Disenchanted Failed to Enchant Me: Rewriting a Classic

I have to admit I’m not often charmed by (often unnecessary) sequels- BUT when I saw Disney were making a follow up to Enchanted, I was SOLD. Sadly, it didn’t quite have the magic of the original. As much as I LOVED the idea of playing with fairy tale tropes, fighting the stereotypical roles we find ourselves in, this was only ever close to being great instead of reaching actual greatness. What saddens me the most is how much more scope there was to explore the concept of being forced to be a wicked stepmother- simply because that’s what the story demands. I just *wish* this story could’ve been given the chance to shine!

… which is precisely why, instead of writing a standard review, I’m going to rewrite what I think should’ve happened in this movie (this is a story about wish fulfilment after all 😉) So hold onto your pumpkins, cos I’m about to bibbidi bobbidi boo this whole thing! (mice beware: I may be using a bit too much cheese 😉)

We’ll start in a similar way to the movie- setting the scene of the new life away from New York. Except I wouldn’t simply have them moving out to the suburbs to get more space- but focus on moving for a better life. That way, moving from New York can be for the benefit of all the characters. Giselle as the mother/stepmother is thinking of creating a proper home for them all, Robert as princely leader is stagnating in his life and Morgan as the stepdaughter has big dreams (which incidentally the movie doesn’t seem to be interested in exploring- we never get to see what this character actually wants!!) In the short term, Morgan will be leaving her friends behind (which we should be shown rather than told) however in the long term, she will be able to get the future she wants (perhaps by moving to a better school with more opportunities!) Of course, for the sake of conflict, Morgan doesn’t see that and is resistant to any type of change- even if it’s in her own interest. Leading, of course, to the big fight where Morgan calls her StEPmOthEr… Oooohhhhh…

Now of course that’s just the setup- jumping right into the catalyst where everyone is cursed… I think it would be so much better if they’re all aware of being forced into a fairy tale. Part of the charm of the original was their awareness of the fairy tale playing out in the real world- so why not do something similar here? Imagine how it would add to the comedy if everyone was singing and dancing against their will (think: Buffy’s Once More With Feeling).

Having everyone be aware they’re cursed also allows for a lot more conflict! They can all fight it out- knowing Giselle has inadvertently cursed them all (without being aware that Giselle is doomed to be the evil stepmother). Giselle is trying to tell them to make the best of being in their fairy tale roles (paralleling how she told them to make the best of the move) and they’re all compelled to go about their fairy tale day.

Of course, Robert will need a better arc. Determined to be the hero, this part of the movie can explore how he’s dissatisfied in his job, wishing to do something more meaningful (and we can leave out all that dull stuff about the commute). Similar to the plot of the actual film, it makes sense to show him sticking up for the little guy and trying to fight monsters (… I just wish that had some bearing on the ending… )

And if you’ve noticed something missing in my updated version- that’s because there’s something missing! I’ve taken out the pointless villainess. As fun as her musical number was, she definitely felt like a surplus character and her storyline merely bloated up the plot. I’d cut her from the story without hesitation.

That said, I would add *even more* humour! I’d take a leaf out of the Incredibles and have a magical baby giving some much needed comic relief. I wouldn’t just stick her in the cot and palm her off on some fairies, I’d have her wreaking her own havoc with that wand! (although maybe I would include some fairies cos that’s also funny 😉) We can even have a wink at the end for her keeping her magic- because why not? Besides, it’s not like she’s irrelevant to the plot- she’s what ties Giselle and Morgan and Robert together as family.

Now as Giselle turns into an evil stepmother (and Pip into an evil cat) I’d definitely have her make the choice to bring more magic into their world. It’s no good having it simply be a consequence of the spell. It’s far more fun to have Giselle deliberately trying to pull her old world into her new one. Symbolically this shows she’s trying to hold onto who she once was… which Morgan could recognise when everyone else thinks she’s a lost cause.

