Spellbound Review: A Gorgeous Battle Between Light & Darkness

RATING - ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 3/5*

Spellbound Review Movie Talkies:

Vicky Jenson's latest animated musical fantasy, Spellbound, may not be spellbinding, but it definitely keeps all the promises intact. This is a similar formula to what we see in Pixar and Disney movies, and since it's a fictional world of monsters, you get involved in no time. Being a human, it's difficult to like monsters, but with a gorgeous animated picture, it's kind of lovely. Spellbound brings that family drama magic into a fictional world, and the emotional bond between a teenage girl and her parents does the rest. You may find it a very predictable affair, and yes, it is that, yet I'd say it's definitely watchable for its gorgeous attempt at love vs. hate, explained with metaphors of light and darkness, respectively.

The story of Spellbound is set in Lumbria, a world of magic, and we have a young girl named Ellian (Rachel Zegler), who is turning 15. However, she must break a spell that has split her kingdom in two and transformed her parents into monsters. If failed to do so, she must take the honor of "queen," despite being too young. Her tension increases further as the commander of the king's army arrests two monsters, unbeknownst to their real identity, and commands the army to send these two into exile. Ellian must follow beacons to bring her parents to their real selves again, but it's not easy because they don't know her and each other. Will Ellian be able to do that? 

The basic storyline is extremely predictable, and you can easily guess what's coming in the next minute. That's a little boring, but the screenplay by Lauren Hynek, Elizabeth Martin, and Julia Miranda doesn't let you go out of their world. From magical wands to cute-looking animals and monsters, Spellbound is bound to grab your attention for 90 minutes or so. It could have done better with the conflicts and the climax, but let it be. It wasn't supposed to be this grand, but it is, so that's pretty enough for kids and adults. However, there is nothing for intellectual audiences, who get to see that kind of stuff in Pixar movies. So keep your expectations limited. Ellian's struggle to make her parents believe that she is their daughter will touch you, and at the same time, the story tells us about the relationship between husband and wife. Who knows, you might have a similar tale to tell from your own house.

The voice cast was pretty good with the dialogues and verbal expressions. Rachel Zegler is Ellian, and what a lovely she got! John Lithgow, Jenifer Lewis, Tituss Burgess, Nathan Lane, Javier Bardem, Nicole Kidman, and others were fine with their own work. The film is low on comedy, which makes it a pretty ordinary affair. Kids love comedies, and this film doesn't add anything noticeable for them. Yet, one or two punchlines do have organic laugh-out-loud moments—nothing that you haven't seen before.

Spellbound is visually beautiful despite some issues with sound design. It's a musical alright, but a couple of songs have disengaged beginnings that make those musical numbers look like standup poems. The visual effects were okay, but since I saw it on a small screen, I can't really exaggerate the experience. We have some good framework and editing skills here that keep you hooked for one and a half hours. Director Vicky Jenson had a simple vision to present a story, and he succeeds in doing so. Some of you may think that he could have added some unique and innovative scenes since the film had that potential too, but alas... he didn't seem interested in that. Rather, he was focused on keeping it simple and beautiful. Nothing great, though, but surely a one-time flick for all ages. But again I must remind all filmmakers and audiences that these kinds of subjects are getting repetitive nowadays, so one should bring something different. Spellbound (2024) isn't something really different and great like Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945), but I am sure even Hitchcock would have loved to see it with his kids at home today.