When you’re a kid, it’s not always easy to get along with your parents. Maybe they’re constantly telling you to clean your room. Or perhaps they won’t let you hang out with your friends when you want. Or they might even get on your case about your attitude.
Princess Ellian of Lumbria wishes that was the case with her parents. But King Solon and Queen Ellsmere are monsters.
No, like, they’re literally monsters.
Ellian isn’t sure how, but about a year ago, her parents were cursed. Since she hasn’t found a way to return them to normal yet, she and the palace servants have been keeping the beastly king and queen locked up, hiding them from the public and praying nobody finds out their secret.
Luckily, Ellian may not have the keep the charade up for much longer.
The Oracles of the Sun and Moon, the most powerful beings in Ellian’s world, have agreed to help the royal family—or at least to give them some advice.
According to them, the king and queen turned into beasts because they lost the light that guides them through life. So all they need to do is find a new source of light.
Luckily, the Lake of Light is just such a source. But ironically, it’s located deep within the Dark Forest of Eternal Darkness (so dark, they named it twice).
Ellian will have to guide her parents on their pathless, lightless journey as they discover a way through mountains, ford new streams and glide across deserts. You know, if the unstable cliffs, deadly rapids and quicksand don’t kill them first.
But Ellian is willing to do whatever it takes. Just so long as things go back to how they used to be.
[Note: Spoilers are contained in the following sections.]
Ellian and her parents learn that when we allow our hearts to be consumed by darkness (or dark thoughts), it changes who we are. In the case of Ellian’s parents, this is quite literally why they became monsters.
However, if we choose to “look for the light” (or a Lake of Light) then we can change our circumstances. A bad situation can become a good one just by having the right perspective or attitude. And this plays into the film’s bigger message:
That message is so interwoven into the plot and moral of the movie that I’m afraid I need to spoil it for you here: Spellbound explores what happens to families affected by divorce.
Divorce is certainly never a good thing (which I discuss further in Other Noteworthy Elements). And in fact, we see exactly how this revelation negatively affects Ellian.
Ellian learns that despite all of her efforts, things are never going to go back to how they used to be. Sure, she can help her parents become humans again, but her family is going to split up. Worse still, the decision is made rather selfishly. Ellian’s parents very much put their own desires before Ellian’s. They completely neglect to consider how their separation might affect their daughter. And the way they tell her is inconsiderate, leading Ellian on her own dark path.
However, the king and queen quickly recognize their mistakes and attempt to rectify the situation. They demonstrate to Ellian how much they love her. And they promise to put her and her feelings first going forward. They still break up; but by trying to prioritize Ellian, the royal couple makes the transition smoother for her.
But Ellian really is the true hero here. She decides that rather than let the darkness consume her, she’s going to look for the light in this bad situation. She’s going to focus on how much her parents love her rather than how sad and angry their separation makes her.
Throughout the film, Ellian’s positive attitude rubs off on others. Lumbria’s government officials are proud of the princess for handling her parents’ transformation so well. Despite feeling lonely and afraid, Ellian acts with maturity and bravery, never complaining about her lot in life.
If the name wasn’t enough of a hint, Spellbound has many magical components.
The Dark Forest of Eternal Darkness plays home to a mystical (and metaphorical) darkness. Negative emotions, such as sadness and anger, give this darkness power. Feed enough negativity into it and it’ll grow large enough to consume you, transforming your outward appearance to match the state of your heart. In other words, if you act like a monster, you’ll become a monster, just like Ellian’s parents.
But this darkness can be countered by a light in a similar manner: The more positive you are, the stronger it becomes. With enough love, for instance, the light can overcome the darkness, breaking its hold (and the curses the darkness causes).
There are a number of magical creatures, too. Most notable are Ellian’s parents. As monsters, they aren’t scary, per se, but very mischievous and naughty. Her dad acts somewhat like a giant dog, whereas her mom is bit more catlike.
Then there are the two Oracles. We’re told that these blue, blobby creatures are the most powerful beings in the world and that they had a hand in creating it. But instead of wands, they use a magical key fob to cast spells. Ellian and her pet, Flink (a purple, squirrel-like rat), use the fob to animate a number of ordinary objects on their journey.
Flink accidentally swaps bodies with Bolivar, one of Lumbria’s government officials, after a mishap with the fob.
