Two days before Thanksgiving last year, I saw Tangled,
Disney’s first CGI fairy tale. I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the
animation style, but I was pleased to find that the movie still felt
fully immersed in Disney enchantment and that the depth of animation
only enhanced it. And then there was the lantern scene. I don’t think a
single scene in a movie has so engrossed me since the Circle of Life trailer for The Lion King
made my jaw drop. I’d enjoyed the movie up until that point, loving the
humor, the action, the flirtation, the music, the great little nods to
other classics… But then came the moment for which Rapunzel had waited
the entire movie – indeed, her entire life. I wasn’t prepared for how
thoroughly it would take my breath away.
In the scene, we
witness the annual ritual of the king and queen leading their subjects
in a ceremony in remembrance of the daughter who vanished from her crib
as an infant. Flynn, Rapunzel’s traveling companion who isn’t quite the
rapscallion he claims to be, doesn’t know that she is the lost princess,
and neither does she, but he understands how much it means to her to be
able to see these lanterns up close, so he secures a boat and rows her
out to the middle of the lake over which the hundreds of lanterns are
released. On a purely visual level, the spectacle of the lanterns is
utterly gorgeous and could not have been so immersive or effective in
traditional hand-drawn form. The scene absolutely glows, and like
Rapunzel, whose eyes are as big as saucers, the audience can barely take
it all in.
Then there’s the significance to the story. It’s a
big moment for Rapunzel because she is achieving a lifelong dream and
taking a step toward really understanding who she is. In the quiet
moment before the ceremony begins, we witness the abiding love the king
and queen still have for their daughter and understand that a reunion is
imminent. This is emphasized nicely when we see a lantern come to her,
and she lightly lifts it into the air; as it rises, it becomes apparent
by the sun symbol upon it that this was the very lantern that her
parents released. It’s about her finding herself.
But at the
same time, Flynn is finding himself too, and as they come to a deeper
understanding of themselves, each realizes how integral the other has
been to developing that awareness. This, too, is beautifully symbolized
as they simultaneously release a pair of lanterns and we watch them
gradually rise, circling each other and remaining close together and
clearly discernible amongst the multitude of surrounding lights on the
water until they vanish into the distance.
While the song has been criticized for its similarities to A Whole New World, I See the Light
impacted me much more, perhaps in part because Rapunzel and Flynn had
been through more together at that point than Jasmine and Aladdin had. I
can’t remember the last time I had such a strong reaction to a song in a
film. For me, every element of the scene came together to create a
movie moment of such perfection I don’t think I’ll ever forget the exact
circumstances in which I saw it for the first time.
Given my
great attachment to that scene, I kept an eye out for tie-in merchandise
that somehow incorporated it, and several months later, I finally
spotted something: the Glimmer ‘n’ Glow Birthday Lantern, an attractive
plastic lantern that works as a musical projector. The plastic lantern
is pale purple on the top and bottom, with a dark purple handle and a
dark purple strip toward the bottom with gold accents. It’s on this
strip that you will find the golden button, the circle in the middle of a
sun, and when you press it, the music plays and the lantern lights up
with a bit of a disco ball effect as little white and yellow balls zoom
around the interior. The main portion of the lantern is a panoramic
still from the scene, with lanterns emanating from the castle and moving
out over the water. On the back, we see the castle by itself, while on
the front, an image of Rapunzel and Flynn is superimposed so that the
castle is in the background.
That’s my first issue with the
lantern. Instead of showing the two of them in the rowboat, or at least
the two of them in a genuinely romantic moment, we have Rapunzel fixing
Flynn with a squinty stare that seems to say, “Don’t try anything,
buster; I’ve got a frying pan, and I’m not afraid to use it.” Yes, she’s
smiling, and their hands are touching; you might say it’s a flirtatious
smile, but there’s just a touch too much aggression there to fit the
moment. I’m glad the two of them are there; I just would have liked
something that captured the feelings of wonder and contentment so
prevalent in the scene.
The lantern is designed so that you can
set it down flat or hang it somewhere, and there are little holes in the
top portion so that the light can peek through. If you really want to
see it, though, you need to remove the top portion of the lantern,
leaving you just the base. To do this, you have to twist to the right
and lift it off, which is fairly easy, though getting it back on again
is a bit trickier. Now you’re left with nothing but a clear dome covered
in circles. Turn off the light – it really doesn’t work unless it’s
genuinely dark, so you really have to wait until nighttime to get the
effect – and press the button. Yellow and white light combines as the
dome spins, creating a very pretty effect. On demo mode, this will only
last a few seconds, but flip it to “on,” and it will project
indefinitely (until the batteries run out).
The big
disappointment here is that there is no way to mute the music. Now,
don’t get me wrong; I adore the song. But all you’re getting here is one
line of melody. It’s purely instrumental, starting off with a nice
fairy tale flourish reminiscent of the “please turn the page” sounds
that populated so many of those Disney book-and-record sets I had
growing up. The music is pretty, but as it only corresponds to a quarter
of the chorus – “And at last I see the light, and it’s like the fog has
lifted” – you really don’t want to listen to that on a loop all night.
Well, maybe some kids won’t mind; goodness knows most toddlers have a
much higher tolerance for repetition than the rest of us. But hearing
the same little snippet over and over and over and over strikes me as a
good way to get sick of a tune that currently ties with Candle on the Water
as my favorite Disney love song ever. I don’t want that to happen.
Unfortunately, that means I can’t leave the projector on and fall asleep
to the sight of lanterns cruising around my room. I think that would
make an excellent night light…
The lantern comes with three AAA
batteries included. I’ve had mine about four months, and my batteries
haven’t worn out, though the sound is starting to get a bit fuzzy. I’ve
read reviews of it online, and apparently replacing the batteries
presents another problem because the lantern was made in China and the
batteries there are slightly smaller. Evidently you can get around this
by taking a screwdriver and stretching the springs out a bit so that
they connect with the American batteries, but I haven’t tried it myself
so I can’t speak from experience there.
I don’t regret buying
the Glimmer ‘n’ Glow Birthday Lantern, but it certainly doesn’t live up
to the wonder of that scene. It’s a nice reminder, but I hope I
eventually run across something that is a more impressive representation
of that iconic moment.
No comments:
Post a Comment