WesternAnimation Encanto: A Movie Where Nothing Happens
I went into Encanto with very high hopes, and for the most part the film lived up to them. But after finishing watching it, I couldn't but shake the feeling that almost nothing in those last 2 hours really changed. The conflict of the film is that toxic familial relationships is literally destroying their home, the Encanto and the trick is to mend these rifts. There's no external threat or anything, just a bunch of people who refuse to talk to each other. I feel as though the film suffered a bit from having No Antagonist as there was never any real tension, especially since at the end the house was not only restored but everyone got their powers back. What's to stop all this from happening again if there's a big argument in the Encanto one day in the future? That's when dawned it on me that within the entire film, only about 15 minutes constitutes any kind of story.
Pros: Great Animation Great Music, especially WDTAB Voice cast gave it their A-game
Cons: Weak plot Very low stakes Bland environments (Most of the movie takes place within the house, which gets old) Another generational trauma movie for the pile
I gotta give it a 6/10
WesternAnimation Cool Loveable Movie
Encanto, is one of my most favorite Disney movies, now #1 I have ever watched. I watched it when it was once in theatres. I love about the comedy, family moments, and adventure despite it not having any, including cool lovable characters.
WesternAnimation No wonder they're all talking about Bruno.
The first buzz I heard about this film was the viral hit song that defied all expectation. And then I heard that pretty much none of Disney's expectations for this film's marketing and popularity came true. It's kinda beautiful, given the story.
Mirabel Madrigal is the only one born into her family to be denied a magical gift from the enchanted house and community she lives in. Her grandmother, who was there when the enchantment was given, shows no small unease with this fact, as she feels that her family's blessing is nothing to take for granted and that the lack of a gift for Mirabel is a bad sign. While Mirabel adores her family and their powers, it's clear she continues to be hurt by her outsider status and the way she's been singled out for it.
The beauty of Encanto is that it shows very clearly how fractured everything is. Her empowered family are not as happy as they look, with uncle Bruno being outright shunned, and while their discord threatens their blessing, their issues can only be faced by confronting them and creating a mess. The story talks about how trauma can beget trauma through pressure and expectation and that archetypes and roles can be very limiting—indeed, Disney marketed the characters based on their appealing archetypes, only for people to connect strongest to the characters' flawed and messy sides.
The music is really great. Lin-Manuel Miranda is being more Lin-Manuel Miranda than in Moana, resulting in some really exciting Latin music that doesn't often sound like Disney Broadway. Lin manages to give each family member their time in the singing spotlight, with "We Don't Talk About Bruno" earning its hype as a fun multistage composition that sees the majority of the family's singing parts coalescing on top of each other. It's the least generic and poppy song in the soundtrack, but it's just that good— enough to knock "Let It Go" off its pedestal. "Surface Pressure" is also really catchy and different and "What Else Can I Do?" is a bit more Disney but very nice.
The only criticism I have with the film is that it feels too short. I like the way the conflict is solely about emotional interaction rather than magical journey or physical skill, but the film feels like it's missing something. The climax comes earlier than expected, but the film doesn't run with that and extend the resolution phase of the story to go with it. For a film about healing, that would have been nice. It's not too bad, but feels atypical in a less satisfying way. I'm glad there's evident interest in making a series or sequel for the film, because I want more of these characters and think Encanto has more to give as a story.
This is a really sweet film discussing really heavy issues with really great music. I recommend.
WesternAnimation Emotional Daaamage!
I've been told that Encanto triggers a lot of people who have grew up with strict parents and high pressure environments. Disney uses a fantastic cartoon world to tell a story about family members straining against social expectations and filial obligation. As a result, Encanto is probably more emotionally taxing to adults than most other Disney movies, something that will fly over the heads of younger children who have yet to be crushed by parental disappointment.
Encanto is about the Madrigal family, blessed through magical happenstance with many wonderous gifts. For starters, their home, "Casita" is a living creature whose walls and floors shift about at the family's convenience. Also, each new Madrigal child is granted a unique superpower (shape shifting, super hearing etc), which makes them exceptionally useful to the family and surrounding town. Everyone got a power except our protagonist, Mirabel, which makes her seemingly useless and puts her at odds with the family.
In some ways, Encanto feels like Moana, in that the story follows one girl's quest to stop her paradisiacal home from falling into ruin. Unlike Moana however, the quest is an emotional, rather than a physical one. Almost the entire film takes place inside or directly next to Casita, and the trials and tribulations involve her overcoming difficult familial relationships. The character's emotional journey is the whole journey. It is a novel idea from Disney, who was getting into a rut, obligating its characters to go on long treks to pick up glowing magical plot devices. Part of me wonders whether the single location is at all owed to Lin-Manuel Miranda, with his stage show background, writing the music. The single setting certainly would make this easier to adapt into a stage musical.
One side effect of Encanto involving no traversal is that the movie feels way shorter than others. The middle act is tiny. It still has just as many songs though, and sometimes we're launching into our next musical number only minutes after the last one finished, so it starts to feel a bit like padding. Furthermore, given that a lot of the difficulties in the movies are overcome simply by characters having an open and honest conversation about their feelings, it doesn't exactly have the highest of stakes. Encanto is ultimately a humble and colourful story that doesn't quite reach Pixar levels of dishing out emotional blunt trauma to audiences, but it will have plenty of adults sobbing. Any movie that gets its audiences to cry - for the right reasons - is doing well.
WesternAnimation Where's the second half of the movie?
Overall, I liked this movie, but it just doesn't feel complete. Specifically, because after spending well over a hour showing all the issues caused by Alma's Control Freak tendencies and the villagers' demands and prejudices, the reconciliation at the end was crammed into just a few minutes. It honestly feels like we were shown only half of the movie. We saw in detail all the problems plaguing the Madrigal family, we should've seen the resolution in just as much detail. But thanks to skipping from point A to point B in a quick montage, it gives an uncomfortable feeling that the problems weren't so much solved, as swept under the rug. Don't get me wrong, I liked that everyone reconciled at the end, but I wanted to actually see it happen! As it is, They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot