Tangled

[Lighthawk]

Saw this the other day with the wife for her birthday, it was actually a pretty fun movie. It was a very good re-imagining of the Rapunzel story, funny and amusing, and even nicely touching in places. It also wasn't afraid to poke fun at itself when it got downright silly.

For example Flynn getting into a sword fight with a horse, and commenting "This is the weirdest thing I've EVER done!"

Amazingly enough, I actually liked all the characters, none of them were a drag on the movie's entertainment that were around merely for the sake of the plot. And the funny animals weren't the main source of amusement as they can often be in these kind of films, Flynn and Rapunzel were both funny individually and when they just let their personalities bounce off each other.

The one thing that was a let down was the singing. It's a Disney film, so of course there was a bit of singing, but it was very hit and miss on the quality for me. They usually do much better.

The "I have a Dream" song in the Snuggly Duck was easily the best simply for being the most absurdly funny.

The animation was freaking amazing, especially Rapunzel's hair and the characters' clothing, which was amazingly detailed. Hair, like water, has long been one of those things that gives CG animators nightmares, so I can only imagine the terror that the idea of making a CG film about a girl with 70ft hair must have struck into the animators' hearts. They managed to get their shit together hard though, because they made it look good, and not just for Rapunzel.

Plot wise, eh. It is very predictable in the general flow, a few things were unexpected, the Snuggly Duck for example, but the main plot points could have been ticked off any Disney Princess film ever made. Still the character interaction managed to make up for it, as did the character motivation for the most part, people did what they did for reasons that made sense from their characters.

Save for when the ruffins came to save Flynn, that came out of nowhere.

The end of the movie felt like a giant ass pull until I looked up the original story. It still is an ass pull since they never made any indication that

there was anything magical about Rapunzel except her hair

but it can be over looked since it allowed Flynn to have his noble sacrifice and still let there be a happy ending.

It was a good movie, anyone with kids should take them to see this, and if you just like fun and funny animated films, this could hold it's own against any of Pixar's mid range movies.

7 out of 10

[SolkaTruesilver]

I agree 100% with you about the asspull at the end. I really was frustrated... until, like you, I heard it was in the original script to begin with. What a letdown, this ending was so tragic and epic...

Overall, I agree with you about the quality. One thing really, really, really made me wary of this movie during the teasers: "She has been grounded, like, forever".

I was SO happy they didn't decided to go for pseudo-hipster teenage talky, even if she was 17.


BTW, try to rewatch the scene when Raz and Mother are talking about Flynn and the Crown, and substitute "Crown" with "Virginity". "The he will leave you the moment you give it to him!". there is a lot of subtext in the Razpundel/Mother relationship, which I think added a rich creamage to this otherwise simple but pleasant movie.

[Mikey]

You guys realize, do you not, that you're talking about a movie pulling an ending out of its ass... which movie is targeted toward 6-9 year old girls?

BTW, my daughter agrees with your assessment exactly, LH.

[Lighthawk]

You guys realize, do you not, that you're talking about a movie pulling an ending out of its ass... which movie is targeted toward 6-9 year old girls?

Aren't you the one that was just bitching about Avatar's weak story and making some issue about how there's no excuse for bad writing?

Besides, I'd hardly say Tangled has such a small target audience. Like so many animated films in the last, well hell almost ten years now I'd say, this was written to be enjoyed by a very broad audience base.

BTW, my daughter agrees with your assessment exactly, LH.

Clearly a girl of good taste.

[SolkaTruesilver]

You guys realize, do you not, that you're talking about a movie pulling an ending out of its ass... which movie is targeted toward 6-9 year old girls?

Aren't you the one that was just bitching about Avatar's weak story and making some issue about how there's no excuse for bad writing?

I think the great tragedy of Tangled is that, beside a somewhat nice but simplistic plot, the final climax was really well done. The sacrifice was masterfully delivered, with music et all. It was made all the more painful to see it all done for nill.

[Mikey]

Aren't you the one that was just bitching about Avatar's weak story and making some issue about how there's no excuse for bad writing?

Indeed... in reference to Avatar, which was both targeted to an adult audience and touted as the greatest thing in the history of ever. Tangled was neither; and while I still don't excuse bad writing, such a judgment must be tempered by the criterion of whether said writing is poor from the POV of an adult or that of a six-year-old girl.

As to the ending... I can't speak to the film ending, as this one fell on my wife's turn to take my daughter to the movies. However, I can say that the original fable was an awful, evil story.

[Lighthawk]

I think the great tragedy of Tangled is that, beside a somewhat nice but simplistic plot, the final climax was really well done. The sacrifice was masterfully delivered, with music et all. It was made all the more painful to see it all done for nill.

I'm not sure I'd go as far as calling it a tragedy, nor say that it was for nil. I think a variation might have worked better though and been less of an ass pull.

I was honestly expecting her to heal Flynn first, then cut her hair off herself. With her hair gone, there would then be no reason for Gothel to hold her to her promise, even without the subsequent rapid aging of doom. Course the movie did start off with "This is the story of how I died."

Indeed... in reference to Avatar, which was both targeted to an adult audience

See, I don't think that should make a difference or be an excuse. Granted it is much easier to get away with crap writing for kids, but that's not a good reason to do so. And seeing how so many kid's movies these days have adults as a secondary target audience, it becomes even less forgivable.

and touted as the greatest thing in the history of ever

To that I'll agree. I even rather liked Avatar, and I still can't see why it is so hyped. It was fun and everything, but hardly a masterful bit of writing.

Tangled was neither; and while I still don't excuse bad writing, such a judgment must be tempered by the criterion of whether said writing is poor from the POV of an adult or that of a six-year-old girl.