Other magical creatures include many things from big, flying cat-birds to ride-sharing giant toads. We’re told that Ellian and her people are human, but they all have pointed ears.
The Oracles, both male, are likely romantically involved. They dance together in a couple of songs. They also live together, and we hear one Oracle reference the other’s mother as one might mention an in-law.
There are a couple of references to rear ends.
There are some perilous moments, but nobody is seriously injured. Quicksand nearly swallows a bunch of people. Ellian and her parents rescue a baby cat-bird from falling off a cliff. And the darkness that threatens to consume Ellian’s family can be a bit scary, swirling around them like a tornado.
Ellian and her parents travel through a tunnel where sound takes on physical form. Happy sounds act like bubbles. But angry sounds shoot around like lasers, zapping anyone they hit.
Soldiers use ropes, cages and metal muzzles to capture Ellian’s parents a couple of times. Their general wants to send the king and queen to a remote location where they can’t harm anyone. However, after learning the royals are regaining sentience, she rescinds this order and releases them.
In monster form, the king and queen swallow a few unlucky citizens, but they always spit them back out. The monsters also cause quite a bit of destruction to the palace in Lumbria.
Birds get turned into stone by magical berries, and Ellian accidentally breaks the head off one of these now-statues.
A character is forced to eat a bug lollipop.
None. That said, Ellian confesses that the situation with her parents (being monsters) sometimes makes her want to swear. A woman calls herself a “mother-loving national treasure.”
Adults toast with champagne.
Although this film tries to show how divorce can be handled amicably, it may feel trite to families who haven’t had that experience. A year later, Ellian essentially states that the only way her life is different is that now her parents live in different houses. And because she’s happy her parents aren’t monsters anymore, there’s no mention of any other discord that may have occurred during this life-changing transition.
Moreover, there is no mention of marriage counseling or trying to work things out. Ellian’s parents simply (though sadly) state that they no longer bring out the best in each other and that they fight too much. So they decide they shouldn’t be together anymore.
Elsewhere, Ellian and the palace staff lie about the king and queen becoming monsters. Flink is a bit of a kleptomaniac, causing much mischief.
There’s a joke about colonoscopies. Lumbria’s postmaster is covered in bird excrement, since he uses pigeons to send messages. A woman laments that she must design a monster-sized “pooper-scooper.” A character runs off to urinate after declaring he must “release liquid” from inside himself.
Spellbound turned out to be a bit of a letdown.
I’ll give the film credit where credit is due: There are genuinely funny moments. The animation is beautiful. And the music (since this is a musical) is catchy.
But the movie has a lot of problems for families.
First off, it’s the story about a family affected by divorce. And if you don’t know that little factoid going in, it’ll hit you like a ton of bricks.
Now, again, to give credit where credit is due: If a child in your family is being impacted by the divorce of his or her parents, then this film may have a few good messages. It tells us to look for the light even in the darkest of circumstances. And it encourages us to have a positive attitude—to be hopeful—even through difficult transitions. Those are very solid messages.
Spellbound also reminds children that divorce is not their fault. And even though their parents have made this decision, it doesn’t mean their parents don’t love them.
However, those messages are all predicated on separations that occur under the most amicable of terms, the most idealized breakup situation imaginable.
I think that any family impacted by an ugly, or even medium divorce will potentially find this film trite. As if everything will simply be OK if we have the right perspective. That’s often not true. Divorce is a complicated process that can often require counseling to help kids adjust. There is deep damage done, even under the “best” of circumstances.
I’m also bothered by how Ellian’s parents’ divorce is presented. Here, it’s simply stated that they’re tired of fighting all the time and that they wouldn’t be so unhappy if they weren’t together. There’s no attempt at reconciliation. And to me, it felt like the film was trying to normalize and simplify divorce in ways that just don’t translate to real life.
And unfortunately, these divorce-related concerns aren’t Spellbound’s only issues.
The Oracles that help Ellian and her parents, for all intents and purposes, are in a same-sex relationship. The magical elements in this film will likely be a bit iffy for Christian families. And there’s some off-putting toilet humor.
Taking all of that into account, I repeat what I said before: Spellbound turned out to be a letdown.
Emily studied film and writing when she was in college. And when she isn’t being way too competitive while playing board games, she enjoys food, sleep, and geeking out with her husband indulging in their “nerdoms,” which is the collective fan cultures of everything they love, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate and Lord of the Rings.
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