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by Jeff Eason |
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Amy Adams brings heart and
magic to new Disney film
Self-deprecation is one of the keys to successful
comedy. If you can’t laugh at yourself, how in the
world do you expect others to laugh at you? That’s
why Rodney Dangerfield comes off as a hilarious sad sack
while Don Rickles just comes across as a mean jerk.
“I know you
like Disney movies, but I’m not going to
do the Lady and the Tramp spaghetti kiss!”
Patrick Dempsey and Amy Adams star in the new
comedy Enchanted. |
James Marsden plays
goofy Prince Edward in the new comedy Enchanted.
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Disney, a company that usually takes itself far too seriously
in the grand scheme of things, takes a cue from Rodney
with its heartwarming and funny new movie, Enchanted.
The film gets mirthful mileage by poking fun at that most
sacrosanct Disney icon, the fairy tale princess.
Enchanted stars up-and-coming Hollywood princess Amy Adams
(Junebug), as Giselle, an animated beauty living in the
mythical land of Andalasia. There she whistles while she
works, cleans the house with her forest friends, and waits
for her prince to come. He enters, stage right, in the
form of the slightly dimwitted and somewhat self-centered
Prince Edward (James Marsden). Smitten by Giselle’s
beauty, Edward immediately suggests marriage, a proposal
that sits none too well with his stepmother, Queen Narissa
(Susan Sarandon).
The evil queen pushes Giselle down a magic well where
she is transported to Manhattan and turned from animated
creature into living and breathing woman. She stumbles
around New York, looking for Edward’s castle, until
she meets single dad Robert (Patrick Dempsey) and his
young daughter Morgan (Rachel Covey). Against his better
judgment, Robert allows Morgan to invite Giselle into
their apartment where she promptly turns their world upside
down. In lieu of warm and fuzzy forest creatures, Giselle
has to summon their city cousins—rats, cockroaches
and pigeons—to help her clean Robert’s home
and cuts up his expensive curtains for new dresses. Despite
the intrusion, Robert finds himself immediately drawn
to Giselle. It’s a complicated dance, however, because
he is on the verge of engagement with his girlfriend of
five years, Nancy played by Idina Menzel (from the movie
Rent and the Broadway musical Wicked).
The movie succeeds because of Adams, who never wavers
from her wide-eyed cheery optimism but evolves into a
flesh-and-blood woman right before our eyes. In the hands
of a lesser actress, the film could have easily turned
into a schmaltzy affair—too simplistic for adult
audiences and too concerned with grown-up issues of the
heart to appeal to kids. But Adams’ performance gets
to the heart of the fictional Disney princess. She makes
us want to fall in love, burst into song, and skip down
Fifth Avenue with strangers and animals.
Adams gets a lot of help along the way, with the supporting
players bringing character and sass to the interesting
subplots. Menzel shines as Robert’s long-suffering
girlfriend who tries to be a hip friend to Morgan instead
of the mother that Morgan needs. Timothy Spall, an excellent
character actor whose physical limitations ironically
seem to propel him toward interesting roles, brings complexity
to Nathanial, Narissa’s oft-put-upon henchman who
harbors foolish dreams of wooing the queen.
Best of all is Marsden, whose Prince Edward walks that
fine line between lovable buffoon and self-absorbed jerk.
He really does care for Giselle, but unlike her is unable
to make the transition from cartoon to reality. The subtleties
of the real world—restaurants, buses, dating 21st
century women—escape his grasp and yet we pull for
him to find his own “happily ever after.”
Enchanted falters late in the third act when it zigs when
it shoulda zagged. Somebody at Disney must have told the
producers that they had some money left in the special
effects budget because in the last ten minutes of the
movie, it goes from a sweet, acting-driven comedy to a
weird action adventure flick. That’s too bad because
up until that moment it is spot-on perfect, creating just
the right mix of whimsy, heartfelt romance and self-deprecating
humor.
Despite a so-so ending, Adams’ performance makes
Enchanted one of the must-see movies of the holiday season.
Recommended for lovers of The Princess Bride.
Enchanted is rated PG for some scary images and mild innuendo.
It is currently playing at Regal Cinema in Boone.
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