THE STORY – When a powerful spell turns her parents into giant monsters, a teenage princess must journey into the wild to reverse the curse before it’s too late.
THE CAST – Rachel Zegler, John Lithgow, Jenifer Lewis, Tituss Burgess, Nathan Lane, Javier Bardem & Nicole Kidman
THE TEAM – Vicky Jenson (Director), Lauren Hynek, Elizabeth Martin & Julia Miranda (Writers)
THE RUNNING TIME – 109 minutes
Everybody wants to be Disney. In 1997, Don Bluth, the ostensible anti-Walt Disney, gave in and made “Anastasia,” a film very much in the vein of the animated musicals of the then-current Disney Renaissance. And the prize cow of DreamWorks Animation – the “Shrek” franchise – is basically a repudiation of all that Disney stands for in a very obvious retaliatory move from former Walt Disney Studios chairman turned DreamWorks founder Jeffrey Katzenberg. “Spellbound,” the new film from Skydance Animation and Netflix, is no different (I know what you’re thinking, and no, this is not a remake of the Alfred Hitchcock-Salvador Dalí collaboration of the same name). Its tone, subject matter, themes, and characterizations are all clearly pulled from the classics of The Mouse House. Heck, they even got Alan Menken of “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast” fame to compose the music. This is all well and good – aping such a successful film model is an admirable way to assure your audience that they’re in safe, well-established hands. And yet, “Spellbound” pales in comparison to even the least impressive of Disney’s offerings. Although it features an unexpected twist previously unseen in major animated films, it’s otherwise unoriginal, bland, and likely too slow-paced and unexciting to hold the attention of younger viewers.
The spunky young girl at the film’s center is Ellian (Rachel Zegler). She’s a headstrong princess who longs to be treated like an adult by those around her. However, one major problem between her and living the life she desires is her parents. But it’s not that her parents are overbearing or strict. Sometime before the story began, they were enchanted by a curse that turned them into huge monsters lacking human reasoning or speech. For the sake of the kingdom, this unfortunate occurrence has been hidden from its inhabitants, with the parent-monsters stuck inside while Ellian and two palace ministers, Bolinar (John Lithgow) and Nazara (Jenifer Lewis), do their best to keep things running smoothly. When it becomes clear that the problem isn’t going to take care of itself, Ellian sets out to find a way to break the spell.
The cast is packed full of stars with plenty of voice-acting experience. Lithgow and Lewis are reliably committed to their parts, with Lithgow, in particular, leaning into the ridiculous turns that his character takes. He belts out his character’s big song with abandon. Tituss Burgess and Nathan Lane are excellent in their roles as two magical oracles. Lane adopts an absurdly entertaining accent, and the duo admirably lends their musical theater expertise to the film’s best song, “Look for the Light.” Zegler makes for a compelling lead – her voice naturally fits this type of story and character. And although her singing voice is exceptional – as anyone who’s seen Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” knows – the songs she’s given don’t allow her to show it off to its full potential. They’re strangely written in a way that doesn’t let her fully unleash her powerful instrument.
The film’s big centerpiece song is “The Way It Was Before,” a stirring anthem sung by Ellian. It never fully rises to the musical occasion, instead feeling like an early draft of one of Menken’s similar-but-better songs from the Disney catalog, like “Part of Your World” from “The Little Mermaid” or “Out There” from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Its melody isn’t memorable; oddly, it feels like it has never reached its full potential. The rest of the tunes penned by Menken, with lyrics by frequent collaborator Glenn Slater, are similarly disappointing. They lack the charm, cleverness, or staying power of their previous work.
But then again, the half-baked quality of the songs fits right in with the unimpressive nature of nearly every other aspect of the film. The jokes are dated (one extended bit about a wand being treated like a universal remote feels about 30 years past expiration) and generally tired. And the animation itself is frustratingly lackluster. The backgrounds are simple, and the film lacks detail in the character designs. The magical creatures are specifically non-specific – Ellian’s requisite adorable sidekick is a vague purple fluffy thing that looks like what an AI generator might come up with after being fed the script.
The film’s pace suffers greatly once Ellian sets out on her journey. At this point, the film merely follows the characters as they lumber through unoriginal locations, spouting groan-worthy quips. Once they and the film reach their endpoint, the movie is rejuvenated by a welcome turn in the plot that’s sure to resonate with viewers of all ages. But by that point, it’s too late. “Spellbound” fails to capture the hearts and minds of viewers, instead replacing potential wonder with lackluster songs, hackneyed writing, and unimpressive designs.
