The Princess Diaries (2001)
"Mia Thermopolis has just found out that she is the heir apparent to the throne of Genovia. With her friends Lilly and Michael Moscovitz in tow, she tries to navigate through the rest of her sixteenth year."
- IMDB
After watching this movie for 20 years, I can honestly say it still makes me laugh so much. Pretty much every scene with Anne Hathaway, Julie Andrews, or Hector Elizondo, I find myself laughing hard. Some of my favorite scenes include the dinner scene and all the princess lessons. There are also lines here and there that get me every time too.
Another one of my favorite scenes is the dance scene with Clarisse & Joe. I know Andrews & Elizondo were the ones that came up with the idea of their character's relationship. A brilliant idea if you ask me because that scene was very heartwarming. I think both the characters and actors work well together and I was very happy to see this be part of the story line in the sequel.
If you recall my recent Sound of Music review, I mentioned how I obsessively watched that film with my grandma. So naturally, as we were Julie Andrews fans, an occasional viewing of the Princess Diaries films were common as well. The story of this regular girl learning her true identity as a princess and going through the transformation to live up to that is fun. But as I've grown older I've begun to appreciate some of the life lesson that came with Mia's coming of age story. Her struggles to live up to fierce expectations is a very normal thing young people always face. And Lily's struggle to make change in the world as a young nobody also made an impact as Mia learns that while being a princess is a hard job, being in a position of power means having the influence to make great change.
To end, I gotta fangirl about two of my favorite actresses of all time. Firstly, Anne Hathaway. This was her first big movie and real on-screen job. And wow! What a career she's had since. And to think her legacy started here where she played Julie Andrews' on-screen granddaughter. What a way to start off your career in Hollywood!
And the Queen herself. Julie Andrews' life lead to this movie. She spent her life displaying grace, poise, elegance, and beauty. She defines "Queen" in every sense. We should all feel blessed to share a planet with her. Anyways, while she's made a career as a Musical Theater Goddess, it's so easy to forget that she thrives in comedies. Princess diaries is no different. She did, indeed, give a hilarious performance.
My Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆
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