FILM OF THE WEEK

Frozen II

Cert: PG; Now showing

Although for some parents it might be hard to imagine a world without Frozen , it is actually only six years since Elsa and Anna bid us all to Let It Go, although technically that was just Elsa. It was a well-deserved huge hit and a hard act to follow but follow it they have.

It’s not quite as good as the original but is still a great piece of children’s cinema.

The film opens with a flashback to the sisters’ early childhood and a song their mother Queen Iduna (Evan Rachel Wood) used to sing to them. The main part of the film goes forward to a time three years after the events of the sisters’ first outing. Anna (Kristen Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel) are peacefully ensconced in Arendelle. Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) is trying to work out a way to propose to Anna, and Elsa is distracted by a strange calling which she hears — but at first does not want to hear — from the North. However, obey the calling she must and the sisters, Kristoff, his reindeer Sven and everyone’s favourite snowman Olaf (Josh Gad) set off on a new adventure.

The girls, by the way, while in princess attire, also have trousers on under their skirts, the first Disney princesses to do so since Mulan and Jasmine in Aladdin.

They’re following the voice towards the Enchanted Forest where they find some unsettling, reparation-style truths about their own history. They also discover the origin of Elsa’s powers.

And along the way, they face plenty of personal challenges and heroic acts. The basic plot is simple although it can feel a little convoluted with details, but ultimately, these don’t affect enjoyment of the film.

It is once again an endearing story about family and love with a dash of the importance of truth and justice and the importance of nature too. Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee direct again, Lee is also one of the team of writers and the songwriting team of Kristen AndersonLopez and Robert Lopez is once again in charge of delivering the tunes.

The original was always going to be a hard act to follow, and although it doesn’t quite reach the heights, this sequel should give fans, old and new, a lot of joy.