I'm afraid to admit it but i actually might rent this movie.. or go with my sister if she forces me.. LOL.

it's doing really well on RT i think 68%

Ice Princess currently has 57% at RottenTomatoes. Which is better than both Princess Diaries movies. (which both had under 50%)

What a charming surprise. Ice Princess was a delightful film that I'm glad I saw. Although the film is hardly original and follows many of its plot elements like you'd expect, it has its heart in the right place. Michelle Trachtenberg is wonderful as Casey, a science geek who applies basic physics to the practice of figure skating, where she eventually realizes her dream. Joan Cusack (Casey's mom) and Kim Cattrall (Casey's coach) are both quite good as two different parents who have two totally opposite opinions on nearly everything. As Gen, Hayden Panettiere represents a typical "blonde snob" from these types of movies, but Ice Princess changes this and allows her character to be someone who is decent and kind-hearted. She wants to *not* figure skate as much as Casey wants to. Many of the characters in Ice Princess have more of a depth to them than is usual in these films. We can understand many of the things the characters do and say, which is rare for a sports film. B+

This one looks stupid, no one should waste their time seeing this one...

:wink:

I think it looks cute, and hopefully I will see it soon.

Actually, I was just doing a Libs parody posting, thus the :wink: - Shhhh... don't tell anyone, but I think it looks cute too, and will probably see it next week after March Break Madness is done with.

*Ahem* Despite the fact you seem unable to let that comment go, I said that after I had already seen the movie. Your "parody", accordingly, doesn't make that much sense.

It was not a parody of your review of this movie - but nevermind, I'm just amusing myself...

I realize this, I was referring to that doggone Without a Paddle thread from Mojo.

Grade: B

Much better than I was expecting!

"Trachtenberg is thoroughly believable, an unspoiled charmer. Her rise from clumsy girl to someone brimming with confidence and the author of one heckuva physics project, she's a pretty cool princess to root for."
-- Desson Thomson, WASHINGTON POST

"Although this is the kind of entertainment designed to send its audience home happy, Ice Princess has its share of stinging moments and has a good deal more edge than one might have expected."
-- Kevin Thomas, LOS ANGELES TIMES

"The characters have a depth that is missing in most clichéd sports films."
-- Jeff Strickler, MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE

"The movie carries out its generic, almost ritualized narrative with honest sentiment and engaging warmth."
-- Gene Seymour, NEWSDAY

"It’s not the most original of concepts I know, but Trachtenberg is so likable in the lead role, that you can’t help but root for her."
-- Scott Nash, THREE MOVIE BUFFS

"Ice Princess proves that it's still possible to teach an old formula a few new tricks."
-- Michael Rechtshaffen, HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

"A cut above most pictures of its type."
-- Mick LaSalle, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

Casey Carlyle (Michelle Trachtenberg) seems to have everything going for her. She's an exceptional student with dreams of Harvard who spends all of her time working towards a bright future. She has the full support of her feminist mother Joan (Joan Cusack), who thinks Casey is following the right path in life. But Casey has one passion that she keeps hidden, and that is skating.

From the opening scene of ICE PRINCESS, it is evident to the audience that this is what Casey truly loves, gliding on a sheet of glasslike ice. She gets the opportunity to explore her hidden passion through a physics project which leads towards a college scholarship. Interested in the aerodynamics of skating, she begins to videotape aspiring champions at a local skating rink owned by former professional Tina Harwood (Kim Cattrall). Tina is initially reluctant about Casey's presence, fearing it will distract her competing daughter Gen (Hayden Panettierre) from her vigourous training, but she decides to let her observe. Casey also meets Tina's son, a Zamboni driver named Teddy (Trevor Blumas). Truly immersing herself in the sport, Casey decides to take lessons in order to better her skills.

She starts off poorly but after a regional recital she quickly improves, advancing immediately up to the junior level, where Gen and Tina are training for the championship. Armed with a new attitude and a sense of hopefulness, Casey decides to follow her dreams and work towards becoming a champion figure skater.

ICE PRINCESS is a fairly predictable story and follows a certain formula, but it works surprisngly well because it tackles a topic not previously exposed on film. The direction by Tim Fywell (in his motion picture debut) is superb and the sequences on ice are simply breathtaking to behold. Most are energetic and colorful, keeping the audience completely immersed in them.

