creative team as the first film, including directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, producer Peter Del Vecho, songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, and composer Christophe Beck. Lee also penned the screenplay from a story by her, Buck, Marc E. Smith, Anderson-Lopez, and Lopez, while Byron Howard executive produced the movie.

Frozen II is set three years after the events of the first film and follows the journey of Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven beyond their kingdom of Arendelle. The team sets out to discover the origin of Elsa's magical powers and save their kingdom after hearing a mysterious voice that calls out to Elsa.

The film had its world premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on November 7, 2019, and was released in the United States by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures on November 22, 2019. Frozen II had the highest all-time worldwide opening for an animated film and went on to gross $1.45 billion worldwide. This made it the third highest-grossing film of 2019, the second highest-grossing animated film of all time, and the 10th highest-grossing film of all time.

Frozen II received generally positive reviews from critics and won two Annie Awards for Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production and Outstanding Achievement for Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production. The movie also won a Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Animated Feature. At the 92nd Academy Awards, the film received a nomination for Best Original Song for "Into the Unknown."

The veteran voice cast from the first film, Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, and Ciarán Hinds, reprised their previous characters in Frozen II. They were also joined by new cast members Sterling K. Brown, Evan Rachel Wood, Alfred Molina, Martha Plimpton, Jason Ritter, Rachel Matthews, and Jeremy Sisto.

Plot

King Agnarr of Arendelle tells his daughters, Elsa and Anna, the story of their grandfather, King Runeard, who established a treaty with the neighboring Northuldra tribe by building a dam in their land, the Enchanted Forest. However, a dispute arose, resulting in Runeard's death and the disappearance of the forest's elemental spirits, which created a wall of mist that trapped everyone in the forest. Agnarr was the only one who escaped, thanks to an unknown savior.

Three years after Elsa's coronation, she, Anna, Olaf, Kristoff, and Sven celebrate autumn in the kingdom. However, Elsa hears a mysterious voice calling out to her, which leads her to awaken the elemental spirits unintentionally. This forces everyone in the kingdom to evacuate, and Grand Pabbie and the Rock Troll colony arrive to inform them that they must set things right by discovering the truth about the past.

Elsa, Anna, Olaf, Kristoff, and Sven set out to the Enchanted Forest to follow the mysterious voice. Elsa manages to part the mist with her touch, and the Air Spirit, in the form of a tornado, appears and sweeps everyone in its vortex. Elsa stops it and forms ice sculptures, which turn out to be images from their father's past. They come across the Northuldra and a troop of Arendellian soldiers who are still in conflict. Elsa discovers the Fire Spirit to be an agitated magical salamander, and she calms it down. Elsa and Anna arrange a truce between the soldiers and the Northuldra after learning that their mother, Queen Iduna, was a Northuldra who had saved Agnarr, an Arendellian. They learn about the existence of a fifth spirit, who will unite the people with the magic of nature.

Elsa, Anna, and Olaf continue north, leaving Kristoff and Sven behind. They find their parents' wrecked ship and a map with a route to Ahtohallan, a mythical river that their mother had told them contained all explanations of the past. Elsa sends Anna and Olaf away to safety and continues alone. She encounters and tames the Nøkk, the Water Spirit who guards the sea to Ahtohallan. Reaching Ahtohallan, a glacier, Elsa discovers that the voice calling to her was the memory of young Iduna's call. She learns that her powers were a gift from nature because of Iduna's selfless act of saving Agnarr and that Elsa herself is the fifth spirit.

Elsa then learns that the dam was built to reduce the Northuldra's resources because of King Runeard's dislike of their connection with magic and his intention to incorporate the region into his kingdom. She also learns that he was the one who initiated the conflict by killing the unarmed leader of the Northuldra. Elsa sends this information to Anna before venturing into the most dangerous part of Ahtohallan and becoming frozen. This causes Olaf to fade away.

Anna receives Elsa's message and concludes that the dam must be destroyed for peace to be restored. Anna finds and awakens the gigantic Earth Spirits and lures them towards the dam. The giants hurl boulders aimed at Anna, which destroy the dam, sending a flood down the fjord towards the kingdom. Elsa thaws out and returns to Arendelle, diverting the flood and saving the kingdom.

As the mist disappears, Elsa reunites with Anna and revives Olaf. Anna accepts Kristoff's marriage proposal, and Elsa explains that she and Anna are the bridge between the people and the magical spirits. Anna becomes the new Queen of Arendelle, while Elsa becomes the protector of the Enchanted Forest who regularly visits Arendelle as peace has been restored.