Encanto
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | Release Date: November 24, 2021 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
75
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 41 Critic Reviews
Positive:
35
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The PlaylistDrew TaylorJan 3, 2022
In a movie as visually stunning as Encanto, it’s the depth of its empathy that might be its most miraculous feature. Read full review
100
The Associated PressMark KennedyNov 22, 2021
It’s only appropriate that Encanto — fueled by eight original songs by Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda — turns into that most special thing of all: A triumph in every category: art, songs and heart. Read full review
100
Original-CinKim HughesNov 22, 2021
Encanto is just so lovely to look at that its story, while well-told, is almost secondary. You honestly just want to crawl inside the screen, wear Mirabel’s swooshing skirts, pet those donkeys, sniff those flowers, and chow down on that grilled corn. Wonder and imagination are in abundant supply. Read full review
100
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonNov 16, 2021
Every character, even minor ones, is well thought out and cast; the eye-popping visual design is not only inspired and mesmerizing but also functional; and memorable songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda and others complement the story perfectly. Read full review
95
PolygonPetrana RadulovicNov 15, 2021
Encanto is a masterpiece that makes the Disney musical-with-a-splash-of-magic formula soar. Read full review
90
The New York TimesMaya PhillipsNov 23, 2021
The Madrigal family members belong even when they’re not conjuring roses or transforming the weather. And even with these fantastic feats of wizardry, the Madrigals, with all of their relatable family dynamics, are believably loving, funny and flawed. Read full review
90
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyNov 15, 2021
Disney’s Encanto is, well, enchanting. It’s tricky to make an animated film so infused with exuberant sweetness without it becoming cloying. But this whimsical dose of magic realism set amid the lush greenery of the Colombian mountains benefits as much from the purity of the storytelling as the stunning vibrancy of the visuals. Read full review
90
IGNAndrea TowersNov 15, 2021
Encanto is a vibrant, visual delight that’s just as magical as the family at its center. Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliNov 22, 2021
The film is notable for continuing to expand the corporation’s reach into different cultures while displaying a welcome maturation of animation beyond the conventional American standard into something that, although no less family-friendly, is thought-provoking and stimulating. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperNov 22, 2021
With crisp and assured direction from Byron Howard and Jared Bush (with lead screenwriter Charise Castro Smith co-directing), a bounty of catchy new songs by the ubiquitous treasure that is one Lin-Manuel Miranda and fantastic voice work from the ensemble cast, Encanto is a magical and warmhearted journey with lovely messaging about the importance of family, some genuinely funny set pieces and those stunning visuals that fill every corner of the screen. Read full review
85
Film ThreatAlan NgNov 30, 2021
The story and music shine. Maybe it is not an instant classic like The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, but it definitely will enrapture a new generation of Disney fans. Read full review
80
The TelegraphRobbie CollinDec 9, 2021
At a time when the corporation’s live-action output keeps doubling down on the franchise grind, here from just over the garden fence is a lesson in storytelling that feels at once elegantly classical and zingily fresh. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Simran HansNov 30, 2021
What’s interesting and unexpected is the film’s subtle acknowledgement of culturally specific generational trauma and displacement. Read full review
80
Time OutWhelan BarzeyNov 29, 2021
Encanto has a few nifty plot pivots and surprising reveals, but it’s the animation itself that steals the show. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshNov 23, 2021
It’s a simple but resonant tale, but Encanto is a charmed and charming film that just might offer a bit of healing too. Read full review
80
The IndependentClarisse LoughreyNov 22, 2021
Encanto bursts with colour and abstract flights of fantasy. Read full review
80
Total FilmKevin HarleyNov 17, 2021
Recasting studio formula in fresh, dazzling shapes and shades, Encanto is high-tier modern Disney. Read full review
80
Screen DailyTim GriersonNov 15, 2021
Underneath the percussive, buoyant tunes and the colourful, breezy animation is a story about understanding that people who seem better off than we are may be carrying private pain that they keep bottled up inside. Read full review
80
VarietyOwen GleibermanNov 15, 2021
Encanto is a lively, lovely, lushly enveloping digitally animated musical fairy tale. Read full review
80
TheWrapCarlos AguilarNov 15, 2021
Enchant it does, in ebbs and flows, mostly when relatable human ache peaks through the razzle-dazzle. Read full review
80
EmpireBen TravisNov 15, 2021