Thus the story can once again subvert a traditional fairy tale- Giselle is becoming beastly and only Morgan can save her from this final transformation. As the clock runs down, the villagers (led by Robert) want to destroy her, YET it’s Morgan who says she’s not going to let them slay her mother. Deep down, she realises that Giselle only wants what’s best for her. Protecting the Beast gives her a chance to turn back the clock and gives her just a moment to undo the spell to destroy Andalasia. They both have the chance to realise they were wrong and restore familial harmony. It’s not enough for the stepmother to merely say “you are my daughter”- she has to recognise she wasn’t treating her like a daughter to grow from  it. And likewise, the stepdaughter has to realise that she is loved and respect that love. That way they can stop the curse they’ve unleashed together. (See, I told you it was going to get cheesy).

In a lot of ways, I can see this is what Disenchanted was going for. It’s just a shame it got bogged down in some silly plotlines and became a little too convoluted. I’ve patched together something out of the ragged edges that could just pull it together…

But what do you think? Have you seen this movie? Do you think it worked? Or could you see some room for improvement? Let me know in the comments below!

Monthly Monkey Mini Reviews – August 2021!

Hello all! I had a really lovely month and hope you did too 😊 Been really busy, which is why I’m super late with this post, but let’s just overlook that 😂 Luckily, I’ve been out and about a lot more- the highlight of which was going to see a friend in Cambridge!

I also watched a couple of great movies last month…

A Simple Favour– this film was stylish, slick and a lot of fun. It wasn’t what I was expecting- in a good way. I thought it’d be a generic thriller about a missing woman, but this was a lot about the face we show to the world and influencer culture. It ended up poking fun at the way we see each other and how fickle our judgments can be. There was a lot more to the characters than meets the eye and was digging it (like a detective digs up clues lol 😉 #BadJokeAlert #I’mGoingAllInOnThisSocialMediaTheme #ButIDon’tKnowHowToHashtag)

Little Italy– sometimes you just need a deliciously cheesy rom com. It’s like a big, beautiful slice of pizza- comfort food at its best! And this did make me smile 😊. Focusing on a food fight that creates a feud between two Italian families, this was a (very) light-hearted take on Romeo and Juliet. Peppered with humour and a big dollop of awws, this was a really cute story. I did like the relationship between the two leads- though I actually enjoyed the romance between the grandparents more! Oh, and of course, the big side of watching this movie was it made me sooo hungry! Don’t make the mistake of watching this without a pizza of your own!

And now onto the books…

White Eagles/Firebird– I listened to these novellas on audiobook. Both of these were exciting, tense-filled dramatizations of being female fighter pilots in WW2- and I loved every second of them! White Eagle for me had a lot of heart and Firebird BLEW ME AWAY with the twist ending! Definitely recommend these for quick historical YA.

Rating: 4/5 bananas

The Catch– this thriller was a bit ridiculous. The Catch is about a father suspicious of his daughter’ fiancé who seems too good to be true- so of course this had obvious Taken vibes. For spoilery reasons I’ll keep to myself, the father doesn’t quite come across as Liam Neeson. In fact, I was convinced he was THE CREEP. And that ambiguity in a book like this could have been a good thing… but I’m just not crazy about characters, even in thrillers, stalking other people because they have “a feeling”. The other thing that bugged me was how frickin dumb all the characters are. There’s a point in the story that’s supposed to feel all claustrophobic, like the murderer is closing in on them and there’s nowhere to run… except that the character has a phone and lots of options!! Instead, said character decides the best thing would be to go to an isolated place with the person THEY ALREADY KNOW IS A KILLER!!! It doesn’t make any sense!! I have to admit though, as silly as this story seems, it was absolutely entertaining throughout. Kudos for keeping me reading when I was feeling slumpy! 

Rating: 3/5 bananas

House of Hollow– bold and bloody brilliant. Now if you’ve been around a while, you know I don’t like anything horror… but this completely broke all my rules. Because this was perfection. Gorgeously written and creepy af, this supernatural ghostly story had me all-a-tingle. Atmospheric from the start, I felt like I was knee-deep in the world Krystal Sutherland created. I even thought she did a fantastic job of nailing the North London setting and Celtic Scottish feel (which I say as someone who has lived in both places!) The only thing- and this is the tiniest of nitpicks- that pulled me out of the story was the amount of smoking in pubs (that’s been illegal since 2007, so I’m not sure when this was supposed to be set given all the social media?) Barring that, cos it doesn’t actually matter, this was a glorious read. I loved all the Hollow sisters- and definitely felt a deep connection to a literature boffin eager to find the right answer in a text! 😉  There was something simply intoxicating about House of Hollow. And that cover is to die for.

