ENCHANTED Film Review - 31/12/07

Nice to see Disney getting away from their stuffier side of their image in this very knowing and gently self-mocking piece of fun. James Marsden is a revelation in his role as the Prince and Susan Sarandon is on top form as the Wicked Witch. Nice to see Timothy Spall gracing the screen as I haven't seen him in anything for a while. Starting off as an animated fable (Narrated by Julie Andrews) we have all the characters in place from a host of Disney films (Certainly in style anyway) and then the Wicked Witch casts the Princess into the real world where she end's up in New York. The Prince and her chipmunk companion follow and all translate from animated characters to the real world. Obviously all the character traits follow as the Prince searches for his true-love singing all the way; whilst elsewhere the Princess is singing, to get a motley crue of animals to help her clean house. So in affect we have a collision between the fantasy world and the real. The Wicked Witch sends her nefarious henchman to continue her work but so incompetent is he that in the end she turns up herself to finish the job. Syrupy - but also a very clever twist on the fairy tale genre.