Current mood:	crazy
Current music:	How Does She Know (MAKE IT STOP!)
Entry tags:	disney, enchanted, giselle, movie, movie review, review

Enchanted is truly Enchanting.
Well, against my better judgement I went to the movies by myself. Not to see an 'adult' film, but a children/family film sent out by Disney. Enchanted is the newest in the Princess theme, and it takes on a new approach, or so Disney wants you to think.

It's a squeaky clean parody on the Disney Classics. And the trailors made me dread it's coming release. I gave my friends who were rejoicing over the film a hard time (with good reason if I dare say! LOL) and basically tried to avoid it at all costs.


I let myself be spoiled before the movie thinking I wouldn't get to see it until it hit the shelves on DVD. So I knew what to expect for the most part, but there were still some surprises.

Problem is - as always - a lot of the GREAT moments Disney promoted so much that it was somewhat less than exciting, but to have the scenes come together finally is what put this movie above my expectations.

It starts out tributing Snow White, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty with the story book that is opened and the narrator - none other than Mary Poppins herself, Dame Julie Andrews (SQUEE!!!) - begins to give us the back story to the story. It's not an overly imaginative one, but then again Princess stories rarely are - especially when they aren't true princess stories. I do have to admit the whole opening choked me up. Yes, I wasn't around when Mr. Disney started his Princess empire, and I never saw Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella on the Big Screen (I'd LOVE to see Maleficent in all her true glory!).

We meet Giselle the fair maiden awaiting her true love's kiss from who she hopes is a prince. She's a princess of Cinderella type fare - the only way she'll be a princess is if she meets a prince and he falls for her. Well in enters Edward who has to be the most brainless of Disney princes, which I find highly annoying. Yeah I get it, he's a decent looking guy, but he is L-AME. Even before he ends up in New York City. Prince Phillip is still number one as far as Princes go (sorry Al, Erin, Charmings 1 & 2), and no I don't think I'm biased. I'll even say Eric (Little Mermaid) is better than Ed. Ed is just... I dunno. Way over the top.

The 2-d animation is quite good and in the more recent style that Disney has used for Treasure Planet, Lilo and Stitch, Tarzan, etc... which means the mouths bug me to no end, but it's still traditional animation so I won't complain too much. I will complain that there was not nearly enough of it. Yeah I get it was a live action movie and all, but I want a traditional princess film with traditional animation. Is it too much to ask Disney - the company who pretty much has the monopoly on that??? Seriously if you're worried about warping young girls minds, I don't think the princess movies are to blame for warping mine (I think Pirates were worse for me lol)

anyway... once Ed finds Giselle they fall in love instantly and are going to be married the next day to live happily ever after. Ender Ed's stepmother - Susan Surrandon in what is only the perfect role for her (a witch! I take great pleasure in that lol) - she does not want to lose her crown and once her stepson marries she will be booted out and whomever he marries will get that beloved tiara.

Oh and before I forget Narissa channels Maleficent something awesome in this film. So I did a few fan girl squees each time a Maleficent moment happend. Maleficent still rules all, though.

So long story short she pushes Giselle into an enchanted Well and sends her to a place where there are no happily ever afters - ie Manhatten lol

This is where we begin to see the human forms of the fairytale world. Amy Adams did a great job capturing that wide eyed princess expression. But then she ruins part of the magic with her barbie like arms. I get that she was trying to mimick the princess look, but the Disney princesses aren't statues. So it was annoying at first, thankfully as Giselle becomes more familiar with the real world the barbie arms relax a bit.

after searching for a kind soul, at night, in NYC and not finding anyone Giselle manages to find a billboard with a castle on it. so she climbs up to it to knock on the door to hopefully find help... well it's not a real castle so she's out of luck and thankfully patrick dempsy (Robert is his character) is there to save her. Granted when she falls and he goes to catch her, it's not a romantic catch they both go down and it hurts!

Then we spend most of the movie with Robert and Giselle both trying to teach the other about life. He's giving her lessons in reality, and she's giving him lessons in love. Together they make a pretty good team and Robert begins to lighten up. (He's so anti-fairytale he refuses to allow his daughter to follow those stories! the nerve!)

