Blu-ray Review: Enchanted

A fairytale princess is transported from her animated land to the Big Apple by her soon-to-be wicked stepmother-in-law. She finds that our world is a much different place than her “dreams come true” land.

In the animated fairytale world of Andalasia, Giselle (Amy Adams) is being helped by her forest friends to make a statue of her “one true love.” The love is Prince Edward (James Marsden) and he meets Giselle and it’s love at first sight. They are soon to marry and Edward’s stepmother Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) thinks that Gisele will steal her throne from her.

Queen Narissa uses a magic wishing well to send Giselle to the real world of New York City. She finds herself in a land much different than the one she came from. She finds shelter with divorce attorney Robert Philip (Patrick Dempsey) and his daughter Morgan (Rachel Covey). Prince Edward soon follows Giselle into the real world to save his lady love (and look fabulous doing it) and brings Pip the squirrel with him. Narissa sends her minion Nathaniel (Timothy Spall) to feed Giselle a poison apple and make sure that Pip doesn’t squeal about their evil plans. Giselle finds that her adventure in the real world might change her mind about what “happily ever after” constitutes. Enchanted is a film that harkens back to the Disney films of old and has many references to them. Part of the film’s fun is trying to spot all the nods to past Disney animated “princess” films. The movie starts off in an animated land that Disney would be most familiar with and then moves to the reality of New York City - which is a little less fantastical. Amy Adams does well as the as the naïve princess who believes in “happily ever after” that is something that most New Yorkers seem to raise an eyebrow at. She has to confront our colder reality and learn a thing or two about the real world, although many of us would rather take the reverse trip and live in the land of fantasy.

James Marsden is full of daring do as the equally naïve and self loving Prince who is more interested in seeing his own reflection than considering Giselle, even though they’re in “true love.” Villainy gets a delightful workout as Susan Sarandon and Timothy Spall chew the scenery effectively. Spall is going for the comedic side of things as Sarandon is channeling Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty as well as the Witch from Snow White. For the Disney fan this film will be a delight and for the family the film will be an enjoyable experience Enchanted is presented in 1080p anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Special features include the Blu-Ray exclusive “D-Files.” Think of it as an interactive trivia game that also points out all of those connections to the old Disney movies, also has videos from the filmmakers, and if you get enough points you’ll get some more bonus material, but I didn’t play long enough to see what that might be. It also doesn’t tell you the right answers if you happen to get them wrong. Next is the 17-minute “Fantasy Comes to Life” which examines three key scenes from the film (Happy Working Song, That’s How You Know, and A Blast at the Ball). There are also 2 minutes of bloopers and 8 minutes of deleted scenes with introductions by director Kevin Lima. The 5 minute “Pip’s Predicament” is a “pop up adventure” featuring the squirrel character on a new adventure. Finally you have the 3-minute music video “Ever Ever After” by Carrie Underwood. Enchanted is well… Enchanting. Not only is it a treat for the hardcore Disney fan but fun for the entire family. It’s a wonderful film and one that you’ll enjoy watching over and over again.