Film Reviews

Enchanted

• Rating:
• Director: Kevin Lima
• Starring: Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden, Susan Sarandon
• Details: USA / TBC (PG)

Release Date: December 14th (TBC)
It was a tough undertaking. To pay homage to old Disney cartoons while yanking its chain and appealing to kids and adults alike (i.e. laughing at the same jokes, rather than segregating them) is a difficult skill to master and Enchanted, for the most part, pulls it off. Princess Giselle (Adams) lives in a fairytale kingdom waiting for 'true love's kiss'. It arrives in the shape of the dashing Edward (Marsden), but when the evil Queen Narissa (Sarandon) banishes her to real life New York, she is found by cynical divorce lawyer Robert (Dempsey) and experiences what life in the real world is like. If there's one reason to watch this it's Oscar nominee Amy Adams, who beautifully sends up the bland and ditzy characters that inhabited those Disney outings of old: "Can you point me in the direction of a dwarf shack? I hear they're quite hospitable." It's not just her lines, either, as Adams has the voice and movements those animated princesses of yesteryear possessed down to a T. One of the finest scenes is when Giselle summons some animal friends - Snow White style - to clean Robert's apartment, and flies, rats, cockroaches and one-legged pigeons answer her call. Marsden is right behind her, but there's only so many jokes you can throw at him and his best gags can be seen in the trailer. The laughs come thick and fast until the musical number in Central Park, where Enchanted, having exhausted itself, dips and doesn't rally again until the showdown. A fantasycomedymusical that appeals to the whole family, this one will be a Saturday afternoon TV favourite for years to come. Timothy Spall co-stars.

Review by Gavin Burke