I've never been a fan of Ortega's style but I have to say that Descendants is quite good for its genre. Once I overcame the unavoidable high school clichés and the fact that the four kids were never going to be villains (it would have sent a very questionable message), I had fun listening to the songs (with the exception of the awkward version of "Be Our Guest") and I found out that the actors are quite good.
The characters are much more interesting than those in the HSM series. Mal is a good lead with her snarky, ice-queen-with-a-longing-for-love shtick; Evie's growing relationship with Doug is well played; Jay and Carlos have a funny bromance that is portrayed simply but nicely and will surely fuel tons of fanfictions.
I was expecting more scenes involving the parents. Queen Grimhilde (why didn't they use her name?) at least has some good quips, while Cruella only gives glimpses of her madness through her horrible parenthood and Jafar is barely noticeable. On the other hand, Chenoweth's Maleficent manages to steal the show whenever she appears. I also appreciated the fact that the heroes' parents are biased towards the four kids; I think it gives the story more realism.
All things considered, a nice guilty pleasure. I hope that there will be a sequel.
Best moment: Carlos sees Cruella's statue in the museum. His terrified reaction? "I'll never forget Mother's Day again."
Better than I thought
I've never been a fan of Ortega's style but I have to say that Descendants is quite good for its genre. Once I overcame the unavoidable high school clichés and the fact that the four kids were never going to be villains (it would have sent a very questionable message), I had fun listening to the songs (with the exception of the awkward version of "Be Our Guest") and I found out that the actors are quite good.
The characters are much more interesting than those in the HSM series. Mal is a good lead with her snarky, ice-queen-with-a-longing-for-love shtick; Evie's growing relationship with Doug is well played; Jay and Carlos have a funny bromance that is portrayed simply but nicely and will surely fuel tons of fanfictions.
I was expecting more scenes involving the parents. Queen Grimhilde (why didn't they use her name?) at least has some good quips, while Cruella only gives glimpses of her madness through her horrible parenthood and Jafar is barely noticeable. On the other hand, Chenoweth's Maleficent manages to steal the show whenever she appears. I also appreciated the fact that the heroes' parents are biased towards the four kids; I think it gives the story more realism.
All things considered, a nice guilty pleasure. I hope that there will be a sequel.
Best moment: Carlos sees Cruella's statue in the museum. His terrified reaction? "I'll never forget Mother's Day again."