Tangled

A Disney retelling of the classic fairy tale of the Princess imprisoned in an isolated, tall tower. The only way into or out of the tower is to climb up Rapunzel's long hair.

Rapunzel, Flynn Ryder, Mother Gothel, Stabbington Brother, Captain of the Guard, Big Nose Thug, Hook Hand Thug, Short Thug, Vlad, Little Girl, Guards, Thugs

Combined 2-D and 3-D animation.

To date, the most expensive animated film ever made with a budget of $260 million.

Originally to be Glen Keane's directorial debut.

Mark Kennedy, Adam Wilson and Melanie Wilson were initially to be the writers, with screenplay by Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott. Music was to be by Jeanine Tesori, with songs by Amir Khalifa.

Refocused in 2003 to take a more aggressive and hip tack in story, trying to capitalize on the popularity of DreamWorks' Shrek series.

On April 12, 2007, Dean Wellins was added as co-director. Glen Keane pushed for an animation look that would resemble traditional oil paintings on canvas. Keane wanted to recreate the lunminesent, painterly quality from the painting by French Rococo artist Jean-Honore Fragonard called The Swing. Keane said, "We are using subsurface scattering and global illumination and all of the latest techniques to pull off convincing human characters and rich environment."

In October 2008, Glen Keane and Dean Wellins stepped down from the project, replaced by Byron Howard and Nathan Greno. They bring the story back to once again follow the original tale more closely.

By early 2010, a new direction was in evidence. First, in Febuary, the name "Tangled" replaced "Rapunzel." The story took a decidedly more adveturous tack, and added an Errol Flynn-type character. Disney felt that the 222 million dollars that The Princess And The Frog earned at the box office worldwide was not enough. Disney felt that the "Princess effect" was keeping half their potential market away. So this film was refocused to appeal to boys, too, and the name was changed to make it more acceptable to young men.

Original synopsis:

There goes the prince to deliver Rapunzel from the high tower where the evil witch got her imprisoned. However, when he gets there and asks Rapunzel to throw her long braided hair for him to climb on it, she says she cut it. According to her magazine VOG (Vanity Of the Goddess), it is more fashionable to have short hair...

Soundtrack: "Prologue," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Donna Murphy and Delaney Rose Stein, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "When Will My Life Begin?", Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore, Produced by Scott Cutler, Anne Preven and Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "When Will My Life Begin? (Reprise 1)," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "Mother Knows Best," Music by Alan Menken. Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Donna Murphy, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "When Will My Life Begin? (Reprise 2)," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "I've Got a Dream," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Brad Garrett, Jeffrey Tambor, Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi and the Thug Chorus, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "Mother Knows Best (Reprise)," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Donna Murphy, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "I See the Light," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi, Produced by Alan Menken and Frank Wolf, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "Healing Incantation," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "The Tear Heals," Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Glenn Slater, Performed by Mandy Moore, Produced by Alan Menken, Arranged and Orchestrated by Michael Starobin, Recorded and Mixed by Frank Wolf, Wonderland Music Company, Inc. (BMI)/Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP); "Something That I Want," Written and Performed by Grace Potter, Produced by Grace Potter, Mike Daly and Chris Montan, Recorded and Mixed by Brian Reeves, Walt Disney Music Company (ASCAP), Grace Potter appears courtesy of Hollywood Records.

This was the 50th film in the official Disney list of animated films.

Academy Award Nominee, Best Original Song "I See the Light", music Alan Menken, lyrics Glenn Slater, 2010.
Nominee, Annie Award, Best Animated Feature, 2011.
Nominee, Annie Award, Writing in a Feature Production, Dan Fogelman, 2011