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IMDbPro

Ella Enchanted

  • 20042004
  • PGPG
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
68K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,409
564
Minnie Driver, Vivica A. Fox, Anne Hathaway, Heidi Klum, Jim Carter, Hugh Dancy, Parminder Nagra, and Aidan McArdle in Ella Enchanted (2004)
CT #1 HV Pre
Play trailer1:05
3 Videos
99+ Photos
ComedyFamilyFantasy
Ella is under a spell to be constantly obedient, a fact she must hide from her new stepfamily in order to protect the prince of the land, her friend for whom she's falling.Ella is under a spell to be constantly obedient, a fact she must hide from her new stepfamily in order to protect the prince of the land, her friend for whom she's falling.Ella is under a spell to be constantly obedient, a fact she must hide from her new stepfamily in order to protect the prince of the land, her friend for whom she's falling.
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
68K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,409
564
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Tommy O'Haver
    • Writers
      • Laurie Craig(screenplay)
      • Karen McCullah(screenplay)
      • Kirsten Smith(screenplay)
    • Stars
      • Anne Hathaway
      • Hugh Dancy
      • Cary Elwes
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Tommy O'Haver
    • Writers
      • Laurie Craig(screenplay)
      • Karen McCullah(screenplay)
      • Kirsten Smith(screenplay)
    • Stars
      • Anne Hathaway
      • Hugh Dancy
      • Cary Elwes
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 283User reviews
    • 83Critic reviews
    • 53Metascore
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos3

    Ella Enchanted
    Trailer 1:05
    Ella Enchanted
    Ella Enchanted
    Trailer 1:06
    Ella Enchanted
    Ella Enchanted
    Trailer 2:32
    Ella Enchanted

    Photos184

    Anne Hathaway in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Minnie Driver in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Vivica A. Fox and Anne Hathaway in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway, Hugh Dancy, and Aidan McArdle in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway, Jimi Mistry, and Aidan McArdle in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Anne Hathaway, Jim Carter, and Aidan McArdle in Ella Enchanted (2004)
    Vivica A. Fox in Ella Enchanted (2004)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Anne Hathaway
    Anne Hathaway
    • Ella
    Hugh Dancy
    Hugh Dancy
    • Char
    Cary Elwes
    Cary Elwes
    • Edgar
    Joanna Lumley
    Joanna Lumley
    • Dame Olga
    Aidan McArdle
    Aidan McArdle
    • Slannen
    • (as Aidan Mcardle)
    Lucy Punch
    Lucy Punch
    • Hattie
    Jennifer Higham
    Jennifer Higham
    • Olive
    Minnie Driver
    Minnie Driver
    • Mandy
    Eric Idle
    Eric Idle
    • Narrator
    Steve Coogan
    Steve Coogan
    • Heston
    • (voice)
    Jimi Mistry
    Jimi Mistry
    • Benny
    Vivica A. Fox
    Vivica A. Fox
    • Lucinda
    Parminder Nagra
    Parminder Nagra
    • Areida
    Jim Carter
    Jim Carter
    • Nish
    Patrick Bergin
    Patrick Bergin
    • Sir Peter
    Donna Dent
    • Ella's Mother
    Ankita Malkan
    • Young Areida
    Sally-Ann Tingle
    • Mean Little Girl
    • Director
      • Tommy O'Haver
    • Writers
      • Laurie Craig(screenplay)
      • Karen McCullah(screenplay)
      • Kirsten Smith(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The first song Ella sings, "Somebody to Love" was not the original song choice. Tommy O'Haver had discovered that Anne Hathaway didn't have very good chemistry with their first choice, a more classical "fairy-tale" song. O'Haver and Hathaway were relaxing when she starting singing along and dancing to the song that was currently playing: Queen's "Somebody to Love". They both decided that "this was it".
    • Goofs
      Ella's enchantment fails on at least two occasions: when Prince Charmont says "Allow me" and she continues to refuse his help, and when Slannen says "Forget it" and she continues to discuss his legal aspirations. The earlier "bite me" scene established that Ella's enchantment takes colloquial "commands" literally, thus she should have allowed Char to help her, and literally forgotten about Slannen's peeves.
    • Quotes

      Char: Kiss me...

