Descendants

I wanna make it very clear that this is a Disney Channel original movie. It is not exactly held to the same level as other movies. I watched this film keeping in mind that it is made for TV and targeted towards children. I will say that I liked the casting, I thought the actors fit their individual roles. Also, the musical numbers and singing is very good mostly. There are a couple of the teenage actors that haven't quite gotten where they need to be as far as singing goes, but Kristen Chenoweth was of course incredible. How could you star in one of the biggest Broadway hits ever and not be superb at singing. So I really enjoyed her and most of the singing. I also liked the character Mal, and I liked Ben too, and their connection. They had great chemistry. The plot is very very predictable, you can for sure predict what is gonna happen next. Of course that is a thing with Disney Channel, so just know that. I think this film is pretty good for a child audience. 7/10 for Descendants.

Hallmark movies: bad. Reimaginings of classic Disney properties: bad. Yet mixing those two wrongs together somehow makes a right. Descendants is better, smarter, more original, more entertaining, and thematically deeper than nearly every live-action Disney remake (still stan hard for Branagh's Cinderella).

Don't be fooled by the premise; Descendants is not a nostalgic romp through classic Disney, nor is it a gritty reinterpretation of the source material a la last year's Maleficent. It has much more in common with High School Musical, Camp Rock, and Teen Beach Movie. These film franchises are so stylistically similar that they may as well be considered a single series with Descendants as the next in line (pun intended.) It is a series Disney is likely going to milk until it stops being profitable, so you might as well enjoy it until then. These films are shallow, cheesy, and unintelligent, but they're also so harmless and fun that there's no point in hating them. The target audience is clearly preteens, but there is plenty of enjoyment for adults and older teenagers due to three main factors:

1. The films don't take themselves too seriously.

2. The musical numbers are catchy and memorable.

3. The actors seem to be having fun which makes it easy for the viewer to have fun.

Here's how Descendants stacks up against its predecessors:

1. The moral of the film is "do what makes you happy and be with the people who make you happy even if it's not what others expect from you." It is no coincidence that High School Musical, Camp Rock, and Teen Beach Movie have that message in common. Descendants somehow manages to be even more rushed and less subtle in conveying it. While the film is lighthearted as a whole, it takes breaks to be serious and enforce its moral which detracts from the experience.

2. The very first song, "Rotten to the Core" is a blend of dubstep and poor attempts to be edgy. It is every bit as cringe-worthy as it sounds. The later songs are significantly better with "Did I Mention" as a highlight, but I'd still choose the Teen Beach Movie soundtrack over this one in a heartbeat.

3. To be blunt, there is no chemistry between the actors whatsoever. Dove Cameron's individual performance as Maleficent's daughter, Mal is somewhat captivating, but everyone else seems to be struggling to click with their characters.

I could go on about the predictability of the plot, the awkwardness of the dialogue, or the costumes which look like bad cosplay, but honestly, anyone who doesn't expect all that from a film like this is simply unobservant.

If High School Musical is your guilty pleasure, Descendants probably will be too even though it slips a little from the better aspects of its predecessors.

Wow, what a great movie!! So, High School Musical is my favorite Disney original musicals. But this is in 3rd place. The concept and story is so cool and I love the chemistry between all the actors. Dove Cameron is so great in this and you really believe in her character as Maleficent's daughter. The songs are great and they are so fun and they are so catchy! I love this movie and I am excited for the second one.

After the promotion this Disney Original Movie got, I had to go on great lengths to watch it.

The movie reminded me a lot of the 90's Disney Originals and held a familiar sensation which I will attribute it to HalloweenTown. The notions were childish and simple but totally in tune with the Disney Originals tradition which can be seen when Magic and Fantasy is involved.

The movie from the perspective of an adult or an overly mature teen might miss the point. Yes, this movie is not great but it managed to convince us that the silliness of the Golden Age of Disney Animation was not forgotten. On the contrary somewhere the Disney villains settled down and had kids. As a 90's kid I have to admit that I feel somewhat satisfied.

The plot is simple and the musical parts were not half bad but will pass with difficulty in the D.O.M. Hall of Fame as High School musical and HalloweenTown did. I believe that Disney could pull off a great series with this material which would have been perhaps hilarious but as a movie it's something less than Cinderella 1997 of Rodgers and Hammerstein but more of the last attempts to follow the last decade's magic/ghost/zombie and vampire trade.

Therefore, if you think about watching it beware. It may seem great and nostalgic but absurd on several points. In my opinion the plot at some points had great thoughts, badly put together but that's just my opinion. Young children and teens will probably like it but their parents will be a tad disappointed. This is an attempt to lure the young generation back to Disney's animation and live action traditions but parents and young adults alike will be emotionally conflicted.