Meanwhile Ed has also gone through the well to rescue his bride. And what ensues is just a bunch of brainless jokes that are meant for the youngest members of the audience. Seriously, even if you are from a fairytale you cannot be that dumb and still function! LOL IF there was one major weak link in teh story/film it's Edward. I just felt he talked down way too far which is not like Mr. Disney. He never seemed to feel the need to talk down to a child's level. That the imagination of the child would make it easy for them to understand.

Ed is like Dopey, but without brains, if that makes any sense at all...

Anyway he has tagalongs in that of little pip - Giselle's best friend, who is also a chipmunk - while Pip can talk in fairytale world (I keep forgetting to just call it Andelasia) he can't in the real world and apparently Edward is not good at charades. Then again he's as dumb as a rock so I guess that's to be expected. He's also got his stepmother's henchman (which he doesn't know the dude's a double agent) and really the threesome is really not needed to make the movie good.

While they're running amok in NYC the real story is Giselle's growth into a real person. She is quickly falling for the 'real man' who is Robert, and he's starting to feel something for the youthful Giselle. I'm not sure where the real difference is between Giselle and Nancy - Robert's almost fiance - Nancy is every bit as romantic, but for whatever reason we're supposed to dispose of her rather quickly as the right choice for Robert is obviously Giselle.

Disney does this by just hiding Nancy for most of the movie, and making her jealous of Giselle in the few scenes she's in.

That and we also see that Giselle is quickly falling out of the desire to have a happily ever after fairytale romance. She wants to date and experience anger and other feelings fairytale heros and princesses don't feel (though I can name off a bunch of said characters who do feel all that Giselle has never experienced but whatever lol)


I realize I sound like I hated the movie, and I am being harsh, but I'll wrap this up shortly lol

The big climax centers around the "Ball" that apparently happens every year (for the last 25 anyway) where new yorkers pay tickets to dress up like victorian princess and princesses lol. Giselle ends up looking a bit out of place as Morgan (Robert's 6 year old daughter) has helped her get ready for the ball and let's just say Morgan has good taste.

Robert attends the ball with Nancy, Giselle with Ed (yeah he finds her after running around like a freak and then tearing through Robert's appartment complex lol)... but at the end of the night it's obvious Robert and Giselle are anything but happy with their respective partners.

But what are they to do? They come from completely different worlds, and they both listen to their heads...

and then enters Narissa. That's right, her henchman can't get it right (but when has the villain's sidekick ever gotten it right in a Disney movie?) so she has to come fix it. She enters the ball as the old hag - ala Snow White - complete with poison apple... Susan Surrandon as an old hag is just flipping nightmarish! Craziness!

Long story short we end up with a bit of Snow White meets Sleeping Beauty... and when Ed tries to wake the princess with true loves kiss it doesn't work.... even after multiple attempts, which is almost too embarrassing for words lol

and that's when Ed's brain appears and he gives it over to Robert. Then there's a kiss and all is happy

save for Narissa who then totally kicks into Maleficent over drive goes down into the middle of the ball room and in a huge ball of GREEN FLAME!!!! she turns into.... the sweetest/cutest dragon you have ever seen.

I'm sorry, I am so sick of having to baby children in a Disney movie. Put Narissa's Dragon next to Maleficent's dragon and it's just a JOKE. The climax was very disappointing. You lead up you tribute Maleficent and THIS is the BEST you can do?

She then steals Robert and begins telling jokes all the way to the top of the building. Um. Yeah. I guess we can't scare kids any more. Mommy and daddy might get mad. Oy.

I was scared of Maleficent, of the Queen of Hearts (ok every character in Alice in Wonderland freaked me out), and the evil Stepmother... I'm not scarred for life... and I love those movies now... get a backbone Disney!

Anyway *breathes* Giselle gets Robert, Ed gets Nancy. Giselle stays in NYC and takes over Nancy's fashion shop. Nancy goes with Ed and Pip back to fairytale land and all is happy....


All in all it was a great happy good feeling movie. Was it Mr. Disney design. Sadly, not. BUT! IT did tribute everything that was good about Disney films, with giving it a bit of a modern twist. Do I agree with it all, probably not, but all in all it was worth the time and effort to go see it... I'll be watching for it to come out on DVD and will be snatching it up... and Giselle is not on my hate list of princesses (just Ariel, Pocahontas, and Mulan -who is NOT A PRINCESS DISNEY!- get that honor lol)

and with all of that I bid you... good night!