Disenchanted

**Refreshingly innovative, mostly a kids-pleaser. (7/10)** My expectations for this film were low, as it was not only a sequel but also one without even a theatrical release. And the first 20 minutes or so was about on par with your typical "sitcom sequel": Family moves out of the big city into the suburbs, angsty teen just wants to go home, mother who doesn't understand teenagers proceeds to embarrass her on her first day, etc etc.... Needless to say, I was settled in for a mediocre film. I was, however, surprised by several things once the magical part of the film got rolling. While character development is thin in this film, a certain twist involving Giselle caught me off guard and there are several clever foreshadowing points and Disney callbacks throughout the film. Musical numbers range from OK to Good, but there's a particular jazzy duet that knocked my socks off. (If you've seen the movie, you know exactly which one I'm talking about.) Unfortunately, the novelty wears off around the third act of the film, where it essentially just becomes your basic fairy-tale kids movie plot. Save the world before midnight, showdown with main villain, yada yada.. Anyway, the movie brings a few good ideas to the table, and it's probably worth a watch - it's not like you gotta pay for movie tickets after all. I'd reckon Disenchanted is about on par with the original Enchanted - no better, no worse; sometimes a movie just is.