Enchanted Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.5

Enchanted Blu-ray Movie Review

This mesmerizing high-definition experience is sure to enchant.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman March 8, 2008

It’s like you escaped from a Hallmark card or something.

Enchanted may very well be the film of the year in many circles, especially for anyone who loves classic Disney animation and the fairy tales they tell of love and romance or anyone looking for something that is both original and family-friendly. This movie certainly delivers in spades in every category, putting a new spin on old favorites in a way that seems so obvious yet abundantly clever, proving that you really can breathe new life into old ideas. This is certainly a brilliant concept for a Disney film as we find ourselves firmly entrenched in this new millennium and era of spectacular visual effects. We've seen the old blended with the new before, but never quite like this. Disney has created an all-new animated world, but one whose happy-go-lucky feel (replete with locales such as the "Meadow of Joy" and the "Valley of Contentment") is upset by the harsh reality of the "real world." This is one movie I was actually pretty eager to see. I'm more a casual fan of the classics in Disney's vault, but the concept here is so simplistically smart that I couldn't help but to be intrigued.

I've got a feeling we're not in Andalasia anymore.

In the animated world of Andalasia where man and animal live in perfect harmony as they tend to do in such places, lives Giselle (Amy Adams, Underdog), a young maid yearning for the day when her sweet prince will rescue her and make her into the princess she's always wanted to be. That prince is the dashing lady's man Prince Edward (James Marsden, 27 Dresses). His step-mother is the evil queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon, In the Valley of Elah), who reigns over all the land. She is bound and determined to keep Edward from finding his bride and sealing his ascension to the throne, but he meets Giselle after she escapes the clutches of a giant troll. Before they can say, "enchanted," they're madly in love and discussing wedding plans. A furious queen, disguised as an old hag in the palace gardens, tricks Giselle into entering our world through a magical portal, a place where Giselle will never find the "happily ever afters" she longs for.

Upon entering our strange, crude, and cruel world, through a manhole no less, Giselle finds herself at odds with everyone and everything, and its all she can do to survive those first, frenetic moments of tumult and chaos. She's convinced that her prince will come rescue her, and indeed he's managed to follow her, along with a chipmunk named Pip, into this topsy-turvy world. Saving Giselle from her own incompetence is a good samaritan, a divorce lawyer named Robert (Patrick Dempsey, Freedom Writers) and his daughter Morgan (Rachel Covey, Duane Hopwood). Of course, young Morgan sees Giselle immediately as the princess she is, but Robert finds her only to be a nuisance, especially when she, in true animated fashion, calls in an army of birds, rodents, and insects to clean his apartment in classic Disney animation style. Meanwhile, Queen Narissa has dispatched her lackey Nathaniel (Timothy Spall, The Last Samurai) to prevent the two from finding one another before its too late. Will Giselle fall prey to the queen's wily ways, or will this damsel-in-distress's true love find and rescue her from imminent peril?

Enchanted is one of the better movies I've seen in quite some time. The movie expertly pokes fun at itself and those films it pays homage to, but it does it tastefully, and it also respects those same roots at whose expense the movie gets many of its laughs, proving that Disney knows its audience, appealing to just about everyone. Fans of the classics will be pleased with the vast number of scenes that pay tribute to early Disney animated films. Romance and comedy fans will love the story, the characters, and the charm of the picture, and those generally bored by romantic comedies or fairy tales will find plenty to laugh about, both at and with the picture. The film's strengths lie in both its originality and its respect for the early Disney classics. The animation stays true to the classics from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, hearkening back to the look and feel of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Sleeping Beauty, among others. It also takes those stories and combines them into one giant farce, if you will, both in the animated world and subsequently in the real world. Disney certainly has a new classic on their hands, and I have no doubt that in the decades to come, Enchanted will stand toe-to-toe with the best the studio has to offer, a film that is timeless yet also firmly entrenched as this decade's classic Disney animated feature (even if the entire movie isn't animated), setting a new benchmark for charm, wit, and enjoyment for fans of all ages.

Enchanted Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

What a perfect title for one of the finest Blu-ray images yet. Enchanted certainly left me in just that state for the entire runtime, spellbound by the wonderful 1080p transfer Disney has bestowed on this disc. Retaining its original 2.35:1 frame, Enchanted is definitely reference material on Blu-ray. The film's opening minutes in the animated world of Andalasia are presented windowboxed, with black bars on all four sides of the image, perhaps as a salute to older, classic 1.37:1 (or "Academy ratio-framed") Disney animated films like Cinderella and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, though the image appears to be around the 1.85:1 or so ratio. Don't fret, nothing is wrong with the disc, and the image opens up to the listed 2.35:1 ratio once the real-world action begins, and any subsequent animated sequences are also presented in 2.35:1.

Disney has once again proven their worth as one of Blu-ray's top content producers with yet another fine, clean, and crisp transfer. The animated scenes look splendid, and even though this is brand new material, I have no doubt that once we begin seeing classic Disney animation on Blu-ray, beginning with Sleeping Beauty in October, we will be in for a heck of a treat. This classic style of animation looks marvelous in Blu-ray high definition. Colors are rich and vibrant, literally popping off the screen with a pleasant authority. Lines are crisp and defined, and the image is sharp as a tack. 1080p and Blu-ray definitely does justice to this portion of the film and its visual style.

