Enchanted

This new Disney movie follows the beautiful princess Giselle (Amy Adams of Junebug) as she is banished by an evil queen (Susan Sarandon) from her magical, musical, animated land -- and finds herself in the gritty reality of the streets of present-day Manhattan. Shocked by this strange new environment that doesn't operate on a "happily ever after" basis, Giselle is now adrift in a chaotic world badly in need of enchantment. Patrick Dempsey, Timothy Spall and James Marsden round out the strong cast.

“An unexpectedly delightful revisionist fairy tale from, of all places, Walt Disney Pictures, doesn’t radically rewrite every bummer cliché about girls of all ages and their dreams. But for a satisfying stretch, the film works its magic largely by sending up, at times with a wink, at times with a hard nudge, some of the very stereotypes that have long been this company’s profitable stock in trade.

“It’s a gently heretical redo, characterized by a script that falters only in the clinch, some agile if overly timid direction and a strong cast led by a superb Amy Adams. As Giselle, an otherworldly princess who falls to Earth (worse yet, Times Square), Ms. Adams proves to be an irresistibly watchable screen presence and a felicitous physical comedian, with a gestural performance and an emotional register that alternately bring to mind the madcap genius of Carole Lombard and Lucille Ball. Ms. Adams doesn’t just bring her cartoonish character to life: she fills Giselle’s pale cheeks with blood and feeling, turning a hazardously cute gimmick into a recognizable, very appealing human confusion of emotion and crinoline.” (Manohla Dargis, New York Times)