Featured Article Summary #54

Frozen II is an animated musical fantasy film and the sequel to Frozen. It follows the characters Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Sven, and Olaf as they travel to an enchanted forest to uncover the origin of Elsa's magical power. The film explores themes of colonialism and reparation. It was greenlit in 2015 despite concerns about living up to the original. The film used enhanced animation technology and featured the return of the original songwriters and composer. Frozen II received positive reviews, grossed over $1.4 billion worldwide, and received numerous accolades. Two sequels are currently in development. King Agnarr tells his daughters that their grandfather built a dam in the Enchanted Forest, causing a fight with the neighboring tribe and the death of their grandfather. Three years later, Elsa hears a mysterious voice and unintentionally awakens elemental spirits, causing everyone in the kingdom to evacuate. Elsa and Anna travel to the Enchanted Forest to uncover the truth about the past and discover a fifth spirit. They eventually destroy the dam to restore peace and Elsa becomes the protector of the Enchanted Forest while Anna becomes Queen of Arendelle. The voice cast of Frozen II includes Kristen Bell as Anna, Idina Menzel as Elsa, and Josh Gad as Olaf. Other members of the cast include Jonathan Groff as Kristoff and Sven, Martha Plimpton as Yelena, Sterling K. Brown as Mattias, and Evan Rachel Wood as Iduna. The film also features various other characters voiced by actors such as Alfred Molina, Jeremy Sisto, and Alan Tudyk. In 2014, the producers and creators of Frozen discussed the possibility of a sequel, but were concerned about living up to the success of the first film. However, after working on a short film featuring the characters, they realized they missed them and decided to explore a sequel. They decided that Anna would become the queen of Arendelle and Elsa would be free at the end of the sequel. Frozen II, the full-length sequel to Frozen, was announced at Disney's annual shareholders' meeting in 2015. The production team conducted background research in Norway, Finland, and Iceland, and decided to make Elsa a "mythic hero" with ice powers and Anna a "fairytale hero" without magic powers. Voice recording began in 2017, and the film underwent significant revisions after its first test screening to make it easier for children to follow. "Show Yourself" was the last major animation scene completed before the film was finalized.