Moving on to the action that takes place in our world, we are, as expected, treated to a lush, clear, and finely detailed image that excels on Blu-ray. The print, of course, is flawless, clean as a whistle, and masterfully rendered in 1080p. The image is virtually free of film grain as well. Black levels are consistently excellent, reproducing an inky, exquisite look and feel that adds depth and realism to the proceedings. Fine detail is in abundance, perhaps best noticed in Prince Edward's garb. We can clearly see every stitch, thread, and line of his royal garment, and his close-ups reveal a lifelike and detailed image in the clothing. Exterior shots of the city--both those taking place during the day and at night--look fantastic. We can see every dirty spot, stuck gum, hole, and crack in the concrete. There is a luscious variety of colors throughout, from the tranquil greens in Central Park to the bright lights of the cityscape at night. Flesh tones look mostly natural, appearing ever-so-slightly red in a few scenes. Overall, this is a stunning image with fantastic colors, terrific depth, and high detail. It's another top-notch effort from Disney.

Enchanted Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Matching the fine image frame-for-frame is the spellbinding Dolby TrueHD lossless audio track. Simply put, it's marvelous, sounding full and clear throughout. Fidelity is superb, as should be expected from a brand new sound mix. The early animated scenes stand out as much as anything else in the picture. The rear soundstage is pleasantly used, surrounding the viewer in a soothing state of bliss as an animated world comes to life, engulfing the senses, especially the auditory, with fine reproduction of every note sung by a human, chirped by a bird, or played by an instrument. Bass is deep and strong, notably in an early scene involving an oversized troll. The evil queen's voice crackles appropriately as it encircles the room, scaring us as much as the characters she speaks to. Sounds in our world are just as exciting and accurately reproduced. City noises envelop the listening area as Giselle becomes flesh and blood, and we hear each sound almost as she undoubtedly does. Each is more pronounced and hectic as she hears them for the first time, and we're connected to her via the sound experience. Even the little things, like heavy rain drops hitting the outside of a car while we are inside of it, sound real and engaging, surrounding us and making us feel everything but wet, as if we're right there in the car. Dialogue reproduction is uniformly excellent. It's never drowned or lost under music or effects, and sounds natural and clean. This is an active, near reference and completely enjoyable listening experience, and the sound designers of this film are to be applauded as we're seamlessly sucked into a world we know but are made to believe, at times, that we're as lost as poor Giselle, and that's just one area that makes this film so good and so much fun.

Enchanted Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Enchanted on Blu-ray provides viewers with some fun and original special features. In lieu of a standard commentary track is the fun, innovative, and original feature, The D-Files. This is an interactive pop-up trivia track of sorts. Some background on the film is given over the movie, and viewers are then asked a series of questions pertaining to both Enchanted and to other Disney greats that tie-in to this film. The faster you answer (there's a time limit), the better, and the more points you accumulate by answering questions correctly, the more additional features are unlocked. When a question is answered correctly, the film stops and we see some short clips of the cast and crew discussing the question we just answered. One of the great features of this extra is the ability to save your progress and start from the same spot later on. I stopped the movie, turned off my Playstation 3, and resumed the game a couple of hours later. I have to point out that the feature did not work correctly on my Panasonic DMP-BD30. I answered the first question, but subsequent questions never popped up. The feature worked just fine on my Playstation 3. This is an excellent way to get involved with the disc and serves as a commentary track-lite, so to speak, and is infinitely more interesting. If interactive is the wave of the future for special features on Blu-ray, color me impressed with this early, exciting, and innovative feature.

Next up is a more traditional special feature, Fantasy Comes to Life (1080i, 17:42). This is a three-part feature that examines select scenes throughout the film. Happy Working Song (6:24) is the first, a look at both the special effects and the real creatures used during the apartment cleaning sequence. That's How You Know (5:53) is next, examining the filming of the Central Park scene. Finally, A Blast at the Ball (5:25) looks at the making of the movie's exciting climax. Next are a series of funny bloopers (1080p, 2:11) and six deleted scenes (480p, 8:05). Director Kevin Lima offers up a brief introduction to each scene before we see it. Pip's Predicament: A Pop-Up Adventure (1080p, 5:37) is the story of the chipmunk Pip, told in in pop-up book fashion, taking a cue from several scenes in the film. I went into this feature thinking it would be an interactive game, but it wasn't. Nevertheless, younger audiences will probably enjoy this one, although I didn't feel that it added an awful lot to the Enchanted Blu-ray experience. Last but certainly not least is a music video entitled Ever, Ever After (480p, 3:33), performed by Carrie Underwood. It mimics the look and feel of the movie, combining live action with bookend animation sequences.

Enchanted Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Enchanted isn't a film I'll watch over and over, but the simple fact is that this movie really works on every level. It's charming, fun, and definitely enchanting. The story is simple and original, taking a tried-and-true formula and updating it for the mew millennium, but with both grace and honor, hearkening back to the classics in a respectful manner, but also making fun of them along the way. Everything about this disc--the movie, the video, the sound, and the supplements--is nearly perfect. Each one is fascinating and exciting, and together make for one heck of a Blu-ray package. I'm very surprised at how much I liked this movie, and I think most audience members will find something to like about it as well. Enchanted on Blu-ray comes highly recommended!