Campfire Scripts: Encanto

Encanto (2021) welcomes us to a story with a villain who isn’t really a person but a good intended motive that leads to extreme dysfunction in the Madrigal Family. With a simple premise and snazzy songs, Encanto tells a heartwarming tale of reconnecting with one's roots and coming to terms with one's faults to welcome in a brighter future.

 Although the story is solid, upon re-watching the film, it was easy to note what elements could be added to the script to make for stronger character beats. I especially noted this with Isabella and Mirabel. Throughout the film, it’s obvious they both can’t stand each other. A classic sibling rivalry. However, when Mirabel goes to confront Isabella so they can hug and make for a better prophecy, Isa seems to dialogue dump every frustration she has for her little sister before growing a cactus and then breaking into a song that mends their relationship. To make for a stronger reconnection between the two sisters, subtle moments could have been added to show Isabella being slightly envious of Mirabel’s imperfection. This would have added a stronger foil between the two and then when they both come to an understanding through the song, the scene when they hug would leave a greater impact on the audience. By having both characters show they’re envy of one another while venting all their projections on each other would show more of the original relationship the two sisters had shared. This would give more emotion to the audience to latch onto and care for the two as they develop from hating each other to building a sweet sisterly bond and mend the cracks that filled the house from the original dysfunction. 

Additional dialogue could also help strengthen emotional scenes, especially between Abuela and Mirabel. This would add a stronger emotional impact toward the climax when Abuela understands her motivation to keep the family safe was actually hurting them and causing the cracks in Casita. This would make for a slow burn scene of them coming together and making up for the pain the past has caused both them and the family. I would have loved seeing Mirabel stand up for Bruno more toward the end by saying how much he loved the family because he left to protect them. Not because he hated them. This would give Abuela more of reason to see she has to change her mindset to correct the dysfunction caused while she was trying to protect them. Then when all is resolved at the end, it would make for a more satisfying resolution.

Overall, with these minor changes, I feel Encanto would have had an even stronger impact and I also hope they consider making a spin off animated Tv show so that the important side characters like Dolores and Camillo can be even more fleshed out. With such an interesting setting of the Encanto, it would be fun to see what other conflicts may arise to develop the character growth in the family further.