Encanto, directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush, stars Stephanie Beatriz, John Leguizamo, and Maluma, tells a magical family tale in Colombia. The detailed scenery, upbeat soundtrack, and heartfelt storyline is what makes Encanto one of Disney’s greatest film. The cultural references and bilingual dialogue displays the vibrant Latinx culture that Disney has recently begun to shed light on.

In Encanto, a family is blessed with magical powers after the tragic death of their grandfather. The powers of each family member ranges from super strength to super hearing. Each family member finds out their powers once they reach a certain age. In their magical house, a coming of age ceremony reveals the family’s powers. The day of Mirabel’s ceremony she isn’t so lucky to be given a magic power. Her whole life since that moment she has been living in the shadows of her other family members. Then when it’s time for her cousin’s ceremony, Maribel feels something is rather wrong with the family’s magic house. As she tries to figure out why her family’s magic is withering, a prophecy made by her banished uncle reveals the reason. Maribel makes it her mission to restore the Madrigal family magic and reunite them with Tío Bruno. Who we do NOT talk about.

It is no shocker knowing that Lin-Manuel-Miranda (creator of broadway musical Hamilton) helps create a vibrant soundtrack for this movie. Miranda demonstrates his brilliant writing on eight of Encanto’s forty-four song soundtracks. His most popular song from this movie We Don’t Talk About Bruno, has been charted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and has been featured in hundreds of TikToks. Many of the songs written for this movie have been in Spanish as well. Giving bilingual audiences the orgullo and joy of watching a comforting movie. The songs in Encanto are lively ballads that are just incredible works of art.

It is important to recognize the Latinx culture of Encanto. The story takes place in the Colombian mountains, which is quintessential to the portrayal of each individual character. Different depictions of the different people within the Colombian culture is a huge step that Disney made. One branch of the Madrigal family is actually Afro Latino. Encanto is one of, if not the only Disney movies to depict a Afro Latino or Latinx family. The skin color of these characters is a great example of Afro latino and Latinx representation in the media. The clothing and costume design is another incredible feature of this ethnic movie. Each character wears the tradition Colombian outfits and their vibrant colors. Male characters in the movie wear breathable shirts called guayaberas and Colombian panchos (or ruanas in Spanish). The women in the movies wear tradition ruffle blouses and skirts/dresses. Seeing one of the Latinx cultures represented in an accurate and fun way makes my little Mexican heart flutter with joy.

Scoring a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, this movie is enjoyed by many people and has managed to impress audience members. With an whopping $94.2 million made in the Box Office, according to Rottentomatoes.com, Encanto is the 15 top grossing movie of 2021. Encanto is truly a ground breaking film that proudly represents Latinx culture and provides viewers with an incredible soundtrack and story. This is the perfect movie to watch with your family and a bucket of popcorn!