Tangled * * * 1/2

"Tangled" is Disney's excellent re-imagining of the fairy tale "Rapunzel".

I have a disagreement with a friend.  He and I both watched the two part season finale of season 3 of Star Wars The Clone Wars.  He said the show doesn't hold his interest because it is animated.  Since I think that the one hour season finale is excellent, I asked him if he would have liked it if it had used live actors.  He answered affirmative.  But he says that animation is not "real" enough for him.  This is where I have a problem.  Any show with good story will hold my interest.  It can be in any format.  It could be a comic book.  A novel doesn't use live actors, but most people like novels.

So I find myself wondering if the people who don't normally like animation, will like this movie.  I figured that the 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes would make it a shoo in, but now I am not sure.  The movie feels like it was designed by a committee whose desire was to please everyone.  The first and second halves have a different flavor.  The first half gives us slapstick, an overly intelligent horse who behaves more like a dog, and singing bandits.  The kids will love this part.  It reminded me of "The Emperor's New Groove" which is pretty funny.  The second half is more grown up and sentimental.  The second half also has some breathtaking computer animation.  It is not a giant leap forward, but I think that Disney had to invent some new technology to make this movie.  The beauty of the animation makes the movie special.  I am thinking that those who can see it in 3D might find it really impressive.

There is a lot of action in "Tangled" and more violence than I would have expected for a kids film.  At least one person gets stabbed.  Some of the violence takes place off screen.  Given that we are in the age of violent video games, I don't think that it is too intense for children.

I stated before that I didn't think that the many musical numbers were particularly memorable, but I guess that I was wrong.  I still remember some of the songs, which aren't bad.

How is it that a girl trapped in a tower for her whole life can swim?   No matter I guess.