Fair enough really, but as I'm not a 6 year old girl last time I checked, I personally felt it an ass pull and that just a little more work could have made it less so.

As to the ending... I can't speak to the film ending, as this one fell on my wife's turn to take my daughter to the movies. However, I can say that the original fable was an awful, evil story.

Well it was a Brother's Grim, so of course. Compared to the original falling/being pushed out of the tower and blinded by the thorn bushes below and then wandering for months blinded in the wastes before stumbling across Rapunzel and being healed by her tears, Flynn got off easy.

[Mikey]

See, I don't think that should make a difference or be an excuse. Granted it is much easier to get away with crap writing for kids, but that's not a good reason to do so. And seeing how so many kid's movies these days have adults as a secondary target audience, it becomes even less forgivable.

Agreed with all. However, you wrote this in reply to a quote taken from my post both incompletely and out of context. What I said was that the definition of "poor writing" varies with the intended audience. An "ass-pull," as you call it, may be unforgivable in an adult-oriented movie but may be completely invisible to the primary audience of a Disney movie.

I'm not a 6 year old girl last time I checked

Well, OK... as long as you keep checking.

[SolkaTruesilver]

I'm not a 6 year old girl last time I checked

Well, OK... as long as you keep checking.

There is something deeply wrong with these quotes put together.

[Mikey]

Welcome to DITL.

[SolkaTruesilver]

I think this is appropriate?

[Lighthawk]

Agreed with all. However, you wrote this in reply to a quote taken from my post both incompletely and out of context. What I said was that the definition of "poor writing" varies with the intended audience. An "ass-pull," as you call it, may be unforgivable in an adult-oriented movie but may be completely invisible to the primary audience of a Disney movie.

Fair enough, I can agree to that.

[Tyyr]

Saw this with the wife, sis-in-law, and kids over Thanksgiving. It was really good. I had no trouble sitting through it with them and even enjoyed it. I think it strayed a bit from the usual Disney formula to stand on its own but stayed close enough to still be recognizable and not be a big worry for the execs.

For instance Flynn isn't a prince he's actually a thief and instead of just being wooed by the princess and having a bit of action at the end he's present and active for the entire film and actually spends the first half of it trying to ditch Rapunzel. Gothel isn't a stock Disney bad guy as she has to plot and scheme to make things work. There's quite a bit of Ursula in her but she has no real power on her own. She has to con the Stabbington (not making that up) brothers into helping her and then double cross them. She's also not after Rapunzel to hurt her, she does her best to look like she's looking after Rapunzel the whole time and in a way she is even though her ultimate goal is to just keep Rapunzel locked way as her own personal fountain of youth.

I really, really, really liked the Gothel/Rapunzel relationship. It was just... creepy. You can see how to an outside observer with no real clue about Rapunzel's hair it might just seem that Gothel is an unusually overprotective mother. You have to know the set-up for her actions to have any other meaning. You can even see how she likely cared for Rapunzel, a little bit, and didn't make her life a living hell. Even at the end Gothel isn't threatening to kill her, just lock her away in the tower permanently. Admittedly not the nicest fate in the world but its not a poison apple.

I also liked that Rapunzel wasn't a blushing "Oh my!" kind of princess. While I'm a caveman at heart I do like that my little girls are going to have a movie with a princess who isn't letting others do it all for her, one who reads, paints, and has no trouble knocking ruffians cold with a frying pan. You even have instances where Rapunzel was the one pulling Flynn's ass out of the fire. Really liked that. I've got no issue with Cinderella or Snow White but a princess who's a bit of an action girl isn't going to be a bad thing. They even made a point of Rapunzel being legal, which I suppose was in there to make the fact that Flynn went for her less creepy for some.

Which brings me to Flynn. He wasn't really a prince, and he wasn't there to rescue to the princess, ala Sleeping Beauty. It felt a bit more like he and Rapunzel were equals in their own ways. His back story is pretty stock tragedy with a nice little twist, his attitude was good, and he wasn't instantly smitten with Rapunzel. Yeah it only took about two days but it's not glancing at her face and deciding she's your one true love.

His sacrifice at the end was really well done. The climax itself was great. I did not see the haircut coming but in context it was just a magnificent ending to the story.

I will admit, the ending was an ass-pull in a way, however it's an ass-pull that's true to the actual story this was based off. The ruffians were Disney's addition and they did come out of nowhere but this is also a Disney princess movie, I'll let it slide. Let's just assume a Lassie moment with Maximus we're probably better off not having committed to celluloid.

The music was new-Disney which is hit or miss. I think it has a more Broadway feel to it and I like it, I especially liked it here. You've still got a few set piece productions but Gothel's bits were well done and I liked them. The story didn't come to a screeching halt for a big musical number the way it often does in some Disney movies like Little Mermaid or Beauty and the Beast.

The production values were amazing. After watching Princess and the Frog then watching Tangled even as someone who appreciates the art of hand drawn animation it's hard to make the case for CGI not to be a great thing. Rapunzel's hair was amazing, the water effects in the gorge were great, and the freaking costumes were just epic. There's no way you could have done the level of detail in Rapunzel's hair/clothes in hand drawn animation, not and complete it in less than a decade. The whole movie was gorgeous. As a guy who likes purple and green this movie was made for me.

If you want to know the reason for why this movie is the way it is just look at the Executive Producer, John Lasseter. One of Pixar's crew, everything the man touches turns to gold. Even if you don't have a three year old squealing in your ear about how she wants to go see "Punzle!" every thirty minutes it's still not a bad way to spend a couple hours.

[stitch626]

Personally, I like the lizard.

Haven't seen the actual movie yet, just the trailers.

[Tyyr]

What you see in the trailers is about the lizard's sum total contribution to the film. Most of the time he's just not there.