DVD REVIEW: ICE PRINCESS

There’s some sort of paradoxical dilemma simmering under the surface with ‘tween movies, and it’s been around even before the days of the Barely Legal series. Your average young adult is growing up in the world, and those pesky nagging questions have arisen to challenge their perceptions of the world and those who inhabit it. In order to combat this, these conflicted young’uns race their damned hot rods (off of cliffs) and do whatever it is they do (read: drugs and awkward touching sandwiches) to the hippest and hottest music this side of radio Disney. And it’s all coolly calculated for one thing: to steal your soul … and maybe your money. I think there might also be some sort of positive message in there, in between the rebellion and hellcat fire.

The Flick

Putting a new spin on the overwrought ‘tween genre is a tough sell. Especially when you factor in the sports. Look at The Big Green, The Mighty Ducks, and even the go-kart race in the life-affirming Heavyweights. All of these movies had heart and soul above the sub-par recent offerings of reigning Queens Duff (Cinderella Story anyone?) and Lohan (Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen? no?) and they did it with style, panache, and a simplistic story worthy of the Greek Gods. I might be overstating that one. So along comes Ice Princess, another notch in the Disney belt of bringing together the simple items that make ‘tween movies what they are. Teens, angst, emotional distance and in this case, Ice Skating. All of those simplistic conventions are in place, grandfathered over from Hughes and company into the plot developments. In a way it’s not really fresh as much as we’ve just repainted the house and added a satellite dish with the NESN sports package. Granted, the title alone is enough to make you shudder. But before you go about cringing for my sake or clicking the pop-up for some sort of enlargement service, I’ll just flat out say that I wholeheartedly volunteered for this one. I wanted the punishment that it entails, minus Lundgren and his bulging t-shirt.

Quickly wishing that all figure skaters burn in hell for their wardrobe transgressions, it is Joan who pushes Casey a little too far. Growing up has placed their relationship very close, often times one and the same, as the pair has thrown the penis into the closet and brought forth the power of the vagina to whole new heights in Millbrook, CT. It’s when Casey starts to break free from her Mother, wishing to follow her own goddamned dreams of skating and being ‘dance awkward’ in public places, that the bonds between Mother and Daughter get severely strained. Kinda like that Angel Hair you destroyed last night. Aiding Casey in regards to wearing skimpy freezing outfits is Kim Cattrall, playing Tina Harwood, the town’s only Coach in these matters. Emotions fly high and run the gamut, as Mothers are forced to confront their own Daughters and in turn their spawn is forced to pull away from them. This creates some massive issues on a very large scale. Thankfully, they’re all glossed over with relative ease by the overshadowing of the big Nationals event. Casey decides that her life is on the line. She must succeed, and win big.

Moving on, one of the more surprising aspects is the out-and-out feminism the movie presents. Casey’s familial unit, consisting of her and her forward-moving Cusack, is very much predicated on the foundation that as strong females, they can do anything, provided that they also fight the power at the same time. It’s rather refreshing to see this thrown into the mix of any young girls movie, but alas, stacked up against the scenes of relative body (the early onset of eating disorders makes an appearance, then disappears) issues make them muted and entirely too uneven as a whole. One moment Cusack is expounding upon the nature of what it means to be a strong woman, setting a great shining example for her Daughter, or any Daughter for that matter, and the next, the film is presenting girls who are watching their figure for the Nationals. These unbalanced sequences almost cancel each other out. It’s tough to have them both be presented against one another, almost as if they’re alike. However, the body issues aspect is played down rather quickly once the desire and drive to achieve on Casey’s level becomes apparent. Left are those instances, as previously mentioned, of Mothers and Daughters coming to grips with two different identities breaking off from the unit they both shared. I have to take a break to wipe the tears away. Ok, we’re back.

As a film for young girls, I am completely and utterly out of its target demographic by about 15 years and a major piece of hardware. One thing’s for sure, Leonard Maltin has his finger on the pulse, calling the film "ideal family entertainment!". That I can agree with him on, mostly. If I were much younger and still in grade school, being picked on by the local Bully before getting the receiving end of the Art school painting brush, I might think this movie rocks pretty hard. Watching the film as is, it does have some okay moments and a lot of really cheesy ones. This was a given even before venturing into Disneyland. You know what you’re going to get. Director Tim Fywell, however, goes closer to the skating action in a way most Vivid videos present their shots of craziness. Sweeping angles, always tracking, following and gliding with Casey and her others give way for fairly standard Earth scenes in the beginning. Once the film gets its footing on where it wants Casey to end up, starting with the Cusack/Cattrall standoff, Fywell allows shaky cam to take effect and every once and a while he’ll zoom in slightly and have the handheld motions sway. It’s distracting, but conveys the proper visual level of these characters. Everything is starting to become disconnected and hazy for everyone as dreams and goals are within sight. This really isn’t a standard Disney straightforward look, and for that I was rather surprised. As for the kinda downer of an ending (SPOILER! Earth explodes! END SPOILER), it makes up in lack of happiness with a fitting uplifting promise to everyone out there. Young girls might be particularly enthused, and young boys as well. Older, hardened gentlemen (Jack Palance) who life has crapped on, might be a little bitter, but it’s bitterness with a smile and a grumble. Basically, that means mixed.

6.8 out of 10

The Look

You’ll get the films original aspect ratio – 1.85:1. This is a spotless image with no dust, dirt or scratches. Contrasts are excellent, the amount of grain is at a minimal, flesh colors are naturalistic and the shading is great. Considering the film is less than a couple months old, I’d expect nothing less. If it gave me a winning lottery ticket or abolished my outstanding debt, it’d rank 11. Since the bastard can’t do that, it gets docked.

Presented in ear-shattering Dolby Digital 5.1. I was awash in the amazing sounds of Aly & A.J.’s ‘No One‘ at first, giving way to the sultry sounds of all of those girl power ballads that will change anyone’s life. Dialogue wise, it’s crystal clear, with nary a problem in the world. It’s affirming that at least in this cynical time, the Ice Princess soundtrack can be a beacon of light and fluffiness to offset the drama, emotions and bad people. In the end, though, the mix isn’t going to overwork your receiver. Survey says? Two points deducted.

8.0 out of 10

The Goodies

First up is the commentary track by Trachtenberg, Hayden Panettiere, Trevor Blumas and Kirsten Olson. Unfortunately, the whole gettogether suffers from the "look at this!" syndrome, where half of the time, almost all of the actors are telling you exactly what you’re seeing. Sample dialogue: "good music in these scenes…" "yeah, this is a sweet song…" "the food in there, was, like totally gross…". This goes on and on and on some more. Sometimes, though the group will chat for a moment or two about the actual production, like working with Mr. Fywell and his hatred for lip-gloss. Trachtenberg speaks the most about the actual production, shooting the film, working on the Disney lot and on the film in general. Everyone else does their own thing. This is not a spectacular track.

Finally, there’s a boatload of trailers and sneak peeks for stuff like: The Chronicles of Narnia, Valian, My Scene Goes Hollywood, Muppets Wizard of Oz, Aliens of the Deep, ESPN Sports Figures, Halloweentown Movies and Radio Disney. Hey dudes, where’s the original theatrical trailer for Ice Princess? Damn.

6.0 out of 10

The Artwork