In 2001, Anne Hathaway broke onto the scene in Disney’s THE PRINCESS DIARIES and in the process became one of those up and coming actresses to watch. A couple years later, she headlined ELLA ENCHANTED another regular girl who turns into a princess, but with a different twist. Though THE PRINCESS DIARIES was a bigger success, ELLA ENCHANTED had its own little charm, but that was mainly due to the acting ability of Anne Hathway and her knack for making those around her appear a little better.
ELLA ENCHANTED follows the tale of Ella of Frell (Anne Hathaway), who is given the “gift” of obedience as a baby by her fairy godmother. Though this sounds like every parents dream, the blessing is really a curse as Ella has to do whatever anyone tells her no matter what. After her evil stepsisters discover her secret, Ella leaves her home in search of her fairy godmother to plead that the curse be lifted. Along the way Ella encounters various fairy tale creatures and falls for the handsome prince.
By far and away, the highlight of ELLA ENCHANTED is watching Anne Hathaway on screen. Though she had only done a handful of projects before this film, Ms. Hathaway commands the attention of the audience and proves she has no problems carrying a film by herself. She sings, she dances and she’s just one of those actresses you can’t take your eyes off of. If ELLA ENCHANTED had starred any other actress it wouldn’t have managed the slight success it managed to obtain. Aside from Anne Hathaway, the supporting actors and actresses did an alright job, but they were completely forgettable. Well, completely forgettable except for Heidi Klum, who makes an appearance as a giant, that was slightly memorable but only because we all know who she is now.
It’s tough to criticize the story and script of a film like ELLA ENCHANTED, because it’s supposed to be a little cheesy and over the top. Though there were no glaring issues with the film, I found myself a little bored at times and wishing the story would move along a little faster. Thankfully, Anne Hathaway was in nearly every scene so it was never too painful to watch, but if about five to ten minutes of the film had been cut out that would have been fine. In fact, if they would have cut out that musical number at the end then ELLA ENCHANTED may have garnered a higher rating from this writer. Unless your film is a musical, please feel free to forgo the group song and dance at the end of the film. It’s a little nauseating.
So is ELLA ENCHANTED worthy of being added to your Blu-ray library? If you have a young girl who loves princess films and you want her to learn to be herself then I would say pick it up because it would be better than having to sit through one of those Tinkerbell movies. However, it’s not a film I would probably watch again but I’m glad I can say I saw it – though if I really wanted to get a princess/Anne Hathaway fix I’d just re-watch THE PRINCESS DIARIES.
Video: A crisp and clear transfer that looks lovely on Blu-ray.
Audio: No glaring problems with the audio, everything and everyone sounds fine.
Audio Commentary with Director Tommy O’Haver, Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy: An average commentary where the three share stories from the film. It’s the same commentary from the original DVD release, so if you are looking for something new you won’t find it here.
Deleted and Extended Scenes (14:58): There are eleven of these scenes and some of them could have been left in the film with no problem. If you enjoyed the film then you should enjoy these additions.
The Magical World of “Ella Enchanted” (29:03): A making of featurette that includes information on set designs, costumes as well as some of the music that was used in the musical numbers.
“Ella Enchanted” Red Carpet Premiere Special (22:58): Quite a long featurette considering the subject matter, but if you are into watch red carpet premieres then knock yourself out.
Music Video “It’s Not Just Make-Believe” by Kari Kimmel
DVD copy
