Directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush, Encanto follows The Madrigals, an extraordinary family that lives hidden in the mountains of Colombia in a charmed place called the Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift — every child except Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz). However, she soon may be the Madrigals’ last hope when she discovers that the magic surrounding the Encanto is now in danger.
This was one of several films I meant to watch and review last year but couldn’t due to a number of reasons. But I was eager to see another original Disney animated film after how incredible Raya and the Last Dragon was, so after numerous delays I was finally able to watch it. And I have to say that Encanto surprised me in ways I couldn’t possibly imagine.
The way this film was advertised made me think this was going to be some sort of adventure-type film but it wasn’t. There were so many ways I thought the film was going to go based on the premise and setup of certain characters yet it never ended up going in any predictable directions.
This honestly might be the most unique and original Disney film we have had and I absolutely loved everything it did. The characters, the story, the themes, the animation, and especially the music are all beautiful and phenomenal. There’s so much I can talk about with this film but a lot of it would be entering spoiler territory. And on top of that, this is one of these films that’s better to watch rather than listen to me talk about in great detail. However, I do feel I can share some non-spoiler things that I love about this film.
We have a special family full of diverse personalities, individual gifts, relatable flaws, and fantastic voice performances. Stephanie Beatriz as Mirabel really shone the most in this film as the primary lead, being the only one among the family with no gifts but has great heart. She really plays a great part as an individual who is desperate to help her family in any way and not feel like a burden.
The one major thing that added to the beauty of the animation was of course the music. Oh my lord the music is fucking perfect. But of course, that is to be expected when you have Lin-Manuel Miranda as your creator of original songs. This man is seriously unstoppable as a music mastermind.
Encanto is truly a very special film that shows that Disney is still capable of making impactful original films and doesn’t have to rely on the millionth sequel or spin-off of fucking Frozen. With Raya the Last Dragon and this film they really have found a special creative spark that has been missing for a long time, and my hope is that they can continue to pursue it. If you have not seen this film please do. It’s truly worth everyone’s time. I’m going to give Encanto an A+.
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