The Magic of Family in Encanto
Image Courtesy of NBC News
By Angela Hickey
A tale of love, family, and determination, Encanto (2021) is a beautiful tale seeping into that recognizable Disney magic.
Encanto is Disney Animation’s 60th feature film, directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard. The film centers around the Madrigals, an extraordinary family who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia in a charming village called the Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift—every child except for fifteen-year-old Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz). However, after finding out that the magic surrounding the Encanto may be in danger, Mirabel discovers that she may be their only hope for survival.
Unlike many other Disney films that send characters far afield, Encanto takes place entirely in the surrounding village, reinforcing how familial love and relationships play a major role in our story. The film’s close focus depicts their interactions and growth throughout the film and proves that love and honesty can only make a family stronger in the long run. With loveable characters and a heartfelt, genuine story, Encanto has very much earned all of the praise it has received so far.
Critics have raved about the film since its release, complimenting everything from its state-of-the-art graphics to its beautiful variety of characters; audiences too have been singing the film’s praises since its release. How could they help it when the soundtrack is so catchy?
With original music composed by the famous Lin-Manuel Miranda, who previously worked with Disney on films such as Moana (2016) as well as the professional recording of his hit musical Hamilton (2020), Encanto has songs that range from upbeat and catchy to soulful and heart-wrenching. With the help of social media platforms such as TikTok, Encanto became the first movie soundtrack since 2019 to reach No. 1 on the Billboard charts earlier this month. The film’s most popular song, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” became the highest-charting song from a Disney animated film in more than 26 years, ranking higher than Frozen’s classic “Let It Go.”
“The thing we were chasing was: can we get the complexity of family, a multi-generational Latin family, into a Disney film?” Miranda said in an interview with PBS News. “That’s what people seem to be responding to: ‘I’m bopping my head to this but it’s kind of deep and there’s layers to it.”
While the film attempts to center around the entire family, it primarily focuses on the inner thoughts and feelings of our main character, Mirabel. From the opening scenes of the film, the audience learns about Mirabel and her feelings of inadequacy and isolation.
“Mirabel is a really funny, loving character who also deeply yearns for something more,” Beatriz said while speaking about taking on the role of Mirabel. “She’s also not afraid to stand up for what she knows is right—something I love and relate to very much.”
“As a Disney kid, I’d burn through my VHS tapes and adored every single magical story that the world of Disney introduced me to,” she added. “I learned in those stories that anything is possible, especially if you believe in magic and the goodness rooted deep inside us all.”
While this film is on a much smaller dramatic scale than many of Disney’s other films, the downsized plot helps audiences to become better acquainted with the characters and their relationships with one another, highlighting how certain conflicts have affected the characters in ways that, at first glance, would have gone unnoticed. Encanto doesn’t conclude with action-heavy chaos, because it is a film about rebuilding rather than destruction. And the rebuild is always about emphasizing hope for the future instead of longing for the past. Encanto is available in theaters and is also now available for streaming on Disney+.
