The Snow Queen is the magical fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson that inspired the hit Disney film Frozen. This new release from Signature Entertainment brings the beautiful, original story to selected cinemas from October 25th and to Blu-Ray, DVD and digital platforms on November 3rd, to warm the hearts of children and melt even the coldest of hearts!
Gerda, a little orphan girl, embarks on a perilous journey across an icy wonderland to defeat the evil Snow Queen who has taken over the kingdom and kidnapped her brother Kai. They are descendants of a wizard Master Vegard, who according to the prediction of a magic mirrior, had the power to defeat the Snow Queen. Accompanied by her pet Ferret Luta and Orm the Troll (one of the Snow Queen's minions who comes good) Gerda faces danger in her race against time to save Kai and bring warmth back into the hearts of people across the land.
Gerda and Kai are lovely characters, nicely animated and with lot of appeal. They both possess special powers and good hearts. Orm and Luta are great sidekicks adding lots of humour to the adventure. There are some great laugh out loud moments to break up the tension. There are a lot of heartwarming and emotional moments, but also a great deal of mild threat and peril.
This version of a much loved story is definitely a little dark in parts. Gerda and Kai's parents are taken by the Snow Queen's polar wind and ultimately killed by the Snow Queen in the opening scene. The head of the children's home where the children live is really horrible and Gerda encounters lots of people on her travels intent on destroying her mission. The ice beasts and ice trolls are quite fearsome and the Snow Queen herself is really evil and so this may be a bit frightening for the very young or very fainthearted children. But slightly older children will love the adventure and the thrills of the movie.
The finale of the film is quite intense and a little bit scary, but we find out the truth about the Snow Queen and see good triumph over evil. Gerda's bravery, along with the spirit of her family in her heart, defeats the evil of the queen and we see peace and warmth restored to the kingdom. The Snow Queen learns that having hatred in her heart helps no one and Gerda and Kai are reunited. So there is a happy ending for everyone.
This is a great take on the traditional story and a perfect film in the lead up to Christmas.
Here is an activity sheet that can be clicked on and printed to entertain the kids!
