Disney’s ‘Frozen 2’ wins big across the globe, but faces resistance in South Korea



Promotional material of Frozen 2 Photo: IC

As Disney’s
Frozen 2 was topping the North American pre-Thanksgiving weekend box office with a record $127 million debut, it also swept the Chinese mainland box office by taking in 341.4 million yuan ($48.5 million) over its opening weekend, according to Chinese ticketing platform Maoyan.

Released on Friday in North America, the film is a sequel to the original
Frozen which hit the theater in 2013, an Oscar-winner, crowned with best animated film and best original song. “Let It Go”, its award-winning song has also gained global popularity and been translated into several different languages. 

According to deadline.com,
Frozen 2 has claimed the record for the highest global opening weekend for an animated film. Disney is reporting that the film has brought in $350.2 million worldwide, beating out previous record-holder Toy Story 4’s $240.9 million opening back in June. 

Moviegoers have naturally taken to debate whether the sequel is better than the original.

Frozen 2 currently has a 7.3/10 on Chinese media review website Douban from more than 74,000 reviews, while the original has an 8.3/10 from 453,000 reviews. 

Regarding which one is better, the opinions among Chinese audiences are divided, with the question itself sparking great debate on Douban.   

In a top-rated review, Douban user VictorZou originally gave the film a 7/10 after watching the midnight screening on Friday, saying it was a far cry from the first one. Later that same day, the author updated the review giving the film an 8/10. 

“After a whole day’s discussion with Douban users, I found that I was being too harsh. I became a Disney fan because of
Frozen, so it was unavoidable for me to have too many expectations for
Frozen 2. Maybe it’s not a perfect sequel, but as a Disney animated film, the production quality is for sure top-notch. The surprising visual effects, the familiar dancing and singing, the attention to detail, these strengths cannot be denied.”     

In another highly-rated review, Douban user Lu Guanjun noted that the songs in the sequel may not be as catchy as “Let It Go” and “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” from the first film, but the film did a far better job when it came to the storytelling and hitting the audience in the feelings. 

“You may like
Frozen better, or maybe you prefer
Frozen 2, but one thing you can be sure of is that the sequel is worth checking out,” concluded Lu.

Controversy in South Korea


A day ahead of China and the US,
Frozen 2 was released in South Korea. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the film boasts the third-biggest industry opening of any movie in South Korea ($31.5 million). While the film’s commercial success is sure to make theater owners happy, its dominance in cinemas has film industry insiders worried. 

On Friday morning, several South Korean filmmakers called an emergency press conference in Seoul, urging people to be cautious about the monopolization of the film industry, according to a report from South Korean media outlet Mydaily.

South Korean director Chung Ji-young reiterated the importance of market fairness at the press conference. He pointed out that after the release of
Frozen 2 in South Korea, the daily screen seat quota for his recent work
Black Money, which came out on November 13, had been reduced from 900,000 to 300,000. 

“The decrease happened within a day. I am making an appeal against such unfair phenomenon,” said Chung. 

The director noted that he was aware that such an appeal could cause a backlash against
Black Money, but it would be worth the sacrifice if it drew people’s attention to fairness within the market.    

The filmmakers at the press conference pointed out that their intention was not to attack
Frozen 2, but rather to address a long-standing issue within the industry. They also suggested that relevant laws and policies should be implemented to prevent monopolies, rather than relying on the cinemas and film production companies to solve the issue.