Disenchanted – A Sequel Lacking Magic And Heart

Disenchanted is the long-awaited sequel to Enchanted which was released 15 years ago almost to the exact day. Fans have been anxiously waiting for a follow-up since 2007 and now it’s finally arrived. Disenchanted picks up years after the first film and follows Giselle (Adams), Robert (Dempsey) and Morgan (Gabriella Baldacchino) as they leave their New York apartment for a house in suburbs in the small town of Monroeville. In an attempt to fix her current life and mend her relationship with her stepdaughter, Giselle casts a spell that goes horribly wrong and inadvertently turns the lives of those in the real world and Andalasia upside down.

Disenchanted is one of the bigger disappointments of the entire year that wasn’t worth the 15-year wait at all. It’s a belated sequel that lacks nearly all the magic of its predecessor and is missing almost everything that made the original work so well. Everything about this sequel is a giant step down compared to the original, from the musical numbers to the pacing and its often shockingly unfinished-looking visual effects. Meanwhile, there’s a lot more songs this time around (or at least it feels like there is) but none of them are memorable or all that catchy and all drag on for way longer than they should. Clocking in at just under 2 hours, there’s absolutely no reason for it to be that long. Taking a while to get going, it only gets progressively worse once it does.

For how long it took for the film to come out, it’s surprising that the filmmakers failed to develop a better story or more compelling directions for its characters. The direction that Giselle took here felt forced and won’t work for a lot of viewers due to how big of a departure it is compared to the original film. The story in general just doesn’t deliver and will surely leave a lot of viewers scratching their heads at certain choices. Whereas the first film had lots of big laughs and an even bigger heart, this has loads of jokes that completely fall flat and feels pretty mean-spirited as a whole despite the occasional sweet or heartfelt moment.

What saves Disenchanted and helps make it much more watchable was its cast. Adams slips right back into the role of Giselle seamlessly and is clearly having a lot of fun playing her once again. Even though the villainous character she’s playing leaves a bit to be desired, Rudolph is a very welcome addition to the cast and a definite standout as Malvina. It’s a lot of fun seeing Dempsey in a role like Robert once again and his chemistry with Adams is every bit as lovely and charming as it was before. The problem is everyone from the returning cast with the exception of Adams is criminally underused and hardly given anything to do. James Marsden and Idina Menzel are barely in the film as Edwards and Nancy and feel almost completely inconsequential despite being two of the best parts of the first film. However, Baldacchino does a good job at taking over the role of Morgan and her relationship with Giselle gives the film some good emotion.

In the end, Disenchanted is far from the worst sequel out there but with how beloved its predecessor is, it should’ve been so much better. It feels like the type of sequel that was rushed into production to capitalize on a hot IP without much care or effort. The first act has some genuinely enjoyable moments and it’s nice to be reunited with these characters once again but other than those moments, viewers are better suited just sticking with the original.

still courtesy of Disney

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/