I have been reviewing all the Disney Channel Original Movies one by one. It has been a wonderful trip down memory lane looking back at a lot of people’s childhood. There are still many movies to go through but something that caught my attention was just how popular the Descendants franchise is. I saw that the newest installment broke streaming records for Disney Plus becoming their most streamed movie over a premiere 3-day weekend. I guess it’s time to see what all the fuss is about.
Descendants
The first film follows four teenagers who are sons and daughters of classic Disney Villians. Along with other villains and kids they live on the Isle of the Lost. An island that the Disney Villians have been banished to by Belle and the Beast. Their son Ben who will soon become king decides the children on the Island deserve a chance to prove they are not their parents. Mal(daughter of Maleficent), Evie( daughter of Evil Queen), Carlos(son of Cruella), and Jay(son of Jafar) are invited to attend Auradon Prep. A school for all the kids that aren’t villains. Secretly though, the villains demand their kids steal Fairy Godmother’s wand so that they can rule the world. Will the teenagers do what is expected of them? Or will they choose their own path?
I honestly did not know what to expect from this movie. First of all, it’s a musical. You know this right away when the first song plays 5 seconds after the movie starts. It wasn’t a very good song and all I could think about was that I was in trouble and I had to watch 3 more of these. I did notice though that the choreography was pretty good. The director and choreographer is Kenny Ortega. Famous for directing Hocus Pocus and the High School Musical franchise.
After finding this out, I expected a cheesy light-hearted pop song extravaganza. And for the most part, yeah that is what we get. But for something I fully expected to be a chore to sit through, it really isn’t bad at all. The songs get better, the characters are likable and the idea is creative.
Some jokes don’t work. There are plenty of corny moments for sure but this is a movie intended for pre-teens and it does a lot of stuff well. The costumes are unique and not every single thing is a cliche. The main child villain Mal starts to develop a relationship with the King to be Ben. It isn’t surprising at all but what is surprising is just how charming their relationship is. Ben as a Prince is likable and means well while Mal has to decide who she wants to be and they are well-written.
The best part of the movie is the message. There aren’t many Disney movies or shows that straight up tell you to disobey your parents. Children out there need to understand wrong and wrong and they do not need to become their parents. We all need to grow and become ourselves. Overall it’s not great but it’s far from awful.
BEST SONG = IF ONLY
Descendants 2
A sequel is supposed to be in theory, bigger, better, louder. Descendants 2 is exactly that and the best movie in the franchise. The set pieces are more grand, the songs are better and the story is better.
This time around Mal and Ben are a couple and so much pressure is being put on Mal to be more like royalty. Not believing in herself, she returns to the Isle and discovers that Uma(daughter of Ursula) has taken over and she has plans to bring down the barrier.
The other villain kids along with Ben go to bring back Mal and seeing more of the Isle is a plus. We didn’t get to see too much in the first movie and where the villains come from is so much more interesting visually. The songs and choreography are better in big thanks to China Anne McClain who plays Uma. This girl should come out with an album because her voice is incredible. She is super talented.
Overall, not the greatest movie once again but a big improvement on the first one. The relationships are improved upon. Characters are given more to do. This one was a fun time and I was finding myself more invested and impressed. The closing song and dance are done on a boat in water and it truly is phenomenal.
BEST SONG = WHAT’S MY NAME?
Descendants 3
After a much-improved sequel, we take a small step backward in Descendants 3. The plot is that Mal and her friends take on their biggest threat yet while deciding if the barrier should be destroyed forever. There isn’t too much to this one besides it was supposed to be a finale.
For a finale, this movie has the weakest villain in the franchise. In the first movie, there is a side plot where a bully is mad that Mal supposedly stole Ben from her. They bring this back in the third installment and make said bully the villain. So instead of picking a huge Disney villain to be your final villain, you pick a jealous teenage girl. It is pretty anticlimactic.
The songs are fine but not very memorable. The ending gives a nice send-off to our main characters. It’s funny how I still feel this one was better than the first one even though after watching it, I remember it less. This movie also premiered after the tragic death of Cameron Boyce who played Carlos. At the end of the movie they play a tribute for him and you could truly tell how talented he was and how much everyone cared about him.
BEST SONG = Break This Down
Descendants: The Rise of Red
Now we get to the newest installment. The one that broke records for Disney Plus. A sequel yet also a spinoff as it only contains two returning characters. Fairy Godmother and Uma. It makes sense with how popular the franchise is that they would keep making more. Was it any good though?
Uma is now the principal of Auradon Prep and decides to invite other kingdoms to attend. When the Queen of Hearts is invited she decides to quickly take over and execute Cinderella. The Queen of Hearts’ daughter Red along with Chloe(Cinderella’s daughter) travel back in time to find out what made the queen so evil and change history.
This one sadly feels less focused on the story and more focused on “what is charting right now that will please the kids.” The writing and choreography aren’t as impressive as in the past. Kenny Ortega did not return to direct this one and it shows.
There are a few positives though. First of all, Brandy and Paolo Montalban return to play Cinderella and Pince Charming. They originally played the duo in 1997’s made-for-television movie Cinderella. This was a pleasant surprise and leaned on the nostalgia. The other thing working for the movie is the plot. Time travel is a lot of fun and gives us a chance to see a lot of cool things.
The main problem is they don’t do anything cool with the time travel. We see certain Disney characters but don’t spend enough time with them to care. When the action seems to pick up the movie just kind of ends. The climax or lack of just kind of ends out of nowhere. It feels rushed. The movie as a whole besides some good performances is a bit underwhelming.
BEST SONG = GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY
Overall
The Descendants franchise truly surprised me. When something is so popular sometimes it is fun for people to hate on it but I can’t do that here. The movies are creative with some good songs and some nice set pieces. You can tell that the people behind these cared and tried to make something memorable for young kids and pre-teens. Of course, there is still going to be merchandise sold and a profit to make but that comes with the property. There isn’t too much for adults in these movies but adults wouldn’t be clawing their eyes out either. A lot of people who are my age now grew up with High School Musical and this is just that for a newer generation. No harm in that.
