Movie Review: Enchanted

Enchanted is one of those movies that, upon first seeing the trailer; I felt the need to question its reason for being. What was the thought process at Disney? Was it an attempt to counteract the stream of animated fractured fairy tales (Shrek, Happily N'ever After) that have been sucking away their audience? Were they looking for a nice way to quietly subvert the image of their animated past? After a few viewings of said trailer, I was won over and looked forward to seeing how they managed the merger. Now, after seeing the movie, I am not sure if any of that was their intention, and if it was they failed miserably. On the other hand, what they did succeed at was creating a perfectly enchanting reinforcement of the Disney princess ideal while injecting a healthy dose of real world perspective. Yes, I said enchanting. Enchanted is a light-hearted fantasy that clings to its ideals and adapts them to the modern world. Giselle is a new princess to add to the pantheon of Disney heroines alongside Belle and Ariel, not to mention the more classic princess iterations.

Enchanted combines classic 2D animation with live action while never actually combining the two in tandem. In other words, this is no Cool World or Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, it is more akin to that Simpsons episode where Homer is transported from his version of Springfield into the world of 3D. It is a pairing that returns Disney to their hand-drawn roots, and not a moment too soon. Just when it appeared like all screen animation was going the computer generated 3D route (save the Simpsons Movie from earlier this year), Disney comes out with this. Sure, the animation may be relegated to opening and closing segments, but that makes no difference. It is a nice sight to see and a hope for future hand-drawn features from the House of Mouse.

I don't know about you, but it was a sad day when Disney announced the dissolution of the hand-drawn animation department some years back. It was the end of an era, a sad end that did not go out with the bang or the respect that it deserved. Fortunately, when John Lasseter took of creative development (I am not sure his specific title) following the Disney/Pixar merger/buyout, he brought the department back and announced the development of traditionally animated features would resume. I believe Enchanted is the first product of its return, even though it is not fully animated. The result is quite magical.

Enchanted begins in the animated world of Andalasia, where Prince Edward's (James Marsden) wicked stepmother, Narissa, is Queen. Narissa is afraid of losing her power and her crown should Edward find his one true love. Narissa knows who this young woman is and does all in her power to keep the two apart. The young woman is Giselle (Amy Adams), she lives a life of simplicity and song alongside her woodland critter friends in a cottage deep within the forest.

Despite all of Narissa's efforts, she is unable to keep the two apart forever. They meet with a song and fall in love immediately. The marriage is slated for the following day, but Narissa will have none of it. To separate the song-crossed lovers, Narissa banishes Giselle to the faraway land of New York City. This is where Giselle becomes flesh and blood and is left completely to her own devices in a strange and frightening land that she cannot begin to understand.

Enter Robert Philip (Patrick Dempsey), a successful divorce lawyer, and his daughter, 6-year-old Morgan (Rachel Covey), who has a chance meeting with Giselle as she attempts to make her way in the real world. What follows is the melding of the Disney animated ideal of true love, the magical first kiss, and the all-important happily ever after motif with the cold reality of a world where a successful marriage is one that merely avoids divorce and love is a commodity that cannot always be afforded, and indifference is more common than common kindness. While it may appear, at first to deliver a crushing blow to the world of romantic fantasy it takes a turn and shows the happy medium between fantasy and reality. The more the two are in contact with each other, the higher the probability of a fantasy emerging and successfully combating the cruelties of the real world.

Now let us not forget one of the biggest ingredients of those Disney animations, songs! That's right, there are a couple of big musical numbers in Enchanted. This is not the musical that the classics are, rather it is just a piece of the puzzle that, like the other pieces of the Princess puzzle, goes through change as the plot develops and Giselle is partially transformed by her exposure to the real world. Before the change takes place we are given big, entertaining productions of "Happy Working Song" as Giselle gets the creatures of the city to help clean Robert's apartment, and "That's How You Know" as Giselle tries to teach Robert how you know true love. Both songs play as homage to the songs of past films, but they also stand on their own as an integral part of this film.

This movie is charming, and that is due in large part to Amy Adams in a star-making turn as Giselle. The role of Giselle is one that could have easily gone the way of camp, it could have become a complete joke and a mockery of Disney's legacy, but not here. The screenplay, by Bill Kelly, does not deviate from its goal, but it is Amy Adams that keep it true to said goal. I daresay, without her performance this movie would have fallen flat on its face. I am sure that another actress could have done the role well, but the way Adams bought into the character and brought her to such vivid life is inimitable. There is not enough praise that can be heaped on her for what she accomplishes. Adams is the embodiment of those animated characters brought to life, leaping off of the page and into reality completely intact. Not only does she become this fantasy character, but she displays lovely development as the real world attempts to subvert all she has known and rather than allow this to happen, she fights to display a combination of the two. It is a wonderful performance and one upon which the weight of the film rests.

The rest of the performances are also quite good. In particular James Marsden as the clueless Prince Edward. His single-minded determinedness is unmatched. His interactions with the animated chipmunk, Pip, are very funny and deliver some of the bigger laughs of the film. Susan Sarandon is also very good in her role as the evil Narissa, a performance that she really sinks her teeth into. If there is one character complaint, it would be with Patrick Dempsey's Robert. He is not bad by any stretch, just a little bland, he could have done with a little spicing up, but that is a minor complaint within the bigger picture of the film.

Bottomline. Director Kevin Lima and screenwriter Bill Kelly do a wonderful job of drawing animated inspiration and crafting a new take on the romantic fantasy. Amy Adams shoulders the weight of the film in a performance that will assuredly guarantee her profile will continue to grow. Finally, let me say that I enjoyed this much more than I was expecting to, and upon reflecting upon it, my estimation has only grown. No, it is not perfect, but it does not have to be so long as you leave with a smile on your face.

Highly Recommended.