Encanto: We Actually Should Talk About Bruno
Encanto (2021)
Co-directed by Jared Bush, Byron Howard and Charise Castro Smith
Starring Stephanie Beatriz, María Cecilia Botero & John Leguizamo
“What’s that you say? Encanto features original songs written by Lin-Manuel Miranda?” OK, I’m onboard before I even sit down in the theater!
I was late to the Hamilton praise and haven’t seen the musical, but was able to enjoy the filmed version on Disney+. The whole production impressed me but Manuel-Miranda’s songs stood out in particular. His compositions on Moana (2016) fit perfectly with the story and aesthetic as well. My Lin admiration grew further when I got to hear the songs from another of his Broadway musicals, In the Heights, when it was released as a film in 2021. As if that wasn’t enough, Manuel-Miranda’s most-impressive feat to date was his first go at directing a motion picture with Tick, Tick…Boom! (one of my favorite streaming films of 2021).
So when I set out to watch Encanto, the 2021 Disney release featuring Manual-Miranda’s songs, I knew I’d like the film even if the characters were shallow and incomplete, the voice acting was subpar and the animation was lackluster.
Encanto’s animation is far from lackluster. It is bright and full of depth. Bursting with primary colors, much like Coco (2017), another Disney animation that takes place south of the US border. The faces of each of our characters exaggerate just enough to show old school animated flair, and, not relying on any hyper-realism, the animation accentuate’s each characters individuality. Each one is complete and they all play off our protagonist, Mirabel, perfectly. You see, she is different from each of her family members, and this makes her special but also not special. (Confused? Watch the film.)
The voice acting was exceptional as well. John Leguizamo, as Bruno, was my favorite. Stephanie Beatriz, as the voice of Mirabel, served as the perfect mixture of hope and anxiety. The rest of the cast is also great, especially María Cecilia Botero as Abuela Alma whose dogmatic view of the world is a poignant contrast to Mirabel’s.
Each of Manuel-Miranda’s songs comes at the right time and helps advance the storyline, elevating the film from “good” to “great.” My only criticism of Encanto is that the final act seems somewhat rushed. Extending this anxiety and tension into a more robust third act would have made the payoff much sweeter. But, at 1 hour 42 minutes, I’m assuming Disney erred on the side of brevity for younger attention-spans.
Encanto is one of three very good animated films Disney released in 2021 alongside Rya the Last Dragon and Luca. The only difference? Neither Rya or Luca had the songs. What a year for Lin-Manuel Miranda!
If Miranda’s film adaptation of In the Heights was a B-, and his directorial debut Tick, Tick…Boom! was an A+, then Encanto nestles in the middle with a B+.