January 14, 2008

Hidden Disney in 'Enchanted'

Disney's 'Enchanted' swept the box-office over last Thanksgiving weekend making it one of top earners for a Disney live action movie. As of January 2008, the movie has earned a domestic gross of over $121mil and over $258mil worldwide.

Did you know that numerous references to Disney's past and future works are included in the film? A lot of scenes, actions and dialogue were purposely included by the filmmakers to be specific references/tributes to classic Disney films.

Here's the list that I picked up from Empire Magazine Online:


Cartoon intro

* Like most Disney animations of yore (anything before about 1960), Enchanted starts with the opening of a storybook. The hall the book is in is inspired by Evind Eryle's artwork for Sleeping Beauty.

* The ogre captured by Prince Edward wears a loincloth made from scraps of the dresses of Disney princesses. It's made of the costumes of Snow White, Belle (Beauty And The Beast), Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. He also wears Ariel's (The Little Mermaid) shell bra as earrings.

* Edward dances with his sidekick Nathaniel in the same way that Prince Philip danced with his father in Sleeping Beauty.

* When the troll is catapulted into the next kingdom, his scream is Goofy's.

* The rose in a bell jar from Beauty and the Beast can be seen in Giselle's tree house.

* Giselle and Edward ride into the sunset in the same way as Snow White and Prince Charming at the end of Snow White And The Seven Dwarves.


The Queen

* The Queen disguises herself as an old hag to trick Giselle, just as the wicked Queen did in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

* The Queen attempts to kill Giselle with a poisoned apple, just as the Queen does in Snow White And The Seven Dwarves.

* During the film's climax The Queen turns into a purple dragon, just as Maleficent did in Sleeping Beauty.


The Lawyer

* The last name of the divorcing couple that Robert (Patrick Dempsey) is working for is Banks, in reference to the bickering husband and wife from Mary Poppins.

* Sam, Robert Philip's assistant, is played by Jodi Benson, who voiced Ariel in The Little Mermaid. She is also named Sam, after Prince Philip's trusty steed in Sleeping Beauty.

* A muzak version of the The Little Mermaid song 'Part of Your World' plays in the office while Giselle looks at the fish tank.

* Robert works for the law firm Churchill, Harline and Smith. These are the surnames of the songwriters of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves: Frank Churchill, Leigh Harline and Paul J. Smith.

* A pregnant mum in Robert's apartment building is played by Judy Kuhn, the voice of Pocahontas.


Giselle

* Giselle arrives for her wedding in a carriage reminiscent of the pumpkin carriage used by Cinderella.

* During Giselle's performance of Happy Working Song, which is written to directly mimic 'Whistle While You Work' from Snow White, the following references occur:

* Birds make Giselle's dress into an apron, as birds put on Cinderella's apron in Cinderella.

* Giselle's reflection appears in bubbles as Cinderella's do in Cinderella.

* Animals wash the dishes as they do in Snow White.

* The ending mimics the endings of 'Under The Sea' from The Little Mermaid and 'Be Our Guest' from Beauty and the Beast.

* Giselle makes a dress out of curtains, just as the mice help Cinderella make a dress out of household items in Cinderella.

New York

* In Times Square, a woman with a bag of seed can be seen in homage to the bird woman in Mary Poppins. She also appears later in the movie feeding birds in Central Park.

* The bus driver who confronts Edward has hair styled like Mickey Mouse ears.

* Billboards can be seen for the Broadway versions of Tarzan and Beauty and the Beast.

* The restaurant, The Bella Notte, is named after the song in Lady and the Tramp that is sung while the dogs eat at an Italian restaurant.


Central Park

* Rapunzel is being performed in the park when Giselle dances past. Rapunzel is an upcoming Disney animation. The square trees in the production are reminiscent of Eyvind Earle's designs for Beauty and the Beast.

* Giselle and Robert take a boat ride in a scene framed in a way reminiscent of Kiss The Girl from The Little Mermaid.

* A group of old men dance in the same kicky way as the chimney sweeps in Mary Poppins.

* Giselle runs up the hill in a shot that is almost identical to a shot of Belle running up a hill in Beauty and the Beast, which is itself a reference to The Sound of Music.

The TV

* Prince Nathaniel (James Marsden) refers to the TV as 'Magic Mirror' in direct reference to Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

* The soap opera shown on the TV stars Paige O'Hara who voiced Belle in Beauty and the Beast. Her character is called Angela after Angela Lansbury who voiced Mrs Potts in the same movie. She's having an affair with Ogden, named for David Ogden Stiers who voiced Cogsworth. The male soap star is named Jerry after Jerry Orbach who voiced Lumiere. The soap is scored with music from Beauty and the Beast and is set up to look like the bandaging scene from the movie.

* The TV newswoman is called Mary Ilene Caselotti. This is a combination of Mary Costa, Ilene Woods and Adriana Caselotti, who voiced Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Snow White respectively.


The Ball

* The song 'So Close' is based on the title song from Beauty and the Beast.

* Giselle and Robert's eyes lock in the same way as Cinderella and Charming's in Cinderella.

* During the dance sequence there is a sweeping overhead shot that directly copies one from the ballroom scene in Beauty and the Beast.

* Robert and Giselle dance in the stars, which is a tribute to Snow White and Cinderella.

* The sequence where Giselle eats the poisoned apple directly mimics the editing of the same sequence in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

* Giselle can only be woken by true love's kiss, as in Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, and must happen before midnight, as in Cinderella.

The Climax

* Giselle pulls a sword from the floor, as in The Sword in the Stone.

* Giselle loses her glass slipper, as in Cinderella.

* The glass slipper fits Nancy (Idina Menzel) perfectly, just as it did Cinderella.

* The battle on the tower that takes place in a thunderstorm takes inspiration from Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.

* Giselle and Robert enjoy true love's kiss, as in every Disney animation ever.

7 comments:

Nurul Farhah said...

WOW. you really go into detail! (: nanged.

Anonymous said...

You forgot that the old guys in the park with the "kicky steps" were the same actors who played those chimney sweeps in Mary Poppins! :)

Anonymous said...

Only one of the old men was a chimney sweep. Also, Eyvind Earle was the designer on Sleeping Beauty. Beauty and the Beast was released in 1991, when Eyvind Earle was 75.

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Hello man great blog about movies ..

maria said...

Also once she wakes with loves true kiss the two women who comment on the ball being better than last year are Mary Costa and Ilene Woods the women who voiced Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella

maria said...

Also the women after the kiss to wake Giselle who comment on how the ball is better than last year are Ilene Woods and Mary Costa the voices of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty

Unknown said...

ALSO when Edward is watching the TV he comes across the film Fun and Fancy Free!