After fifteen long years of waiting, fans of Disney’s hit 2007 fairy tale parody Enchanted can now relive the magic in Disenchanted, the newly released sequel available exclusively on Disney+. The follow-up film stars a cast of returning characters in an all-new story that expands the world of Giselle and her closest loved ones.
Just like the original film, Disenchanted brings a brand-new flavor to the fairy tale genre, blazing a new trail for itself within the realm of fantasy. As is to be expected, the sequel pokes fun at several well-known fairy tales in the process, keeping fans on their toes with the many in-joke, references, and parodies therein.
Cinderella
Disenchanted takes several pages out of the classic fairy tale of Cinderella, particularly Disney’s 1950 animated film. In a surprise twist, Giselle begins to settle into the role of the Wicked Stepmother, actively interfering in the life of her stepdaughter Morgan and forbidding her from attending the local festival where she plans to meet her beloved prince.
The film has some fun with the classic tropes of the Wicked Stepmother archetype, with Giselle commenting on her new fashion sense, penchant for ruining her stepdaughter’s life, and suddenly deeper, more sinister voice. Even Pip the Chipmunk finds himself whisked along this Cinderella parody, as he is transformed into a cat, not unlike the one seen in the classic animated film.
Snow White
While Giselle herself has always been somewhat of a Snow White parody, Disenchanted takes this allusion one step further by introducing several more plot points that ring true of one of Disney’s most classic princesses. Most notably, the Enchanted sequel introduces its own version of Snow White‘s evil queen in Maya Rudolph’s Malvina Monroe.
While many viewers would be right to see the parallels between the original film’s Queen Narissa, played by Susan Sarandon, and the Evil Queen, Malvina takes the connections even further. Not only does she fill the same role in the story, but she also happens to have her very own magic mirror, which is played by The Office‘s Oscar Nuñez.
Sleeping Beauty
While other fairy tales are certainly more prominent in the inspiration for Disenchanted, the film does contain several allusions to one of Disney’s oldest fairy tale stories, Sleeping Beauty. The plot of the movie may not hinge on certain elements relating to Princess Aurora’s story, but there are several impossible-to-miss references to this classic story at various points in the film.
Some of the best allusions to the tale of Sleeping Beauty in Disenchanted include the presence of three fairies, suspiciously clad in familiar hues of green, pink, and blue, being tasked with caring for the infant Sofia for much of the film, not unlike the fairies from Sleeping Beauty. The catchy duet between Giselle and Malvina Monroe, “Badder,” also contains several references to the 1959 animated film, with the appearance of a cursed loom and needle, as well as the mention of Maleficent herself, even dropping the subtitle to the character’s second spinoff film starring Angelina Jolie: “Mistress of Evil.”
Once Upon A Time
The plot of Disenchanted involves the chaos that follows a wayward wish made by Giselle that the real world becomes more like her fairy tale life back home in Andalasia. As a result, the suburban town of Monroeville becomes the fantasy kingdom of Monrolasia, ruled by the evil Queen Malvina Monroe. While this plot is entirely new for the film series, many viewers may find it to be quite similar to a certain other fairy tale-themed franchise.
The fairy tale curse that causes regular civilians to adopt the characteristics of fantasy characters is eerily reminiscent of the ABC series Once Upon A Time, which similarly followed a group of people from the real world who follow in the footsteps of well-known Disney characters after a curse befalls their town. While the similarity of plot is where the comparisons to Once Upon A TIme end, there is no denying that the series must have had some inspiration on the writing process of Disenchanted.
Beauty And The Beast
After Giselle makes her wish that turns the town of Monroeville into a fairy tale land known as Monrolasia, she discovers that nothing – not even the inanimate objects in her kitchen – is quite as it once was. Among the many changes that Giselle finds during her first morning in Monrolasia is another cheeky reference to a different classic Disney film, Beauty and the Beast.
The new world that Giselle has created seems to come equipped with sentient household objects, as every utensil in the Philips’ kitchen has come to life in the aftermath of the spell. This isn’t the only Beauty and the Beast reference in Disenchanted, however. In fact, in one of the film’s biggest musical numbers, the townspeople invite Giselle to “be our guest,” harkening back to one of the most memorable Disney songs of all time.
The Princess Bride
Disenchanted begins the fairy tale parodies immediately, beginning with its opening scene. The film starts out with Chip and his two children living in Andalasia, where, after reading them the story of Giselle once more, he decides to let them in on a little secret: that there is more that came after the happily ever after. The rest of the film consists of Pip’s retelling of Disenchanted‘s events, lulling his children to sleep.
The opening of Disenchanted is undeniably similar to another classic fairy tale parody, The Princess Bride. This beloved 1987 film begins in a very similar way, as a grandfather reads the story of the film’s events to his sick grandson. Many films have taken signals from the frame tale narrative of The Princess Bride, with Once Upon A Deadpool, the PG-13 rerelease of Deadpool 2, infamously poking fun at this method of storytelling.
Galavant
Though it may be a deep cut for some fans of composer Alan Menken, one of Disenchanted‘s best scenes features a surprising callback to the short-lived ABC musical fantasy series Galavant, on which Menken also worked for two seasons.
The musical showdown between Giselle and Malvina Monroe, “Badder,” follows both evil characters as they attempt to outdo the other when it comes to villainy. Their standoff is surprisingly reminiscent of a similar song in one of the final episodes of Galavant, wherein Queen Madalena and Princess Isabella each attempt to outclass the other through song. The reference may have been unintentional, but devoted fans of Alan Menken’s work will no doubt see the similarities between these two classic scenes from two wildly different projects.
