Ice Princess
(2005)
Rating: ★★★
Who knew Michelle Trachtenberg could figure skate? I certainly didn’t. But much of her poise and grace as one was put on show in the Disney movie, Ice Princess.
Pre-whore-gina Michelle Trachtenberg excellently displays her character Casey Carlyle as physics geek turned ice skating pro, which makes her as lovable as Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries. Michelle has just about enough charm both on and off the rink, and an unfailing grace throughout the film.
However, it was Hayden Panettiere’s Gennifer Harwood who showed a more complex and more realistic persona in the film. Transitioning from mean girl to good best friend one scene after another is a surprising and fun digression from the stereotypical mean girl character.
Coming from Disney and from Meg Cabot (who co-wrote), Ice Princess is a pretty predictable film about a lowly heroine destined to be someone even better than she expected. However, what differentiates this film from other Disney films of it’s kind is that it does not stop on a single triumph. While it does take courage and passion to go after something that you really love (for Casey, it is rejecting her Harvard scholarship and continuing skating), it takes ten times more of that and dedication to actually pursue it. This is one of the few films that I have watched, that truly displayed the value of “dedication.”
There were many obstacles that Casey had to go through. And she didn’t make it to the end just because something made her realize something important, or because she had a friend who helped her make a plan. Casey did it all herself. She prepared everything so she could film her project. Then, she worked hard to save for skating lessons. And finally, she tirelessly practiced on the rink so she could get a spot on sectionals, and eventually regionals. While it wasn’t enough for her to place first on the contest, it did show the audience that passion and hard work pays off.
The film didn’t give everything away - even though it easily could’ve - which makes it all the more endearing, at the same time, effective.
