REVIEW: Encanto is a love letter to the Latino family

Walt Disney Animation's 60th film, Encanto, is the company's best in the last six years, since the consecutive launches of Z e Moana in 2015. Coincidentally, two of its co-directors, Byron Howard and Jared Bush, also worked on Z. There is obviously some magic to this pairing.

The story follows the Madrigal family, blessed with magic after a great tragedy. His large and colorful house, affectionately called La Casita, seems to work according to the same spell that bewitched the objects in Beauty and the Beast, 1991 film. Shutters swing, tiles dance and items magically move around the kitchen.

In addition to the magic house, all Madrigal children gain a magical gift when they turn 5, such as super strength or the ability to heal. In turn, these gifts are used to help strengthen and serve the community. Every Madrigal has a role to play, except teenager Maribel (Stephanie Beatriz), who never received a magical gift when she came of age.

While Maribel's family constantly reinforces that she is just as special as everyone else, it's pretty hard to believe when you're surrounded by a family of people who are admired and respected for all their incredible contributions to the village.

It also doesn't help that Maribel feels at odds with her "perfect sister" Isabela (Diane Guerrero), who looks like a perfect Disney princess and can even create flowers at will.

As Maribel tries to come to terms with accepting herself, a mysterious force threatens to take the family's magic away. Maribel takes it upon herself to find the root of the problem and save the family before she disappears.

The representation of Charm

First, win one for Walt Disney Animation for releasing two releases in one year that celebrate different stories from different cultures! with the fantastic Raya and the Last Dragon earlier this year, and now the charming Encanto, it's refreshing to see that Casa do Rato has been more proactive in telling stories that aren't just rooted in Western European fairy tales. I Think Moana It really opened the door to it, which I really like.

Now, here's the tricky part. It's one thing to put a label on something and pat it on the back for "being awake." But to truly honor the culture you're representing, you really need to put in the effort to make it good. And I'm pleased to say, Encanto it's very good. 

It is a film that not only pays homage to Colombian culture, but more importantly, transcends it with a universality that applies to families of any culture. The animation is beautiful. The characters are real. Lin-Manuel Miranda's music is captivating (and made me cry a lot). And it's packed with universal themes applicable to all families.

One of the best things that Encanto does is to deliver a Latino family that authentically embodies this lived experience. Every member of the family does not have a monotone of brown. The Madrigal family is filled with Latinos of all skin tones, including darker-skinned Latinos, and each shade in between accurately reflects what an extended Latino family can be like today.

The show

the strength of Encanto, as well as Viva: Life is a Party, comes from the idea of ​​family. In fact, with regard to disney animation studios, this is the most realistic family they've put on screen. Every character, from Mirabel herself, to her Abuela, and sisters Luisa and Isabela, are dealing with real emotions that people feel all the time. 

And the issues they have, from their insecurities to their tiredness of putting up facades, are so easy to identify. No family is perfect, whether they have powers or not. And the film's touching way of approaching this theme, as well as the theme of accepting yourself for all that you are, is sure to bring tears of understanding and identification to everyone's eyes.

Mirabel as a character is incredibly likable. Voiced by the star of Brooklyn 99, Stephanie Beatriz, there is fire and courage in Beatriz's vocal performance. She has a song in the middle of the movie called Waiting is a Miracle, which exudes sympathy and internal conflict for the character's situation, which immediately makes you want to jump on the screen and hug her. But she is not alone. 

Diane Guerrero and Jessica Darrow from Doom Patrol, who voice the sisters Isabela and Luisa de Madrigal, also have incredible performances. Who knew Crazy Jane would have such a lovely singing voice? And Darrow's rapping skills in his catchy number Surface Pressure are worthy of the legendary musical Hamilton. 

But by far one of the most moving performances in the film belongs to John Leguizamo's Uncle Bruno. Bruno is a complex character with a lot in common with Mirabel, but he has a surprisingly big heart. It's a funny, quirky, and heartfelt performance by Leguizamo, and a character you'll instantly like (although you shouldn't talk about him).

