The Princess Diaries

Ah, the good ol' heavy glasses and frizzy hair--Hollywood's hackneyed, telltale token of a plain girl due to have her life transformed by a makeover. Every generation of American girls gets a version of this fairy tale thrust upon them, and this year's model is Disney's The Princess Diaries, the story of a private school outcast who discovers she's heir to the throne of an obscure European monarchy. But this isn't your grandma's glass slipper flick. Our heroine (Anne Hathaway) is a brainy, affably wry San Francisco teenager who's none too sure she even wants the crown. While she does acquiesce to the "Pygmalion" treatment from her queen grandmum (the oh-so-apropos Julie Andrews)--leading to her becoming her school's newest generically pretty "it" girl and a local media darling--she's just not sure how to cope. The formula story arc suffers from transparently lazy screenwriting, but the movie's warm, bright and romantic elements outnumber its annoying shortcomings, and the two leads are winsome enough to carry it through its rough patches. Recommended, overall, especially at the sell-through price. (R. Blackwelder)[DVD Review--August 10, 2004--Buena Vista, 2 discs, 115 min., G, $29.99--Featuring both widescreen and full screen versions, this double-disc special edition of director Garry Marshall's 2001 family comedy includes a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, audio commentaries on the widescreen version (one by Marshall, and “The Ultimate Tea Party” commentary by costars Julie Andrews and Anne Hathaway while they enjoy an authentic English high tea), the 24-minute “A New Princess” behind-the-scenes featurette including cast reminiscences about celebrating on-set birthdays and a Halloween pumpkin contest, eight deleted scenes with intros by Marshall (18 min.), and the music videos “Miracles Happen” by Myra and “Supergirl” by Krystal Harris. All of these are available on the earlier DVD release of The Princess Diaries. What's new here is a “Livin' Like a Princess” historical background featurette on the duties of an actual princess, outtakes and bloopers, a sneak peek featurette on The Princess Diaries 2 sequel (and a free movie ticket), and DVD-ROM features including “Make Your Own Tiara” and “Makeover Magic.” Bottom line: released, like so many new "special editions" are these days, to pump up interest in the sequel, this is recommended only for those who don't have an earlier version.]