Encanto Review

Review of Lin Manuel Miranda's 'Encanto'

Encanto Review

WARNING - SPOILERS 

After weeks and weeks of listening and seeing clips and songs from Encanto, and weeks of pestering our dad and step mum (Sarah), they finally relented to letting me and my sisters watch Encanto! Encanto is a musical film that was released in US and Canadian theaters on 24 November and a month later on Disney+ on Christmas Eve.  

Encanto is a Latin-American film that tells the story of a teenage Columbian girl in a family full of miracles. The Madrigal family received an Encanto in the form of a candle. When each family member younger than Abuela turned 5, they received a gift that they could use to help the village, and they received this gift by touching a doorknob, however Mirabel didn’t receive a gift, and therefore is treated differently by the rest of the family. 

My favourite characters are a tie between Bruno Madrigal, Antonio Madrigal, and Isabela Madrigal  

I love these three characters because I feel like Antonio reminds me so much of my little brother Isaac and he’s also really cute and innocent but mischievous at the same time. Next, I love Bruno also because I think that you would be a bit wary around him when you first meet him, but then once you got to know him he would be fun and nice to be around, which coincidentally is how people describe me 😂and finally my other favourite character is Isabela, because I like the way that she is shown to get braver and more outgoing the more the film goes on.  

I personally loved the film, and all the songs, but I think that my favourite song is We Don’t Talk About Bruno. This song has a really catchy rhythm, and also explains multiple reasons as to why the villagers and the Family don’t seem to like Bruno. This opinion is clearly shared with me by many people, as when the soundtrack became very popular, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” reaching number four on the Billboards Hot 100.  

However, some people didn’t like the film as much as others and I did and one review, written by The Guardians' Perter Bradshaw says that “ Encanto feels like it is aspiring to be exactly that sort of bland frictionless perfection that the film itself is solemnly preaching against” and many others also used the word frictionless in their own reviews. However, for all the bad reviews, there are so many good reviews, one person saying “A smiling tale about familial reconciliation and learning to see your relatives for who they are rather than who you wish they were is never unwelcome”. 

In conclusion, I think that if you want a family friendly film that will be both entertaining for all the family, then Encanto is definitely the film for you. A combination of stunning visuals and incredible songs, the story will pull you in by every heartstring available. 

Author

Bella Hubbard

Bella Hubbard

I've completed both my Bronze and Silver Arts award, and am now part way through completing my Gold Award

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5 Comments

  • Tom Inniss

    On 19 May 2022, 16:23 Tom Inniss Voice Team commented:

    I'm inclined to agree with you, I think Encanto is a nice family friendly film that's definitely worth a watch, it's definitely stunning visually. We opted to stay in on New Year's Eve to watch this rather than go out, and I have no regrets!

    However, you did break the rule – we don't talk about Bruno!

  • Emrys Green

    On 19 May 2022, 18:21 Emrys Green Voice Team commented:

    Yes a good film perhaps that gained a fair amount of traction. What do you think to the animation and design of the world they've created?

  • Richard Caunt

    On 22 May 2022, 21:25 Richard Caunt commented:

    Great review Bella.
    Interesting to hear your opinions on how Lin Manuel has created Encanto. Have you looked at more of his work? He's an incredible writer in my opinion and I believe the next Cam Mac or Lloyd-Weber. What do you think?
    Look forward to seeing more of your work.

  • Gemma Sosnowsky

    On 25 May 2022, 12:02 Gemma Sosnowsky commented:

    Excellent review, Bella, thank you! I keep seeing Encanto advertised but I wasn’t sure what it was about, but now I really want to see it!

  • Judy McFall

    On 30 May 2022, 12:38 Judy McFall commented:

    I agree with you Bella, it's great family fun and a typical Disney film with fantastic visuals, lots of vibrant colour and full of catchy songs - what's not to love?!

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