The Terrytoons are oddly interesting, mainly for anybody wanting to see (generally) older cartoons made by lesser known and lower-budget studios. They are a mixed bag in quality, with some better than others, often with outstanding music and with some mild amusement and charm and variable in animation, characterisation and content.
1941, like all the other years for Terrytoons, saw a hit and miss batch, though more consistent than previous years. Of which 'The Frozen North' is one of the lower middling ones ranking it in correlation with the rest of the Terrytoons and one of the weaker 1941 cartoons. It is an unexceptional, nothing exactly special cartoon, being generally a little below average, and has the same amount of problems as it has the amount of strengths. 'The Frozen North' is watchable but lacklustre, completest sake is the main reason to see it.
Best asset is the music, which predictably is incredible. It is so beautifully and cleverly orchestrated and arranged, is great fun to listen to and full of lively energy, doing so well with enhancing the action. The animation from the mid-late-30s onwards for the studio had come on leaps and bounds from when they first started, the more ambitious, elaborate detail in the backgrounds is still great to see, as is the comparatively improved fluidity of drawing and movement, and some synchronisation in movement and sound is neat.
There is some zest and natural charm and a few amusing moments, and parts of it and the basic set up are nicely done.
A few transitions are not always polished however.
Likewise, the story is paper thin (completely plotless, basically stringing along a series of blackout travelogue gags with not much connection to each other) doing little with a premise that's hardly new. Gags aren't enough, and what little there is is only sporadically amusing. There is definitely a sense of the studio having run out of ideas and just re-treading old premises and material. A lot of it is pretty predictable and lacks variety. Some choppiness too and the cartoon feels very old fashioned and basic. The characters are appealing but bland and it is all cuteness and not an awful lot in the way of conflict.
Summing up, cute but lacklustre. 4/10 Bethany Cox