The Princess Diaries

Release Date: August 3, 2001

Watch Date: April 28 – 29, 2024

“For teenager Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway), just surviving each school day is an adventure. But when shocking news about the death of her long-absent father arrives, Mia discovers that he was the prince of Genovia, making her a real-life princess. So begins a comical transformation towards poise and princess-ness, including a media storm, jealous schoolmates and a plot to take over her country.”

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   I grew up reading ‘The Princess Diaries’ series. At some point I lost the books. But still, ‘The Princess Diaries’ was one of the foundational reasons I grew up to love reading. I always borrow too many books from the library, and am thankful that overdue no longer means you must pay. I constantly have a book on the go, and when I’m dedicated, I can finish a good one in a couple of hours.

   So to say that ‘The Princess Diaries’ has a special place in my heart is probably a bit of an understatement.

   This movie? I mean, because of my love of the source material, I did grow up watching this film repeatedly. The soundtrack will stick in my head for days afterwards. I still remember lines, and behind the scenes information. I think Julie Andrews and Anne Hathaway are amazing in it. But it’s not the book, so I think now that I’m older the film is tinged with a bit of regret for me. The source material is always better than the film, and I get that. But…still. I liked the character of the father that was included in the books. I liked the grandmother being mean. I liked the exploration of the mother dating Mia’s teacher…

   But we’re not going to just sit here talking about the books, and specifically the first book is different. We’re not.

   This film is very early 2000s, both in soundtrack and how teenagers are portrayed. No one looks like a teenager, and certainly no one acts like a teenager I’ve ever seen. The cliques are too cliquey. The girls that are trying to make a difference in the world are outcasts, meanwhile when I was in high school everyone was trying to have a cause. Cheerleaders run the school, which is absolutely not something I ever experienced. The fashion for the teenagers, when they’re out of uniform is dated.

   But none of that really matters because ultimately what this film is about is a relationship between a granddaughter and her grandmother, and then learning that it’s okay to be exactly who you are. Well…exactly who you are with proper makeup and nicer clothes and straightened hair. (How come every girl with frizzy curly hair has to get it straightened in film? Mia, Hermione. Do you know what that does to a girl’s self esteem? My son took one look at before makeover Mia and said ‘Hey mom, that’s you as a teenager!’, thanks kid.)

   A lot of the characters in this film just…aren’t interesting or likeable? Lily and Mia are bad friends too each other. Michael barely says two words and when he does there’s no actual chemistry between him and Mia. Lana and her friends are meant to be bad. Lily’s romantic partner has nothing to say for himself. The principal doesn’t care about her students, the gym teacher is encouraging but barely focused on, the mother seems to solve everything through art, the queen is fun but focused on outward appearances for most of the movie and not on actually getting to know her granddaughter, the love interest is clearly shallow with no redeeming qualities. The only worthwhile character in this whole thing is the bodyguard/chauffeur Joseph. I would go to war Joseph. He should be protected at all costs. His role in this film made me love every character the actor would play from that point on.

   All in all, this film is a lot like ’10 Things I Hate About You’, fun, worth a watch, probably worth whatever cult following it has, but not as good as it could have been? Most of it feels rushed, which is common when you’re trying to fit a whole novel into a film, and the parts of the novel that were cut out…are kind of what make the characters redeemable and interesting. Honestly, it’s just made me want to buy the books again. Don’t tell Bob. It was my birthday month, so he can’t complain if eleven new books show up at the front door, right?