Released to Netflix on Nov. 22, “Spellbound” created the perfect reminder of my childhood. Directed by Vicky Jenson, this film had me reminiscing about the movies I watched growing up.Typically, I like to watch movies with my family as a way to spend time together, and this film was perfect for that.
The movie itself starts with Princess Ellian (Rachel Zegler) wanting to be free from being responsible for her parents and have fun with her friends. Unfortunately for Ellian, she has to figure out how to help her parents. The film is about Ellian and her parents’ voyage to return them from their monster forms to their original human forms. On their journey, you are introduced to countless quirky and fun characters as well as a variety of fascinating creatures. The flora and fauna reminded me of the movie “Avatar” because of the way everything seemed luminescent, glowing and full of character.
“Spellbound” is an animated movie with a vibrant and captivating style of animation. The animation is similar to any average film you’d see in the present day, however, the color choices added to the world created such an enchanting scene that kept my eyes on the screen. Right away, it is obvious that a lot of work and thought was put into this movie just based on how complex the world is. The world of “Spellbound” contains a handful of endearing creatures that remind me of my pets because of how appealing and cute they look. The animals they came up with for the film are just one of many ways complexity is shown. One of my favorite animals that caught my eye was called Flink (Dee Bradley Baker). Flink is this fuzzy purple animal that is some sort of cross between a chipmunk, squirrel, and some other type of mythical creature. This animal acts as a sort of pet and companion to Ellian which shows the types of companions they have in their world. It is through examples like this that show how intricate the world is.
Another example of the complexity shown in this film is the clothing. The clothing seems to be a blend of many different cultures. At one point I noticed the resemblance of the clothes the people in this movie wore to more traditional garments similar to those from several Asian countries. I found this to be intriguing and something I liked because it provided some representation of other people and communities. More commonly in the past, there were a lot of princesses that had no ties to different cultures. This, in turn, left little representation and role models for some communities and cultures to look up to. More recently there has been a rise of princesses people of color can look up to and relate to.
One last example that helped build up this movie and keep it engaging were the characters. More precisely, how the characters themselves were crafted. The film is very clearly centered around Ellian, however, it’s not just Ellian herself the movie focuses on but her parents as well. Specifically, Aliens relationship with her parents. This raises and emphasizes an important view of why it’s so important to be honest with your children and make sure that you are always considering them when it comes to making decisions.
The soundtrack for the film was full of whimsical music that was slower and similar to Disney songs. For example the songs “Step by Step” and “Remembering” reminded me of a mix between “Colors of the Wind” from the movie “Pocahontas” and “Part of Your World” from the movie “The Little Mermaid.” The way both songs were sung was so melodic and brought a wave of nostalgia with them.
In conclusion, the animation, plot, soundtrack and overall moral that this film conveyed were all alluringly constructed and put together into a stunning film. This movie is great for a quick watch especially if you’re entertaining young children or looking for a good family movie. This movie is catered to younger children but everyone could learn something and take a new perspective from it.
“Spellbound:” ★★★★★
