DISNEY PRESENTS FROZEN

year: 2013 voices: Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad rating: ***1/2

The hills are alive… with the sound of… bland pop songs with corny lyrics describing what could easily be spoken, sung by characters who aren’t very interesting…

Well that’s what the casual viewer might think, at first, about FROZEN, a computer animated Disney musical about two sisters, one that happens to be an Ice Queen… Anyone not familiar with their chilly powers can revisit the first NARNIA film…

Although this particular snowy witch is good, deep down, only she can’t control her spells. Especially when her more normal, naïve sibling is old enough to not only engage the first guy she meets, but on the same day she meets him. That's when an extremely angry Elsa morphs the kingdom of Arendelle into eternal winter.

The adventure improves once the adventure actually begins. After an overlong, somewhat ponderous prologue, Anna, our tomboy black sheep heroine, journeys to find Elsa, holed up in a giant ice castle atop a mountain far enough away for a worthy trek… Here’s where the characters worth developing are introduced…

The charging Sven the Reindeer remains in charge of his quirky master Kristoff

Having kept her charming fiancé at home, Anna is teamed with clumsy, sweet, subliminal love interest Kristoff who, with his pet reindeer Sven, interact like a frolicking version of Princess Leia, Han Solo and Chewbacca. But the scene-stealing comic relief is Josh Gad’s neurotic snowman Olaf, providing genuine laughs while bringing the group closer together.

There’s an exciting homage to KING KONG when Anna and Kristoff confront a formidable ice monster, summoned by Elsa, who yearns to remain a tortured, brooding recluse… Meanwhile, Anna’s slowly dying from her sister’s curse and only an act of true love can save her.

This perfectly melodramatic do-or-die element is both heartfelt and suspenseful, making FROZEN an above-average kid’s movie that… despite the irritatingly uncatchy songs and a cliché money-hungry villain (albeit he's surpassed by an unexpected, more sinister foe)… is a thoroughly fun ride to keep adults equally engaged.

The character faces in this poster look old school claymation sorta