Alice Oscura – Featured Writer
Have you ever heard the term “an heir and a spare?” Ever since the establishment of monarchies there has been a lot of rivalry and bloodshed due to who is going to inherit the throne when the current king of queen passes on. Back in the day due to damp environment and poor sanitation it was extremely easy for people to get sick and die. Not to mention the large number of maternity and infant-related deaths, just ask King Henry VIII. The question of succession has even caused crisis for monarchs when there is no surviving heir it becomes who is next in line and it usually turns into a fiasco after that. We have even had a king abdicating his throne for the sake of the woman he loved…Edward VII.
Heavy is the head that wears the crown but, have we asked ourselves what it’s like for the second born to live in the shadow of their sibling. Deceased Princess Margaret has been quoted as saying that she felt like window dressing at times and it has been highly publicized that she had an extremely difficult time being a second born royal or the spare.
Well in this film Disney gives the second-born royals the opportunity to become the protectors of the kingdoms and the world. I had a fan girl moment when I saw pictures of actual royals on their wall of inductees at one point in the movie. Because it is Disney the cheese factor is high, and the acting isn’t all that great. There’s even some really bad CGI thrown in when some butterflies help to buffer the fall of a princess…yes you heard me right. But all in all, it’s a very entertaining movie especially for the teeny boppers.
The concept of creating a purpose for those who have been swallowed up in the hype of their coronated sibling is pretty neat. Where the movie may fall flat in some areas, it does leave an excellent opening to become another Disney series.
Here, Sam (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) is the second born royal to the Kingdom of Illyria and she is against the idea of a monarchy. She rebels constantly, much to the embarrassment of the Queen Regent, her mother Catherine (Élodie Yung) and soon to be crowned sister Eleanor (Ashley Liao). She is eventually recruited for the summer holidays by The Secret Society of Second-Born Royals when her powers are revealed and immediately starts the training program. Her training is cut short when a dark secret from her family’s past is revealed and threatens to destroy everything that the monarchy stands for and derail her sister’s upcoming coronation ceremony. Sam and her friends must do all that they can using their new superpowers to save the lives of all fellow royals.
If you are looking for great opportunity to bond with the kiddies look no further. Grab some popcorn and candy and sit back to enjoy some cute fun with a little dash of family drama thrown in on the side.
Alice’s Score: 6 out of 10
For my review of Disney’s The One and Only Ivan you can click here. And for more family friendly film reviews you can like and follow Redmangoreviews on Facebook here.
Dark Alice has an old soul and a curious mind. I believe that anyone can be a hero and that the good guys should always win! I dislike cruelty to animals and think that they have far superior qualities to humans. My motto is there is no future without the past. I also have a weird penchant for Paranormal TV shows even though the slightest sound makes me jump.
I enjoy writing reviews and throwing in fun facts to pique the readers’ curiosity. My ultimate goal in life would be to become a published writer one day. You can find me as Dark Alice Reviews on Facebook, my Instagram is alice_oscura and my Twitter handle is @lise_veliz2. For more on me you can click here.