From Walt Disney Home Entertainment: Enchanted begins in the animated fairytale land of Andalasia where the charming and perky Giselle (Amy Adams) instantly captures the heart of the dashing Prince Edward (James Marsden). Desperate to keep the young lovers apart in order to preserve her control of the throne, the prince's evil mother Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) transports Giselle from her whimsical homeland to the worst place she can think of-Times Square. Suddenly transformed from animated beauty into flesh and blood girl, the comely lass twirls her way through the urban jungle, blissfully unaware that dreams don't always come true. Rescued from the streets by divorce lawyer Robert (Patrick Dempsey), who suspects she'd be better off in Bellevue, and pursued by Edward, who finds that a sword is useless against a modern day dragon-er, make that city bus-the eternally optimistic Giselle starts to wonder if "happily ever after" is what she really wants.
Enchanted Cast List
Julie Andrews
Amy Adams
Patrick Dempsey
James Marsden
Susan Sarandon
Timothy Spall
Idina Menzel
Rachel Covey
Jeff Bennett
Kevin Lima
... Narrator
... Giselle
... Robert Philip
... Prince Edward
... Queen Narissa
... Nathaniel
... Nancy Tremaine
... Morgan Philip
... Pip in Andalasia (voice)
... Pip in New York (voice)
With Enchanted, Disney manages to both poke fun at and pay homage to its classic animated fairytales. The film begins in the animated land of Andalasia where the beautiful Giselle wins the heart of Prince Edward and that immediately puts her on the bad side of Queen Narissa. The Queen's solution is to send Giselle to New York City. Giselle, of course, is a complete fish out of water in New York. Fortunately for her, divorce lawyer Robert Philip and his daughter come along and "save" her. Pessimistic Robert tries to give her a dose of reality, but Giselle holds on to her belief in "happily ever after."
After spending the night in Robert's apartment, Giselle repays him by cleaning up and her melodic communing with animals has somehow carried over to Manhattan's pigeons, rats and cockroaches. Robert interrupts the animals and panics, while his daughter Morgan believes her to be someone out of fairytales. Robert then tries to get rid of Giselle who has complicated his love life with Nancy and gives her some money to get a bus ticket. He has second thoughts and goes back to find her giving some of the money away in Central Park. She ends up teaching Robert a couple things about love and actually helps patch things up between Robert and Nancy with her advice.
Enchanted 's other storylines involve Queen Narissa, her smitten henchman Nathaniel and Prince Edward. Narissa sends Nathaniel to New York to keep Edward from finding Giselle. She then gives him three poisoned apples to put Giselle to sleep. However, Nathaniel takes to watching talk shows and listening to talk radio, all of which helps him realize that Narissa is just using him. Prince Edward manages to find Giselle and she leaves Robert behind. The film climaxes at a ball which both couples attend. Narissa herself also shows up, convinced that she has to dispose of Giselle herself. She ends up turning into a dragon, but the one who "slays" her is a bit of a surprise. The film then returns to its fairytale roots by giving everyone a happy ending for all (except Narissa).
Enchanted mostly manages to balance fairytale with reality. Giselle gets a few lessons in real relationships, but she also gives Robert a few lessons in romance. The film is cute and may be too much so at times for those who subsist on "realistic" films. It even has the prerequisite three musical numbers that are the staple of the Disney fairytales. At the same time, Robert's character frequently voices witty criticisms of fairytales. His cynic does rightly learn the positives of such an outlook. The film manages to strike a pretty good balance between the two worlds, but is a romantic comedy in the end, one which the whole family can enjoy.
The DVD:
The DVD has approximately thirty minutes worth of extras. More than half of that comes from three featurettes that cover each of the film's musical numbers. The other main feature are a handful of deleted scenes including one that gives a little bit of background on the underdeveloped character of Nancy. Also included are a Carrie Underwood music video, an all too short blooper reel and a animated story from Pip the Chipmunk's perspective. The special features are a nice, but very brief inclusion.
Enchanted DVD Extras:
— Fantasy Comes to Life - "Happy Working Song" [6:25] - Behind-the-scenes featurette
— Fantasy Comes to Life - "That's How You Know" [5:50] - Behind-the-scenes featurette
— Fantasy Comes to Life - "A Blast at the Ball" [5:25] - Behind-the-scenes featurette
— "Ever Ever After" - Carrie Underwood Music Video
• A Lock of Prince Edward's Hair [2:25]
• Leaving Karate [1:25]
• I Am Not Waiting For My Prince [:50]
• Hotdogs on the Bridge [:40]
• Nathaniel's Revelation [1:10]
• Exit With a Twist [1:00]
— Bloopers [2:10]
— Pip's Predicament: A Pop-up Adventure [5:30] Buy the Enchanted DVD Now!
Enchanted Blu-Ray Extras:
— All the above DVD extras
— The D-Files: Trivia-based BD-Java feature Buy the Enchanted Blu-Ray Now!
