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[Patrick]

Did you notice... They eat at an Italian restaurant called "Bella Notte"? When Giselle is looking to the aquarium, you can hear Little Mermaid music in the background?

Ha thought I heard part of your world but couldn't decide if it was or not, so funny the part with the aquarium :lol: .  Ah 2 weeks can't come quickly enough to see it again .

[experiment627]

I enjoyed the movie very much, though I have to say that the script was not the best... they could have spent a bit more time in the story department. There are just few little things that are wrong with it, that prevent "Enchanted" from becoming a true Disney classic, in my humble opinion.

[Anthony]

Film 2007 on the BBC had it's preview/review of Enchanted this week, including brief input from the three leads and Kevin Lima and some good clips from the film. Good news is, you can watch it streaming on the amazing new iPlayer website (who needs regular TV with all these now?), it's the first film on. I suppose it'll only let people in the UK watch, though.

Jonathan Ross' review is waaay better than I expected. He always gives massive praise to Pixar films, but it's hard to say how a film critic would react to a film like Enchanted... he ends with "outstanding performances", "wonderful songs", "brilliant animated scenes" and "near perfectly brought to screen".

Just a few more days till it's out there for most of us...

Oh, and the buy the soundtrack!! Wow, the songs really grow on you. True Love's Kiss and That's How You Know are classics.

[Soap]

Tonight's the night for me    Can't wait!!!

[Anthony]

Hope you enjoy it Soap! Don't expect perfection, but do expect to be smiling all the way through.

Today's Times newspaper had a whole double page in the film section dedicated to Enchanted, listing most of the in-jokes and Disney references, as well as a review on the next page (also online here), which was also very positive (4-stars, compared to 3 for bee movie). And there was even a huge banner on the front page:



Free advertising for Disney!

!SPOILERS!

I only managed to spot one or two of these...

Spot the Disney references in Enchanted
The Christmas blockbuster Enchanted is more than a fairytale, it's a treasure trove of references to the great Disney films of the past. Our critic reveals all — nearly



It took Disney a long time to pluck up the courage to make Enchanted. The story of an animated princess who falls foul of a wicked stepmother and finds herself in contemporary Manhattan, it is playfully self-referential, enthusiastically plundering the Disney tradition for its own comedic ends.

Indeed, according to its director, Kevin Lima, it is effectively Disney's first postmodern movie. The clincher came when he managed to persuade the company that there was a way to make the film as a love letter rather than a cynical pastiche. The result is a film that, although a departure for Disney, also has a charming, old-fashioned innocence.

It's an approach that has clearly struck a chord with American audiences. Enchanted has dominated the box office since its release at Thanksgiving and looks likely to be the hit of the festive season. Lima puts the success down to the film's refreshingly sweet-natured tone. "With this movie I set out to make Mary Poppins. With that in mind, I had to throw away the meantempered mockery. It has been done so much. The Shrek movies were very successful in turning the screws on Disney in that way. So I was looking for a new way."

To recapture that traditional Disney magic, Lima found himself scouring the classics for imagery and references. "And then something happened: we came up with the idea of doing Happy Working Song as a set piece and it set the tone for the entire film. From there it just went nuts, it became an obsession. Every single name had to somehow have a relation to Disney, every image had to relate back to the Disney iconography. I drove my entire staff crazy." Fans well versed in Disney lore will have a field day trying to spot all the Disney references, although, says Lima, "there is a lot of stuff hidden pretty deeply".

Here we reveal many, but not all, of the Disney references Lima and team have crammed into the film.

The storybook opening

The classic image at the start of Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty is the storybook that falls open to reveal a land far, far away. Lima's take on the image is updated by making the tome a pop-up book.

Prince Edward hunts trolls

We're introduced to Prince Edward in the animated world, riding a steed vanquishing a stupid troll. The troll is wearing a loincloth made from shreds of dresses of the Disney princesses Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. He's also wearing Ariel the Little Mermaid's shells as earrings.

Giselle arrives in the real world

Our heroine, Giselle (Amy Adams), is cast into a well on the morning of her wedding and emerges through a manhole in the middle of Times Square in a marshmallow of a dress that looks good enough to eat. The scene is full of references, most of which are purely coincidental. Lima recalls: "There's things like the Tarzan poster on the street . There's a giant Wicked poster, and Idina Menzel was an original cast member of Wicked, and Stephen Schwartz wrote the music both for Wicked and for us."

The Happy Working Song

Giselle is given shelter by Robert Philip (Patrick Dempsey) and his daughter Morgan. She wakes the next morning to find the apartment in chaos. Undeterred by her new world, Giselle calls upon her trusty animal friends to help to clean up. Rather than woodland creatures, however, it's the city's vermin that answer her call. Lima says: "The entire film grew out of that moment. I thought it might be fun to do a twist on a typical Disney song in the modern world. It plays into Whistle While You Work , then incorporates imagery from other Disney working songs. There's a little bit of Mary Poppins; she sings to the cockroaches on her finger and they sing back; the soap bubbles and the reflections of Giselle in each bubble, that's a homage to Cinderella."

Giselle gets dressed

Cinderella references come thick and fast. First, when Giselle steps naked out of the shower, pigeons drape a towel around her — a direct nod to Cinders being dressed by birds. A few minutes later it is revealed that Giselle has created a fabulous frock for herself out of the living room curtains — again, a reference to Cinderella, specifically a scene in which the animals create a dress for her out of found household objects.

