Read more about Ella at: Wikipedia Official Site: Miramax Ella Enchanted is a 2004 American fairy tale-comedy film loosely based on Gail Carson Levine's 1997 novel of the same name. The film stars Anne Hathaway as Ella and Hugh Dancy as Prince Charmont. It was released in North American on April 9, 2004 and in Britain on December 17, 2004. In the kingdom of Frell, baby Ella (Anne Hathaway) is given the "gift of obedience" by her fairy godmother, Lucinda (Vivica A. Fox). This turns out to be more of a curse, making Ella do anything she is told to do, no matter how terrible or physically impossible. Some years later, Ella's mother dies after instructing Ella to tell no one of the curse, not even her father. Eventually Ella's father (Patrick Bergin), in need of money, remarries a wealthy socialite. His greedy new wife, Dame Olga (Joanna Lumley), and her two spoiled daughters Hattie (Lucy Punch) and Olive (Jennifer Higham) treat Ella poorly. They eventually realize Ella's obedience to commands, and begin making her life miserable. Ella, now a young woman, happens to meet Prince Charmont (Hugh Dancy), the young, attractive, and very popular heir to the kingdom; they like each other, but Hattie and Olive decide to pursue "Char" themselves. Ella cannot bear to live under the obedience spell and Hattie's jealousy a moment longer, so she resolves to find Lucinda, the only one who can remove the spell. Mandy (Minnie Driver), the household fairy and the only other person who knows of the curse, introduces her boyfriend Benny to Ella; he is in the form of a book but can help Ella by showing things such as pictures of people in their current surroundings. During her journey, Ella encounters an elf named Slannen (Aidan McArdle), who wants to be a lawyer instead of an entertainer as the kingdom's laws now require. Slannen joins Ella on her quest, but they are captured by a group of ogre, who prepare to cook and eat them. They are rescued by Prince Charmont. He then accompanies her to a wedding in the land of giant, where Ella hopes to find Lucinda. As they make their way there, the prince and Ella begin to fall in love. They pass a plantation where giants are working as slaves, and Ella tries to open Char's eyes to the cruelty of the new laws oppressing elves and giants. There, Ella is forced to perform a rendition of Queen's "Somebody to Love". Char then suggests that Ella should come with him to his palace to visit the Hall of Records and track down Lucinda faster. At the palace, the sinister Sir Edgar (Cary Elwes) has Ella's "gift" called to his attention by his talking snake, Heston (voiced by Steve Coogan), who has been spying on the prince. When Edgar offers them Char's hand in marriage, Ella's stepsisters explain that she does everything she is told. Edgar knows that Prince Charmont intends to propose marriage to Ella, and he orders her to stab him to death then, and not to tell anyone of the plan. Sir Edgar also reveals that he murdered Prince Charmont's father. To prevent the murder of Char, Ella asks Slannen to tie her to a tree outside the city and to find the giants so they can help. Lucinda now appears before Ella, who asks her to undo the "gift" of obedience. Offended by the request, Lucinda refuses, saying that if Ella no longer wants the spell, she must remove it herself. To make matters worse, she unties Ella from the tree and gives her a fancy dress to attend the ball in. When Ella gets to the ball, Charmont almost immediately takes her to the Hall of Mirrors and asks her to marry him. Ella is about to stab him with the dagger Edgar provided, when she realizes how to free herself from the curse: looking into a mirror, she orders herself to no longer be obedient. This saves Prince Charmont from his uncle's treachery. But Edgar is watching the entire scene behind a one-way mirror, and before Ella can explain to Char why she tried to kill him, he orders the guards in, to lock her up and have her executed in a few days. |
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Ella