The tag line on the cover of this DVD is “For Every Girl Who Has Never Dreamed Of Becoming A Princess”. This family film from the Disney studios, is an honest old fashioned kind of family film, that no parent would worry about there children watching.
Anne Hathaway plays Mia Thermopolis, an average fifteen year old girl, who is uncomfortable with who she is and just wishes to fade into the background and be invisible. She is gawky and a geek, and lives with her artist mum (Caroline Goodall) in San Francisco. She attends an upper class private school who’s fees have been paid by her long departed father. Her grandmother has never paid any interest in Mia’s life and suddenly turns up in San Francisco from Europe, two months after the death of her father and announces to Mia that she is in fact the Crown Princess to the country of Genovia. To a girl who wishes to be invisible, the last thing she wants to be is a princess and scrutinised by all who know her, the media and the world.
Julie Andrews returns to the silver screen as Mia’s grandmother, Queen Clarisse Rinaldi. She is accompanied by an entourage and together they take Mia in hand to deliver her “Princess” lessons. Mia must decide in three weeks as to whether she will reject the title of Crown Princess or accept it at a ball on her sixteenth birthday. Hector Elizondo delivers some of the funniest scenes as Joe, Queen Clarisse’s head of security and personal bodyguard to Mia. The role is very reminiscent of the role he played as Barney the Hotel Manager in Pretty Woman.
The film is pretty much a rites of passage film as we follow Mia through her shock at finding out: her heritage; the reaction of the media when they find out; why the people at school who suddenly want to know her; what her best friend thinks who feels excluded; etc. etc.

THE EXTRAS

“A New Princess Featurette”
“Deleted Scenes With Introductions from Director Garry Marshall” - You can choose whether you watch these deleted scenes individually or all of them in a row. I must admit I found the pausing between each scene quite irritating, and Garry Marshall was a bit too much for my tastes, otherwise it was the normal stuff.
“Audio Commentaries”
Myra Music Video :”Miracles Happen”
Krystal Harris Music Video “Supergirl”

CONCLUSION

This is a surprisingly good family film, with excellent performances from Anne Hathaway, Julie Andrews, Hector Elizondo and the rest of the cast. Despite its predictability it is quite entertaining and an allround nice movie. For a family film category I give it a four out of five.