Enchanted

Release Date: November 21, 2007

Watch Date: April 7, 2024

“For princess-to-be Giselle, life is a fairy tale…until she’s banished from the animated land of Andalasia by an evil queen and thrust into the very unmagical, live-action world of modern-day Manhattan. When a cynical, no-nonsense divorce lawyer comes to her aid, little does he realize that this joyful, wide-eyed innocent is about to enchant him.”

---

   I wanted something light, something romantic, but still Disney-princess-y enough without us over indulging in Disney Princess movies – which we are quickly running out of. And when you need all of that, Enchanted is the ideal film.

   This is a love letter to all the Disney Princess movies that came before it, and it maintains an excellent balance of hitting the necessary tropes while subverting the ones that they can.

   Now, did Bob, having never seen this film before, recite the entire plot about fifteen minutes into the film? Yes. But that doesn’t mean it’s a bad film. It’s not trying to break new ground, it’s paying tribute to all the films that came before it while being it’s own charming story. And this is it aces.

   The songs are sweet and catchy, though they fade out by the half way mark of the film. This can seem like a bit of a poor balance, but on reflection it actually makes a lot of sense. And Giselle becomes more real, and less likely to burst into song – even when confronted with her Prince – the songs that spontaneously burst into the movie disappear as well. Until you have a much more classic final song, a pop song sung by other characters, while still managing to maintain that Disney charm.

   This movie holds extra charm for me now, married to a guy from New York who is all business, doesn’t always want to except that there’s magic in the world, and refuses to enter any experience with any level of naivety. Paired with me, who grew up convinced if she just tried hard enough she, too, could summon wild animals to her side with just a well placed vocal run. And any movie that I can place myself and Bob into is one that is going to make me cry and earn a special place in my heart.

   If you love Disney movies, and especially those of the Princess variety, you can’t really go wrong with this film. If you tolerate them, you might find this film subverts it enough to be pretty entertaining. If you hate them…well, why are you even reading this blog? But this is definitely one I’d skip. And if you’re dreaming of a true love’s kiss, then this might just be the extra boost of hope you need to keep on dreaming, and searching.