Encanto

Following the highly divisive release of Raya and the Last Dragon, Disney has released a much more universally enjoyed film in Encanto, praise that I, for the most part, can embrace in. The animation is stunning, bringing the detail of the world to incredible heights. Beyond just looking good, however, the setting of the story also feels as lived in as it should, with a large, diverse crowd of people present throughout the town, both with background characters and the main residents of the story. That being said, the characters are the crux of, in my opinion, the film’s one major flaw. This isn’t to say I don’t like the characters, as, if anything, the characters are my favourite part of the movie. All of them feel very different from each other and avoid blending together, each having their own unique identity best reflected by their individual gift. However, due to having such a decently large ensemble cast at the centre of the story, it results in most of them feeling quite underdeveloped. Other than the main protagonist, certain characters have their entire development summarised down into one song, in some cases resolving plotlines within their short runtime, though this is at least better than the complete lack of any development of other characters. I love all of them in theory, but it feels like they had so many ideas that they tried to fit into one movie leaving certain areas feeling underdeveloped and leaving me with a desire for more. Some could argue that this allows for the setup of the sequel, but I would argue that the story is fairly self-contained, and that the solution would instead be an adaptation into a series that allows for all of the characters to be explored in greater detail. Whilst this is incredibly unlikely, it is the best possible solution to resolve my one main issue with the movie. Despite this, however, the movie is still incredibly enjoyable with (albeit underutilised) lovable characters, a gorgeous setting, and a few fun songs to go along with it.