One reason I was excited to watch the movie was because I knew the music was written by none other than Lin-Manuel Miranda. I'm a big fan of his work, specifically in the musical Hamilton and the music for Disney's Moana. That's one of the reasons he's so talented: he can write historically accurate raps but also beautiful lyrics to a magical Disney film. Moana is actually my favorite movie of all time and I've seen it over 50 times, and it's all because of the music. So of course I was eager to see Encanto, thinking the songs would be just as good as those in Moana.
I have to say I was a little bit caught off guard by the opening number. My first thought was: "This doesn't sound like Moana... it sounds like Hamilton!" The songs are full of rapping, rhyming, and rhythm. Not to mention beat-drops! This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it doesn't match the type of music Disney movies usually consist of. The upbeat tunes sounded more like pop or hip hop, which are both very present in the musical Hamilton. All I could think about is how much the songs remind me of Hamilton songs because of the rapping and rhyming sequence. The songs were good, they just didn't match the energy of the movie. They didn't have the same magical glow, if you know what I mean. It's almost as if Encanto would be better as a broadway musical!
Also, the musical numbers put on by the characters seemed so forced. They didn't ease into them, they suddenly just started singing (or rapping!) At some points the song didn't even add to the plot, it was just forced in there.
Speaking of the plot, I was not a fan of the ending. Without a primary villain present in the movie, there was no one to defeat or overcome. It feels like there is a void that the ending didn't satisfy.
Well, I'd say I enjoyed the movie. Despite my opinions on the out-of-place music, it was overall a masterpiece of a film. I will definitely be listening to the soundtrack a few more times to see if my opinions change at all.
