Tangled (2010)

I did some research online and found out that TANGLED is the 50^th animated feature from the Walt Disney Animation Studios. This is certainly an amazing feat, and when I say 50 titles, I’m leaving out all of the Pixar movies, which have justifiably stolen the thunder from Disney’s traditional animation house in the past decade.

It might also startle some to note that there have been a dozen animated features since Disney’s last Oscar-winning full-length cartoon, “Tarzan.” Yes, that many! So what happened to all of those films? Well, as a life-long lover of Disney movies, I can tell you that I saw most of them, and none of them lived up to the Disney standard; a few were even flat-out bad. That, I think, is what makes TANGLED that much more special. Yes, “Toy Story 3” from Disney’s sibling studio Pixar is the best animated film of the year. And yes, I think it will be nominated for at least three Academy Awards, including Best Picture. But I’m going to remind us all that Pixar has rarely faltered from a tradition of quality it’s developed since the release of the first Toy Story, a track record unparalleled by virtually any other movie studio. It’s almost a freakish anomaly.

The “regular” Disney animation studio has had the normal ups and downs of any film studio, but because of the hot streak of wonderful animated musicals that ran from 1989’s “The Little Mermaid” through, arguably, 1999’s “Tarzan,” even a mediocre film is going to be quite a disappointment. And I believe that TANGLED is a return to that form, a film that is simultaneously a firm return to the tradition of the Disney princess film and a fresh and modern take on the fairytale from a studio that hasn’t been able to produce “fresh” in years.

Not that they haven’t tried. Last year, Disney released “The Princess and the Frog,” and its attempt at being fresh was to set the story in New Orleans—a real place—rather than some fantasy kingdom, and to cast its first-ever African-American heroine as its princess. These factors were indeed virtues, but the script didn’t pull the weight; it was a Cajun coat of paint on an uninspired rehash of a story. Sure, Disney got another (and unique-looking) princess for girls’ doll collection. But that’s about it. And the music, while it was organic to that story, was not particularly memorable in the long run.

In comes Disney’s Oscar-magnet Alan Menken, who hadn’t worked on an animated feature since “Home on the Range” and last wrote for Disney’s live-action (and wonderful) “Enchanted.” This time, his show tune sensibilities are given a decidedly pop edge, resulting in some of the best songs from a Disney musical in years.

The plot of TANGLED goes far beyond my memory of the Rapunzel story, though who knows much more to that story other than the whole “let down your hair” bit? In this version, Rapunzel’s hair actually has magical healing properties and glows when she sings. In a modern spin, and though she’s been trapped in that tower until her 18^th birthday, where the film’s plot begins, she is armed with her hair and not afraid to use it—intuitively capable of using it as a weapon and a productive tool.

The villain in this film is Rapunzel’s mother, Gothel, wonderfully voiced by Donna Murphy. After a few Disney films with bombastic villains, here we have a cross between the old hag version of the wicked queen from “Snow White” and the stepmother from “Cinderella.” The script’s lines for Gothel are wisely understated and passive-aggressive, making her that much more frightening and the subtext of her hold over Rapunzel infinitely more sad and cruel. Gothel, we learn, kidnapped Rapunzel and uses her hair to remain young and healthy. Naturally, she raises the girl to be terrified of the dangers of the outside world and to want to remain in the tower forever. Conveniently, this would also keep her from learning that she is actually a princess, missing for 18 years from the castle of the nearby kingdom.

Fortune intervenes in the person of Flynn Rider, a petty thief and handsome charmer who ends up in the tower as a refuge of escape while being chased down for stealing a crown from that very castle. Except the tower turns out to be no refuge; one of the most refreshing aspects of TANGLED is just how far from helpless this princess is, even though her life is as provincial as it gets (sorry, Belle). Rapunzel knows he wants the crown back and has no idea that it belongs to her. She makes a deal with Flynn that if he takes her into the kingdom while Gothel is away to view the “lights” she witnesses from a distance every night, she’ll hand over the crown and they can both go their separate ways.

That, of course, is not how it all goes down. Naturally, in Disney fashion, love blossoms. But what makes it special here is the fact that this is no prince. In fact, he’s really cut from the same cloth as Aladdin. And his transformation gives the film a good chunk of its soul, not to mention its sense of humor. This is a laugh-out-loud-funny film at times, usually at the hands of either Flynn or his horse-that-acts-like-a-dog sidekick, Maximus.

I’m not sure why Disney felt the need to play games with the film’s title, calling it TANGLED here in the United States but sticking to “Rapunzel” for its overseas release. The stories have it that after the disappointment of “The Princess and the Frog” and in light of Pixar’s work, Disney didn’t want to alienate its boy audience with “another princess movie.” So the princess’ name was removed from the title and the trailers for the film focused more on Flynn than Rapunzel. I’m not sure if that gimmick worked, but it wasn’t necessary. TANGLED has plenty for boys and girls alike. I loved it every bit as much as my daughter did!

While the animation of TANGLED is computer-generated like all of the Pixar films, it’s fashioned in the traditional Disney animation style, if that makes any sense. Using a technique called non-photorealistic rendering, the film takes on the finish of oil paintings, and it’s beautiful.

As I mentioned before, Menken’s songs, with lyrics by Glenn Slater, work perfectly with the story. The love duet “I See the Light” stands out for worthy inclusion next to songs like “A Whole New World,” and “I’ve Got a Dream” continues the tradition of the typically witty group number. Pop star Mandy Moore and TV actor Zachary Levi handle their vocals fantastically—both spoken and sung. But in some ways, “Mother Knows Best,” sung by Murphy, gives the film its depth and gravity. The song is Gothel’s demonstration of her cruel emotional manipulation over Rapunzel. It’s chilling and sad and strangely, if taken the right way, the kind of song any parent would sing to his or her child. The psychological complexity here is, to make the comparison, at Pixar-level.

TANGLED returns the traditional Disney animated studio to a place it hasn’t been in over a decade. It’s surprisingly good, though we shouldn’t be surprised. Disney has always had the magic. They just had to let down their hair and figure out where they put it.

3.5 out of 4