Disney’s Encanto is certainly one for the books. With its incredible soundtrack by Germaine Franco and story by Jared Bush, Jason Hand, Byron Howard, Nancy Kruse, Lin–Manuel Miranda and Charise Castro Smith, the produced film is a beautifully–constructed masterpiece.
Encanto arrived in theaters on Nov. 24, 2021, and will be available for streaming on Disney+ on Dec. 24, 2021. While the advertising remained humble, Encanto remains No. 1 this month with a global cume of $116.1 million.
The movie tells the story of the Madrigals, who are an extraordinary family that live in the mountains of Colombia, in a safe haven called Encanto. The Encanto was built from the dying hope of Abuela, who is now the head of the casa. The core of the house is a beautiful candle that has been lit for 50 years.
The home is essentially “alive,” with feelings of its own and the ability to change the structure of itself in mere seconds, with its heart being the candle. As well as the house being magical, it grants Abuela’s three children and most of her grandchildren unique powers.
The holders of these powers use them for the greater good and help their small village with practically anything it needs, including repairs on buildings, medical care, beautiful flowers and so much more.
Unfortunately, with these powers comes great responsibility, and some of the Madrigals focus too much on helping others, rather than their own mental health and well–being.
Along with the story and the messages it contains, Encanto also undeniably takes the cake in terms of animation. With each incredible song and breathtaking scene, it is painfully obvious that the animation is on another level in comparison to previous films like Raya and the Last Dragon, which came out eight months prior.
Encanto centers on Mirabel Madrigal, the youngest child of Julieta, who was given no power from the house. Although she loves her family just as much as everyone else, the house betrayed her and gave her nothing. She thinks of herself as a failure to her family and is deeply bothered by it.
Luisa Madrigal, one of Mirabel’s older sisters, has insane amounts of physical strength. Mentally, Luisa is exhausted from having so much pressure on her to help everybody at any given point of the day, and this becomes a massive milestone for her to overcome.
Dolores Madrigal, the eldest daughter of Pepa, has the power to hear everything. She can detect whispers from a mile away, and knows everyone’s secrets. Despite being able to hear everything, she can never voice how she is feeling, which damages her own self–development.
These self–inflicted conflicts cause the house to crumble and the candle to be on the verge of going out. In order to save it, determined Mirabel seeks the visions of a friend to save her family from chaos.
Isabelle Madrigal, Mirabel’s eldest sister, has the power to bloom flowers whenever she pleases and has a reputation for being absolutely perfect. Again, while everything on the outside seems flawless, she has to overcome pressure from her family so she can truly bloom and become her own person.
The film captures what it is like to be in a Hispanic family, as it illusrates the immense pressure to have no flaws and the challenges of upholding the title as the “perfect child.”
However, this is only Disney’s second most notable film with a lead of Hispanic heritage, with the first being Coco. So, while it does capture truths of a Hispanic family, there is still a long way to go in terms of representation within the Disney franchise.
Overall, this movie is truly a work of art. The soundtrack fits perfectly into the movie, with characters springing into song and dance when they “unlock” new emotions or discover something new about themselves.
The story of Encanto is perfectly portrayed, demonstrating a variety of struggles that viewers can relate to. It shows the pressures of wielding a gift and the fact that gifts aren’t needed to change those around you.