The divorce lawyer's office

Robert Philip takes Giselle to work with him at the offices of the law firm of Churchill, Harline and Smith — the names of the three songwriters who created the memorable soundtrack to Snow White. "Most law firms have three names, so I went looking for a three-name combo in a Disney film. The divorcing couple are called the Banks and that's from Mary Poppins. There's a reporter who says her name is Mary Ilene Caselotti — that's from the first names and the last names of the three women who play Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. Robert Philip's assistant is named Sam. And Philip's horse in Sleeping Beauty was called Samson."

The poisoned apple

It was the weapon that the jealous queen chose to use against Snow White. Enchanted updates the poisoned apple with a poisoned apple martini, served to Giselle by the evil stepmother's henchman in an Italian restaurant named the Bella Notte — a reference to Lady and the Tramp.

Central Park

A stroll in Central Park with an increasingly bemused but grudgingly charmed Robert turns into a full song and dance production. Giselle's song, How Does She Know?, asks how Robert's long-suffering, long-term girlfriend, Nancy, is meant to know that he loves her if he never says so; Robert meanwhile wonders how everyone except him seems to know the words to the song and the accompanying dance steps.

Prince Edward defeats the bus

Deposited in the centre of Times Square on his quest to bring Giselle back to the kingdom of Andalasia, Edward swiftly brings his trollvanquishing skills to the task of tackling the New York public transport system. He dispatches a bus with a flourish of his sword, incurring the wrath of the driver.

Look closely at the driver — her hair is shaped like Mickey Mouse's ears. Riding the bus is a woman clutching a bag of birdseed, a homage to the bird woman in Mary Poppins.

Prince Edward watches TV

Prince Edward settles down in a motel room to watch the "magic mirror", aka the television. Lima says: "Everything on the television comes from a Disney film. Every image: Disney's Robin Hood; there's an image of Mortimer Snerd, a ventriloquist's dummy that comes from Fun and Fancy Free. There's a lot of dialogue that plays in the background that is all Disney referenced as well. There's a Spanish Mickey Mouse cartoon."

Disney experts will spot a host of references in a soap opera that moves the henchman, Timothy Spall, to tears, but Lima cautions that we shouldn't give all of them away. "I think if you set the stage, then audiences will go in looking."

And from their website, here's a nice interview with the director himself: .Mov File

That's your enchanted update for tonight. :wink:

[peep]

^ Awesome find!!

I enjoyed reading that. I believe the family are planning to see it at some point over the weekend too, can't wait to see it again. I do feel that the closer we got to Enchanted the less publicity surrounded it, then today loads of stuff on the film appeared from nowhere. Lets hope it does well.

[DisneyAlba]

Great article, Baloo. I got to see Enchanted last night, and even though I read the article I still missed some references...

I absolutely loved all the references to Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty & The Beast, and The Little Mermaid. The reference to 'Kiss the Girl' during the song 'How does she know'... The reference to 'Once upon a dream' in the beginning... Oh, and did you all spot the porcelain Belle figurine in the daughter's bedroom?

Anyway, the movie is truly charming!! Can hardly wait till the dvd release - gotta have it.

[peep]

Can hardly wait till the dvd release - gotta have it.

Same here, but are Disney going to hold the release for the DVD for next christmas? I know Disney tend to do things like that when its a christmas release for the cinema.

Hmm, anyways I saw the film again last Saturday and I thought it was even better than when I first saw it at the premiere. I still seem to miss the references but I did notice a few from the article.

[Nicholas-c]

my sister went to see it before she picked me up from work and she said it was brilliant

[RnRCj]

I've just seen it at the cinema. It was a fantastic movie I loved it =D>

[Fever]

As Well as The Jodi Benson (Ariel) parts, you guys spot Paige O'Hara (Belle) as a TV soap actress and Judy Kuhn (Pocahontas singing) in one of the apartments Edward is running through? Oddly, Kuhn's pop-up doesn't have a Pocahontas musical cue, just a random line "you're too late..." Can't get the Pocahontas reference there, or just the fact a prince charming has appeared on her door, whilst she is a mother of about 5.. who knows...

[Kristof]

An official list with all the Disney references can be found on the Enchanted wikipedia page.  I checked after I saw the movie and was proud to discover I found most of 'm.  :lol:  :lol:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchanted_ ... sney_films

 

[Joseph Carter]

I have to wait till the 7th of Jan! Im so hyped about seeing it!!!! :shock:  :shock:  :shock:

[buzz&wendy]

I've seen the movie and its brilliant.

Loved it!
 /

[Masamune]

I saw it today. I absolutely flipping LOVED IT! Easily one of the best Disney films of all time, and definatly straight in my top 10 favourite films EVER. Everything about it was just wonderful. :lol: Prince Edward is surely one of the funniest Disney characters ever. He's full of himself, yet he's completely charming at the same time ( Gaston could learn from this guy).

***SPOILERS FOLLOW***DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU'VE SEEN ENCHANTED***

My only negatives (which aren't even big ones), are that (1) I wish there was a little more of the animation part of the film, because it was just beautiful and (2) the ending left me feeling a tad hollow. Yes, everyone got their Happily Ever After...but after how brilliant the film was throughout, the ending seemed a tad rushed to me. Also, I kinda thought it was a shame how things turned out between Giselle and Edward, as they would've made a really adorable couple once upon a time.

***END SPOILERS***

But yes, they're only teeny tiny negatives. The film on a whole is fantastic, and I can't wait for it to come out on DVD.