Shrek director tackles animation taboo in Netflix fairy tale Spellbound

LOS ANGELES – Animated films tackling parent separation and divorce are few and far between.

While live-action kids’ classics such as The Parent Trap (1998) and Mrs Doubtfire (1993) have used the concept as a launchpad for humorous antics, animation has tended to steer entirely clear of the issue.

“Isn’t that funny... you can kill off a parent in a movie like The Lion King or Bambi,” said American film-maker Vicky Jenson, best known for co-directing Shrek (2001).

“Disney mums are often dead – the only time anyone remarries is because the other spouse is dead. This topic of separation, of parents not being able to live together... it’s taboo.”

But in Jenson’s new film Spellbound, a princess’ parents have been transformed by a dastardly spell into literal monsters.

It is an allegorical device that forces young Ellian to try to “fix” her mother and father, and their broken family.

“We encountered some resistance when we were looking for someone to help bring the movie to the world, a partner to distribute the movie,” Jenson, 64, said.

“They all reacted the same way, like, ‘What a beautiful movie, what a great message.’ And then they ghosted us.”

Spellbound went through a number of different studios, including Paramount and Apple TV+, before ultimately landing on Netflix, which premiered it on Nov 22.

“I credit Netflix for stepping up bravely and partnering us on this,” said Jenson.

“In this environment, it does feel like stories that push the boundaries are more accessible on streaming. Theatres are kind of filled with superheroes right now... the big, safe bets.”

As the film starts, tenacious teen princess Ellian (voiced by Rachel Zegler) is desperately seeking a cure for the mysterious spell that has transformed her parents, Queen Ellsmere (Nicole Kidman) and King Solon (Javier Bardem).

To make matters worse, she must hide the whole mess from the oblivious citizens of Lumbria.

When the secret gets out and panic spreads throughout the kingdom, Ellian is forced on a dangerous quest to undo the curse.

But even if she succeeds, she soon learns that her family may never go back to the way it once was.

To make Ellian’s reaction to her – literally – monstrous parents believable and accurate, film-makers employed the consulting services of a family psychologist and therapist who specialise in divorce.

“Kids feel like it’s their responsibility to fix this. They don’t understand that something happened to their parents – they’re acting like monsters,” said Jenson.

The director, cast and crew drew on their own experiences, “because we all know our parents are monsters at one point – and as parents, we’re all monsters at one point”, she joked.

The end result is a thoroughly contemporary parable, set in a magical fairy-tale kingdom.

That has clear echoes of Jenson’s smash-hit directing debut Shrek, but with cause and effect reversed.

“Shrek was the modern take on fairy tales. This is a fairy-tale take on a modern story,” she said.

For Jenson and the film-makers – including legendary American composer Alan Menken of The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty And The Beast (1991) and countless more – it was important to bring this truth about family life to the screen.

Jenson said: “It is there for so many of us, but hadn’t been approached as a myth or as a new fairy tale.

“Now, a new fairy tale is out there for that experience that so many kids, so many parents, so many families need help through.” AFP