WaffleMovies.com - Ice Princess

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by Willie Waffle

Ice Princess

If you need someone to take on the horror film juggernaut of The Ring Two, it might as well be Buffy Jr. Michelle Trachtenberg seems to have made a smart move by joining the Disney stable of stars. When you think about it, today she gets the movies Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan won't make because they aren't interested. In three or four years, she'll be making the movies Duff can't make because she grew up too ugly, and Lohan won't make because she's in rehab.

Trachtenberg stars as Casey Carlyle - the geeky smart girl trying to win a prestigious physics scholarship to help get her into Harvard (only in a movie can a hot babe like Trachtenberg be the geeky girl, and, before you start calling me a Michael Jackson pervert, she's
20-years old in real life I looked it up on the internet). When told to make her project into something personal, and finding inspiration while watching figure skating on television, Casey sets out to prove skaters can do better when they apply physics formulas to their performance (don't expect me to be able to explain that better, I barely passed physics, just go with it). While applying her formulas, Casey blossoms into a fantastic skater, which causes her to reconsider her life choices.

Will Casey decide to compete as a skater? Can she win the local regionals? Will her mother understand? Is it worth passing on Harvard for this?

Ice Princess has all of the formula ingredients of a Disney, feel good movie aimed at young ladies including the crush on the cute boy, struggles with authority figures, dealing with female bullies, and a chance to overcome great adversity to achieve a goal, but it works fine here. You will be able to predict every twist and turn, but director Tim Fywell doesn't make it painful. It's more like a comfortable ride. Writer Hadley Davis doesn't give us any amazing dialogue, but makes G-rated verbal battles and conversations compelling as well as safe for kids.

I kidded at the beginning about Trachtenberg's career trajectory, but I'm only half kidding. She is a very likable, natural actress who can easily take roles from Lohan and Duff if they falter, or a casting director cares more about talent than star power. Even though she is far from being a wallflower, Trachtenberg's equally believable as the clumsy, nervous girl and the assertive young lady who steps up when needed.

Also, Kim Cattrall brings some much needed depth and sarcasm to her role as figure skating coach and mother, Tina Harwood. She could have been a stereotypical, coldhearted witch, but goes for a portrayal full of more sympathy and complexity. Cattrall is funny, tough, mean when needed and someone who commands your attention when she's on the screen. Joan Cusack is more one-dimensional in her portrayal as Casey's Mom, Joan Carlyle, but has some strong moments during the story's turning point.

Ice Princess is a pleasant diversion, most likely to be admired by young ladies eight to eighteen, and their mothers.

2 ½ Waffles (Out of 4)