      [Ella leans in]

      Char: That wasn't an order.

      Ella: I know.

      [kisses him]

    • Crazy credits
      The cityscape of the Miramax logo dissolves into the cityscape of the medieval city in the movie.
    • Connections
      Featured in Ella Enchanted: A Red Carpet Premiere Special (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      Strange Magic
      Written by Jeff Lynne

      Performed by Darren Hayes

      Arranged and Orchestrated by James Seymour Brett (as James Brett)

      Produced by James Seymour Brett (as James Brett)

      Darren Hayes appears courtesy of JWM Pty Ltd and Columbia Records

    User reviews283

    Review
    Top review
    Doesn't quite enchant
    Given the recent success of fantasy movies, it was probably inevitable that "Ella Enchanted" would get its turn on the silver screen. Like "Harry Potter," Gail Carson Levine's delightful re-imagining of Cinderella has been popular with both readers and critics, and contains plenty of imagination and engaging characters. One only wishes it had translated to screen better.

    Levine comes up with a clever explanation for the reason why Ella (played in the film by Anne Hathaway) must slave for her horrid step-family: at her cradle, a well-meaning but rather dim fairy godmother (Vivica A. Fox) granted her the "gift" of obedience, forcing the poor girl to comply with any direct order regardless of how ridiculous or dangerous. Refusing to be resigned to her lot, Ella sets out to return the unwanted gift--and en route, find romance with Prince Charmont ("Char" for short, played by Hugh Dancy).

    Unfortunately, it is here that the similarities to the source material end. In the film, Ella comes off as far less resourceful and clever as she does in the book, and mostly seems to wind up getting into embarrassing or awkward situations through her enforced compliance. Which is a shame, because Hathaway is a vibrant and talented actress who could have easily imbued the character with more spunk had she been called on to do so. It doesn't help that the screenwriters have seen fit to muddy Ella's quest with a standard-issue villain in the form of Char's Claudius-esquire uncle (Cary Elwes, channeling the spirit of Prince Humperdink and accompanied by a very unconvincing CGI snake), and some business about the oppression of the kingdom's non-humans.

    Like "Shrek," "Ella Enchanted" takes the fractured fairy-tale route, throwing in sly references and anachronisms at every opportunity. Some of these work (I liked the man-powered escalator in the medieval mall), but more than a few fall flat (mostly Char's squealing fan club, who are perhaps too accurate in their annoying behavior). Hathaway and Dancy play it more or less straight, but everyone else camps it up grandly, especially Elwes. Unfortunately, both Fox and Minnie Driver as Ella's more sensible godmother feel miscast, and Parminder Nagra (the talented star of "Bend it Like Beckham") is virtually wasted as Ella's foreign-born friend.

    "Ella Enchanted" is nice enough to sit through--Hathaway's presence keeps things going, and there are enough nice visuals. But in a genre that in the past few years has seen "Harry Potter," "Lord of the Rings," and "Shrek"--with "A Series of Unfortunate Events" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" among the films on the horizon--it takes more than nice to distinguish oneself in the field.
    helpful•53
    38
    • divaclv
    • Dec 12, 2004

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 9, 2004 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • Ireland
      • United Kingdom
    • Official sites
      • Miramax
      • Official Facebook
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Câu Chuyện Thần Tiên
    • Filming locations
      • Ardmore Studios, Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland
    • Production companies
      • Miramax
      • Jane Startz Productions
      • Blessington Film Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $31,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $22,918,387
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $6,100,000
      • Apr 11, 2004
    • Gross worldwide
      • $27,388,767
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

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