Rating: 5/5 bananas

That’s all for now! Have you read any of these? What did you think of them? Let me know in the comments! And I hope you all had a good month! ❤

Rogue One vs The Last Jedi

 

I could end this review simply stating: everything The Last Jedi does wrong, Rogue One gets right. I mean, it’s no secret that I gave The Last Jedi a banana peel in my mini review (and if it is, *surprise*, even if that was in no way surprising). Also unsurprisingly, I don’t want to spend all my precious time dwelling on a movie I didn’t like- buuut the thing is when I was watching Rogue One I couldn’t stop comparing the two movies. Because in every area that TLJ was deficient, Rogue One restored my faith in Star Wars (well, in the sense that I’ll happily go back and watch the originals, at this stage I’ll pay money not to see the new ones 😉).

Let’s start with the fact that Rogue One MIRACULOUSLY had compelling characters. I know, what a *crazy, out-there concept*. Somehow, the writers figured out that giving Jin a solid backstory and reasons for doing things would actually make me care about her 😉. One of the most frustrating things about TLJ is that it could’ve been half decent- if they hadn’t forgotten to fill us in on all the whys and wherefores and skipped straight to “subverting expectations”. In order for that to even work, you’ve got to start with the basics building blocks of characterisation. You’ve got to give them motivations and fixed personality traits. I mean, it’s the bare minimum expectation when it comes to stories: it should all make sense internally. Sadly, in TLJ characters acted with so much inconsistency it made my head spin. Doing this for Rogue One made for a far more satisfying adventure.

Funnily enough, this movie also recognised the need for characters to have different roles, making them fulfil different purposes in the story. Putting my sarcasm aside- I have to *explode with rage* for a second that in both Force Awakens and TLJ this wasn’t seen as a crucial part of storytelling, cos Rey had to kick-all-the-butts. Making Rey *all the characters* is the perfect way to create a Mary Sue- and a good way to alienate a large proportion of your audience. Far more entertaining is to do what Rogue One did: have a pilot, a rogue, a fighter and a sort of jedi. All of whom bounced off each other dramatically and organically grew together. Wowee, the main characters actually get character arcs and it works!

Paying close attention character development is the least of it though. Not only does Rogue One avoid all the little flaws that made TLJ so unbearable, it also managed to create an interesting narrative. There’s actual tension and real conflict- and not just “because the plot demands it”. There’s none of that contrived drama where the commander and subordinate bicker constantly over the need to have a plan vs let’s just wing it (JK I secretly have a plan all along). Add some genuinely *scary* villains to counterbalance the hero’s aims and you have a plot! Together with real stakes and a moving conclusion, you have an actual movie. The sole downside of Rogue One is that (obviously) if you know the original trilogy, you will guess every plot point before it happens. That said, I was predictably a blubbering mess by the end, so clearly the sense of inevitability doesn’t get in the way of its tragic delivery. If anything, it only heightened my foreboding (I would like to do an experiment and show this to someone that’s never seen Star Wars before though- I reckon it would destroy them emotionally *evil laughs*).

After seeing Rogue One, I can understand why fans are divided about these movies. Rogue One fans just wanted to see a well-structured story with fun characterisation; TLJ folk wanted something totally different. And I get that. But I would argue, Rogue One did it better, even in this regard. Yes, Rogue One is standard sci fi fare… and yet, it’s also moving, visually stunning and had a bold ending. Relying on strong storytelling principles, I was transported to a galaxy far, far away. And that tragic twist meant the story not only played the game, but did something out of this world. That’s why there’s a clear winner here. I hereby take my banana peel for The Last Jedi…

And raise it 5 bananas…

With that, all that’s left to say is: May the Fourth Be With You!

So, have you seen either of these movies? What did you think of them? Did you have a preference? Let me know in the comments!