The original story is also to be commended. I'm loving the idea of ​​Disney creating these original tales, from Z a Stingray, and the creativity behind the narrative of Encanto it's just magic. While we've touched the heart of the story, both the originality behind the magic house and the candle and the personal stories of some of these characters (there's a particularly effective scene with music near the end) are surprisingly refreshing, mature and imaginative. 

It looks like it took six individuals to come up with this original story, including directors Jared Bush and Byron Howard, as well as Miranda. It's the right way to create your own original mythology, and it's something to be commended for. A film that really remembers the times of Renaissance, which makes a lot of sense, as it's the period that really defined what we know of Disney today.

Speaking of Miranda, the songs he created for the film are incredible. Not only is each song completely catchy and memorable, but the way he mixes and intertwines repetitions of all of them at times (a gift he's demonstrated in most of his Broadway shows) shows how truly the master of his craft, commanding beats and rhythms like the genius songwriter/writer that he is. There isn't a single show that is weaker than another, and that for me is perfect. All the songs are amazing and sensational.

I confess that, like all the films that have their great prominence, like Lion King has Life cycle ou Hakuna Matata, Beauty and the Beast has Beauty and the Beast, or Frozen, that has Let It Go e Moana on how far i go — also written by Miranda —, for me, the great highlight in Encanto go to Waiting is a Miracle. Maybe because the lyrics moved me a lot, but it's certainly the most beautiful among them all.

There is no villain

One of the most impressive things about Encanto is that he doesn't have a tangible villain, a rarity in a Disney movie. At its core, the film focuses on the pressures of living up to unrealistic expectations and family ideals. What happens when those expectations are too high? What happens when you don't speak up and cave in under the pressure?

Although the Madrigals seem idyllic to outsiders, once the layers are peeled off you slowly notice there are cracks at the base of what holds the magical family together. This ranges from a black sheep named Bruno, whom the family refuses to acknowledge, to other members who feel under constant pressure to be perfect.

Yeah, Encanto go for it (bring some — lots! — tissues), but don't worry. It's not too deep for kids. Most of these things will probably go over their heads as they will be too busy immersed in catchy musical numbers.

The technical details of Charm

Disney has once again taken a notch up when it comes to attention to detail in their animation. Mice are shown for a few moments in Enchantment, and whenever the camera focuses on their small faces, it's like you're looking at something real. If mice were cute, of course.

When Maribel finds herself covered in sand and is removing tiny grains from her hair, you're convinced you're looking at the real deal.

This is testament to the work Disney (and Pixar) has worked on perfecting and sand testing some of their shorts over the years, from Piper, from 2016, to far from the tree this year, a nice short with a family of raccoons that was shown before Encanto.

A new era of Classics

It is important to note that Encanto it takes time to tell a story not just about an individual but also about a multigenerational family. Had the film been made 10 or 20 years ago, Isabela, the “perfect” daughter who yearned to be seen as something more, would likely have been the de facto protagonist and main plot. She fits the obvious Disney Princess archetype, a necessary ingredient for most of Disney's past successes.

In recent years, Disney has moved away from stereotypical princess narratives to focus on stories and characters that better reflect the world around us. And they are just as good, if not better than some of the older princess tales. Of course, this is always thinking about historical contexts. Back then it made sense to have princesses like Aurora, Ariel or Cinderella. These are contexts in which they were social reflections. Today, having princesses like Elza, Moana, Raya and now Mirabel better represent a mirror of society.

A lot of this certainly has to do with Disney's changing of the guard in recent years. Since Jennifer Lee directed Frozen and later named creative director of Walt Disney Animation in June 2018, viewers saw a different type of Disney protagonist who puts family and friends ahead of a love interest (Frozen e Frozen II) and who have deeper community ties, as in Raya and the Last Dragon. They are quirky, courageous and identifiable. Maribel follows this trend.

After the triumph in Stingray this year and now in Encanto, we could be at the beginning of a new era of Disney classics. We are certainly in a new era of how we can look like a princess Disney heroine.

Encanto arrives in Brazilian cinemas one day 25 November.

And if you're interested in more high-quality productions, just check out Disney+ movies.