TANGLED

US, 2010, 100 minutes, Colour.
Voices of: Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi, Donna Murphy, Ron Perlman, M.C. Gainey, Jeffrey Tambor, Brad Garrett, Richard Kiel.
Directed by Nathan Greno and Byron Howard.

Becoming tangled could get hairy. Well, here it does for Flynn Rider, a Robin Hood type of sorts (who reveals that his actual name is Eugene). He becomes ensnared by Rapunzel, she of the long and healing hair.

It looks more like a traditional Disney film than most of the other animated films of 2010 – which is fair enough since it is a Disney film. As in the past, the fairy tale has been Disneyfied for a wide audience. This also means that the story has been very much Americanised, accents, some slang and some cutesy bits of dialogue and all. Which does not meant that it is not entertaining, just that it has been Americanised!

Not being too familiar with the tale of Rapunzel, I watched it with more interest than usual. It is an enjoyable variation of Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty stories. There is a villainous crone (who has been using a magic healing flower to rejuvenate over the centuries), well voiced by Donna Murphy, who abducts the young princess Rapunzel when the king’s messengers have discovered and taken her flower. She raised Rapunzel in a high tower, brushing and cultivating her ever-growing powerful hair.

But, Rapunzel is nearing eighteen and has a longing to descend from her tower. Her rather sarcastic ‘mother’ has all the reasons why she should not go and tends to mock, then cajole, then spoil Rapunzel.

But, the aforementioned Flynn Rider and his thug partners have stolen the princess’s crown from the palace and, to escape, he hurries up the tower. Instead of a romantic welcome (that will come later), she clobbers him with a frying pan! However, out they go into all kinds of adventures, ‘mother’ arriving back to manipulate matters and coax Rapunzel back, even to resorting to kill Flynn.

As the film went on, it became more and more enjoyable, even with some romantic, some comic and some schmaltzy songs, until ‘mother’ got hers and there was a happy ever after.

Mandy Moore voices Rapunzel and Zachary Levi (Spock in the 2009 Star Trek) is Eugene. And there is a very entertaining horse who is a great scene-stealer!

1. The popularity fairy tale? A film for adults, children? The fairy tale Americanised in tone, characters and look, accents?

2. The animation design, characters and their traditional look, the princess, the witch, the hero, villains? The soldiers? Max the horse? The people of the town? The layout, castle, the woods, Rapunzel’s tower, the interiors, the caves and the quarry, the dam? The effect of the 3D?

3. The range of the songs, Disney style, romantic, comic?

4. Flynn Rider, his voice-over, his tone, his emphasis on himself, the story of his death, the story of the princess? His alerting audiences to the old woman, her getting the flower, rejuvenation? His narrative throughout the film?

5. The kingdom, the king and queen, the pregnancy, the queen unwell, the search for the flower, the old woman and her knocking over the basket in her haste, their finding the flower, taking it back to the castle, the queen restored to health, the vitality of the flower in the baby? Mother Gothel and her abducting the child, confining it in the tower, saying she was protecting the child, the child growing up, about to turn eighteen, her hopes, wanting to go outside? Her fascination with the lanterns which went up every year on her birthday?

6. Rapunzel and Mother Gothel, Mother Gothel letting Rapunzel’s hair grow, brushing it and keeping it fresh? Her being a mother, Rapunzel having to bring her mother up to the top of the tower, the mother’s promise of good soup? Her beautifying herself, selfish, her teasing Rapunzel? The routines of life in the tower, reading, painting, baking? The comic touch of the chameleon and his appearance, changing colour, his help?

7. Flynn, with the thieves, let down into the palace, the guard sneezing, ‘Gezundheit’? The pursuit of Rider and the thugs? Maximilian the horse, chasing Flynn, going out on the branch, to retrieve the crown? Their both falling? Recovery? Flynn escaping to the tower, Rapunzel and the frying pan? Her putting him in the closet? Finding the crown, hiding it? Mother Gothel’s return? Rapunzel, the birthday, tricking Mother Gothel, getting her to leave?

8. Flynn, his story, out of the closet, her delight, tears and laughter, out of the tower, her feeling guilty, feeling happy? Flynn taking her to the inn, the range of thugs, the transformation, their dreams? The big thug and his wanting to play the piano? The arrival of the soldiers, the escape through the secret passage, the horse and its continued tracking the scent, finding the tunnel? The boulder falling, Rapunzel and Flynn being trapped, the rising water, the dam overflowing, Rapunzel’s magic, their escape?

9. Mother Gothel, coming back, discovering the thugs, hearing the truth? Her promise to them? Flynn telling Rapunzel his name was Eugene? Their watching the water, on the boat, in love? The attack, Mother Gothel and the boat?

10. Rapunzel, her sadness, her return to the tower?

11. Flynn, in prison, about to be executed, the guards, the horse and his bringing the bandits to help Flynn escape? The collaboration of the horse?

12. Eugene, his wanting to rescue Rapunzel, Mother Gothel stabbing him, his death? Rapunzel and her plea, healing Eugene and living forever in the tower? Eugene cutting her hair, her losing her power? Mother Gothel, her anger, overbalancing, falling to her death?

13. Rapunzel’s tear, the power of the miracle in her tear, bringing Eugene to life?

14. The king and queen, the restoration of their daughter? The happy reunion, the town’s celebrations – the marriage, and Flynn Rider’s comic comments about his consenting to Rapunzel’s proposal?

15. An enjoyable presentation of a fairy tale – with concessions to the modern audience, language and sensibilities?