Netflix Movie Monday - 'Tangled'

It's Monday, folks!  This usually means that I review a movie for you that I have found: 1) streaming, and 2) on Netflix.  I am breaking my own rules today because I simply HAVE to review this wonderful movie.  Although it is available from Netflix via snail mail, you can't watch today's movie streaming.  But believe me, it's worth the three day's wait!

Tangled

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past year, you'll already know that 'Tangled' is Disney's latest full length animated feature.  We did not go see this one in the theaters, for two reasons.  One being, I'm cheap.  It takes a lot to get me to fork over the money to watch a movie on the big screen when I know I'll be able to view it from the comfort of my own couch in a few months.  The second reason is that the previews for this one really turned me off.  It looked pretty ridiculous - a fighting she-man with hair that has a mind of its own, a pet chameleon, and some random Robin-Hood-type guy thrown in?  Next.  (I mean, come on.  Just look at the cover picture).

What I found completely blew me away.  'Tangled' is reminiscent of the old Disney classics, 'Cinderella' and 'Snow White'.  It is a musical, and the songs are really, really good:  sweet, catchy, with great choreography (i.e., no Pocahontas singing longingly into the wind from a pine bough).  Here are some of the reasons I love this movie SO MUCH, and will actually fork over the money to buy it for my family:

1.  It is upbeat and lighthearted.  I think I smiled throughout the whole movie.  The antics and dynamics between some of the characters are laugh out loud funny (like the horse who acts like a dog, Max's, ongoing rivalry with Flynn Rider, the movie's reluctant hero).  Even Rapunzel's evil captor, Mother Gothel, has the least scary Disney death scene I've ever witnessed.

2.  The main character is not a brat.  I.  Love.  This.  I grew up on a steady diet of Ariel, but now she turns my stomach, as do many of the other more recent Disney heroines.  I mean, when did it become cool to be selfish, self-seeking and hurtful to those you love?  Rapunzel, on the other hand, is driven by her loving and pure heart.  Her purity of character becomes her greatest weapon against the would-be perils of the world outside her tower, and she ends up charming everyone she meets.

3.  The main character is modest.  No voluptuous bosoms, or swinging backsides in this movie.  Rapunzel has a cute little face, freckles, and the body of a twelve year old (Don't let the cover fool you. That is the most chest you'll see in the whole movie).  And, she traipses around barefoot.  Bonus for this island girl!

4.  Amazing character development.  This is something 'Cinderella' and 'Snow White' don't have.  Both Flynn (the leading male), and Rapunzel have deeply rounded, endearing characters, and unveil slowly throughout the film.  This movie is as much about the two main characters' journeys to discover their true selves as it is the overlying quest they embark upon.

5.  TCK themes.  Here's another movie about someone who spent her entire life in one world, and is suddenly thrust into a completely new one.  It is fun to watch Rapunzel meeting new people, going to new places, and expanding her idea of who she is as a person in a new environment.