The main reason that it succeeds though is because of the great cast. I've always been a fan of Michelle Trachtenberg ever since I met her a few years ago. She was really friendly and gracious and really caught my attention as a star on the rise. With her appearances on TV's "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" and in films such as HARRIET THE SPY and EUROTRIP, she has proven herself as a great young talent. This film could have easily been ruined by the casting of other Disney teenyboppers such as Hilary Duff and Raven Symone, but thankfully the right choice was made. Trachtenberg gives the best performance of her career here, really carrying the movie on her shoulders. She is charming and extremely likable as Casey and the audience really comes to identify with her. Exuding radiance onscreen from beginning to end, Trachtenberg steals the show and makes the movie work with her sweet and strong performance. What is even more impressive is that she did most of the skating work herself, adding a sense of realism to the performance as well.

The supporting cast is also solid. Joan Cusack does a good job playing a mother who only wants what she thinks is best for her daughter. The audience can understand her struggle and she remains likable even though she doesn't support Casey's dream for a good part of the film. Kim Cattrall is also solid as Tina, who eventually becomes Casey's skating coach. Hayden Panettierre is another star on the rise and shows her talent here as well. She is quite likable as Gen, the popular skater who has a change of heart, and pulls off the role believably. Trevor Blumas isn't given much to do in the one-note romantic interest role, but does his best with the material he is given.

Overall, ICE PRINCESS is an absolutely charming film for the whole family. Disney has another winner on their hands with this one, thanks to the extraordinary skating sequences and Trachtenberg's excellent performance. I enjoyed this one more than the two PRINCESS DIARIES films and I'm glad that I blind bought the DVD. Highly recommended.

8/10 (A-)

One of the most enjoyable disney movies I've seen in awhile. The plot is just what it needs to be: a good, old-fashioned underdog story, with a few surprises here and there. Michelle Trachtenberg, Kim Cattrall, and Joan Cusack give great performances here. The best sports film of the year so far.

A-

ICE PRINCESS (2005)

“Ice Princess” seemed like an enjoyable movie, nothing more and nothing less. I didn’t expect it to be the incredibly delightful charmer that it was though. The basic “follow your dreams” plot isn’t anything new, but they pull off this age old formula about as well as it can be done, thanks in large part to Michelle Trachtenberg’s (TV’s Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Eurotrip) irresistible performance as Casey Carlyle, a smart but unpopular high school student who could get into a top college but dreams of being a figure skater, despite the disapproval of her academics-driven mother (Joan Cusack).

Michelle Trachtenberg couldn’t be more lovable here, and since she’s supposed to be really nice in real life it’s refreshing to be able to think that not only is the person’s character likable, but so are they. That’s something you don’t have when watching a movie like this starring the ever-popular Lindsay Lohan. Even if her character is likable, and they usually are, you still know that she’s really a bitch and that kind of ruins it. So Michelle, take my advice and stay sweet and nice because in the end you have nothing to gain by being a bitch and it’s just a major turn-off. So far I find you to be a very respectable young actress. Hayden Panettiere (The Dust Factory, Raising Helen, Racing Stripes) was solid as Gen and I liked that her character didn’t stay the stereotypical and one-dimensional enemy of the main character for most of the movie. It was nice seeing Sex & The City’s very own Samantha, my favorite character from that show, here as the stereotypical “win at all costs” skating coach and mother of Gen. But even if her character isn’t the most pleasant I still liked seeing her in it. Joan Cusack was fine as Casey’s somewhat overbearing mother who means well but should really be supporting her daughter and encouraging her to be who she wants and do what she loves. Of the main actors I found Trevor Blumas (Prom Queen: The Marc Hall Story) as the love interest to be the weakest link, but that very well could be because he has nothing to do. I didn’t find him very charming in his short amount of screen time though.

As a critic sometimes you find yourself taking off your nitpicky critic gear for a movie and rewarding it for being so good at what it does. For me this was one of those movies. I’m almost embarrassed to have loved it so much but it was a great family movie and Trachtenberg is so immensely likable and charming. My only real complaint is the embarrassingly cheesy part where a supporting character says, “She’s going to whip my butt!” It was said in such a horribly lame way and I swear if I watched this with someone that actually laughed at that part I’d cringe. But other than that I definitely recommend “Ice Princess” and am looking forward to seeing Trachtenberg in a lot more movies.

Grade: 8/10 (B+)

You should see the underseen and underrated Swimming Upstream and you might change your mind. I highly recommend it. I loved both this movie and that movie.

Finally!

I'm a sucker for this sort of underdog sports flick and the Ice Princess certainly worked her magic on me. If they'd developed the mother-daughter psychology a bit better it could have been a real classic.


6 out of 5.