Which Disney references have we missed? Tell us at the foot of this article
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.”
SCREEN MAGIC: THE FILMS THAT MADE DISNEY
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
The first feature-length animation from the US was dubbed “Disney’s folly” by
industry insiders who were convinced it would fail. They were forced to eat
their words: the film was briefly the highest-grossing picture to date (the
crown was taken the next year by Gone With the Wind).
Fantasia (1940)
A collection of interpretations of popular pieces of classical music, Fantasia
was initially a box-office flop but is now regarded as one of Disney’s most
inventive releases. The sorcerer was apparently secretly based on Walt
himself.
The Jungle Book (1967)
Techniques used in 101 Dalmations were refined in this, the last film
personally overseen by Walt Disney himself. The success of The Jungle Book
is credited with keeping animation alive at Disney after the death of the
company’s founder.
The Lion King (1994)
The original pitch for this massively successful franchise was “Bambi in
Africa meets Hamlet”. The writer, Irene Mecchi, abbreviated it to “Bamlet”.
Its success transcended the cinema and video release and it ended up as a
Broadway musical sensation.
High School Musical (2006)
This made-for-TV movie spawned a sequel (another one is in the works) and
became a tween phenomenon. Clean-cut kids dance and sing; stars such as Zac
Efron and Ashley Tisdale cut their teeth as the leads.
Enchanted opens on Fri Dec 14, 2007
Which Disney references have we missed? Tell us below
Robert's secratery Sam is the voice of Ariel from The Little Mermaid
Sasha, Bellingham,
hi :)
you know that sence when she is in the divorse office and she is gazing in the fish tank, listen carefully and you wil hear the song from The Little Mermaid, 'Part of your world'
jess , Adelaide, Australia
hey Lara from Washington, that number I believe is in referance to Beauty and the Beast.
Elizabeth , Pasadena, usa
When Edward is watching TV in the hotel room, changing channels, there's a song from Dumbo on TV as well. You don't see it on TV, because the camera is on Edward, but you can hear it.
Kristi, Lombard, IL
Is the candelabra person a reference to Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast? Okay, I get all the Little Mermaid references in the office scene when Giselle's looking at the fish, but what's with her spitting the fish out??
Laura, Columbia, SC
Okay, this is driving me nuts: "That's How You Know" number, Giselle and Robert are lying in the grass as if on a picnic. A woman with a candelabra on her head runs up to them, does a little dance move, and waves her arms. This seems to be a reference to another Disney film, but what??
Lara, Washington, DC
This is a fantastic film that is great for all the kids. In our modern society where we are constantly readin about bad things such a light hearted and morally clean film is very much welcome. I was so engrossed in the film that and watching the childrens reactions I didn't have time to notice all the likenesses so will watch again to see them.
Cel, Manchester, England
To the two below its a KIDS MOVIE! Get over it.
hghg, London,
Yeh, it is a crap. One more well done, nothing. Not every romance is the same, actually is a very different. And one romance can be masterpiece the other total disaster (artistic) And the every 5 min "enthusiastic" ads, won't change the fact that the movie is total flap. Know the old truth (as human race), people know better.
franek, phoenix,
Oh, dear. Yet another cruddy, cheesy, un-imaginative disney film. Call me when they develop a movie that stops bringing animals, fantasy characters, etc. into the "real world". They already made Elf...now this? And there are way too many films that personify animals to count. Over the Hedge, Bee Movie, and Ice Age are only a few.
Anonymous, NY,
We loved it. It has a magical innocence about it. My 8 year old daughter was a picture to watch, as she sat engrosed on christ mass eve. My husband and I also lovedit. We took it in the spirit it was intended....light hearted entertainment.
ctunb, london, england
The way Giselle moons over the "sculpture" of her dream prince is similar to how Ariel mooned over Prince Eric's statue.
And in the ballroom scene, there is a part where the camera comes from behind the chandelier and closes in on Giselle on Robert in the same way one of the shots in the Beauty and the Beast ballroom scene was done. Also, Robert's outfit resembles the Beast's outfit (all the other men were wearing a different kind of costume).
Melyssa, Metro Manila, Philippines
It was enjoyable, sure. But I couldn't excape the conclusion that Disney's discomfort with gay culture hobbled the movie.
By the way, Prince Edward's blushing reaction to the leather queen when he was knocking on doors? What Disney movie is that from, then?
'How Does She Know?' was camp - reminiscent of strait-laced Young Conservatives letting their hair down, David Cameron organising the Notting Hill carnival, etc - but it fell disappointingly short of being fabulous. Watching the routine struck a bit of a sour note with me; it was like seeing something amazing out of the side of my eye but never being able to capture it.
Sam, Cardiff,
The song and dance scene in the park is a HUGE reenactment of "Kiss the Girl" from the LIttle Mermaid. At the beginning, they're in the boat and in the background you can see the lagoon entrance. The Jamaican band is reminiscent of Sebastain conducting the reeds, wind, etc, and the acrobats and dancers throughout are human versions of the fish and animals. This was by far my favorite reference to a previous film.
Leelee, Lincoln, NE
Here's another Disney reference. The music playing in the background of the scene where Giselle is watching the fish in the tank in the lawyers office reception (watched by bemused looking receptionist) is "Under the Sea" from The Little Mermaid. Not content with that, the receptionist in the law firm is played by Jodi Benson - the actress / singer who voiced Ariel in The Little Mermaid.
I thought Enchanted was delightful from beginning to end.
Jeanette Abel, Maidstone, Kent
i'm happy to admit i dont normally like disney films but this one managed to hit the mark with me.
if you watch the end sequence where Giselle, Morgan and Robert dance through the rooms. watch Roberts dance in particular, mirroring a certain dance by Dick Van Dyke.
Roger, Ipswich,
i found this film incredibly disturbing.
the intelligent male lawyer has his little girl learing karate and reading about the most important women in 20th century history, even comparing his sassy buisness minded girlfriend to one of them. Then this infantile naive caricature of femininity comes along, tidys up their house, makes them breakfast every morning, and redecorates the little girls bed room with pink fluff and fairy wings. the girl stops reading about intelligent important women, and starts reading fairy tales instead.
lawyer falls in love with princess, the little girl stops doing karate, and the sassy buinesswoman girlfriend leaves her new york life behind to jump into the cartoon to live giselles old life, talking to the animals and being saved by her prince.
Trying to palm this off as 'ironic' would only work if this film was made for adults, but its not. Its made for impressionable young girls.
poppy, dundee,
In the attourney's office, not only is the assistant who voice ariel, but the music playing in the background when Giselle is looking at the fishes is the theme tune from the Little Mermaid.
Anon, London,
The actress, Jodi Benson, who plays the attorney's assistant, Sam, voiced Ariel in "The Little Mermaid". Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn, who also play small roles in the film, voiced Belle in "Beauty and the Beast " and the singing voice of Pocahontas in "Pocahontas", respectively.
Rick Schram, Wilmette, IL
I saw this movie the day it was released in the US, and loved it! I caught most of the references you made--but there are other that are great. Giselle wears 'glass slippers' to the King and Queen ball!.(King and Queen, how more Disney!) The evil Queen turns into a dragon and Giselle must save HER prince, rather than the other way around.
This movie was just so much fun!
Donna M. Kimball, Monson, Ma, USA
When Edward tunes into the soap opera, the opening phrase of Alan Menken's "Beauty and the Beast" can be heard.
Cliff Galiher, Half Moon Bay, CA