Vibrant visuals, a stack of stellar songs, and a story with real heart make for another Disney banger. Sixty films in, the Mouse House still has that magic. Read full review
75
ObserverRafael MotamayorDec 1, 2021
From its predictably gorgeous yet unimaginative visuals, to its familiar songs and predictable story, the film does feel rather safe despite being superficially groundbreaking for the studio. And yet, when the film dives into the specificity of its portrayal of Colombia or its themes which share similarities with the seminal novel One Hundred Years of Solitude, it becomes an exciting, nuanced, complex magical realist adventure that pushes the nearly 100-year-old studio forward to a new era. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comMonica CastilloNov 24, 2021
Similar to how Pixar’s Coco paid tribute to Mexican culture, Encanto holds many nods to its Colombian roots, from the use of flowers and animals specific to the regions to crafting songs that incorporated their respective countries’ musical palette. Read full review
75
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiNov 24, 2021
OK, it’s no Frozen — a Let It Go only comes around once every couple of ice ages — but it’s nonetheless a heartfelt and joyful take on a good old dysfunctional family. Read full review
75
Washington PostKristen Page-KirbyNov 22, 2021
It’s a creative, fresh take on a story that is much more complex than your standard fairy tale. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyNov 22, 2021
Surely it’s no coincidence that Encanto is set in the homeland of the literary master of magical realism, Gabriel García Márquez. That’s what Encanto is, magical realism brought to the screen by way of the Magic Kingdom. Read full review
75
CNNBrian LowryNov 19, 2021
Encanto compensates for the dearth of traditional conflict with a colorful world filled with powers and an abundance of music. Read full review
75
USA TodayBrian TruittNov 15, 2021
While the narrative doesn’t totally land, the voice cast is solid and the vibe is consistently joyous. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubCaroline SiedeNov 15, 2021
For all its compelling individual elements, Encanto doesn’t quite manage to weave them together into something greater than the sum of its parts—which is especially frustrating given that the idea of communal support is a driving ethos of the film. Read full review
70
SlashfilmJosh SpiegelNov 15, 2021
For films like Encanto to truly stand out, instead of being content with being good enough, they need to push storytelling limits as much as they push cultural ones. Read full review
70
Screen RantRachel LaBonteNov 15, 2021
Though it can't quite break out of the Disney mold, Encanto is greatly aided by a unique story, a delightful cast of characters, and a vital message. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve DavisNov 24, 2021
With its bold visual sense and fanciful storyline (credited to six writers, no less), Encanto feels like a companion piece to Coco, but it has nowhere near the same emotional heft as that far superior 2017 Oscar-winner. Read full review
67
IndieWireKristen LopezNov 15, 2021
Encanto feels like one of the Mouse House’s more emotionally complex animated features, even if its story ultimately tries too hard to wrap up that nuance in a very tidy bow. Read full review
63
LarsenOnFilmJosh LarsenFeb 15, 2022
Encanto takes on a complicated, mature topic—multigenerational family dysfunction—and dramatizes it in ways that are simultaneously literal and metaphorical, which is something only the best of Pixar usually manages to pull off. Here, the result is at once limited and meandering, underexplored and overstuffed. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineDerek SmithNov 15, 2021
Encanto doesn’t steer away from the inevitable happy ending one expects from most animated films geared toward children, but it subverts expectations by bringing humanity to even its most flawed characters. Read full review
60
The Irish TimesTara BradyNov 29, 2021
There are qualities to admire here even if it always feels like a movie manufactured by a committee. Read full review
60
Christian Science MonitorStephen HumphriesNov 23, 2021
The story lacks the imaginative surprises of the best fantasy tales. Encanto compensates with gentle humor – there’s something deeply hilarious about the indifferent expression of a capybara – and Indiana Jones-like action sequences. Read full review
60
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 15, 2021
There is so much to enjoy about Encanto — the songs, the gorgeous animation, the cultural traditions. All of which make the script’s serious shortcomings all the more surprising and disappointing. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 16, 2021
I found Encanto more aggravating than entertaining. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Aparita BhandariNov 15, 2021
Encanto ends up being overwrought rather than enchanting. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawNov 15, 2021
There are some nice moments and sweet showtunes, but Encanto feels like it is aspiring to exactly that sort of bland frictionless perfection that the film itselfis solemnly preaching against, with a contrived storyline which wants to have its metaphorical cake and eat it. Read full review
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