Jillian Bell a delightful elixir of life in silly, sweet, even progressive "Godmothered"

Godmothered (2020)

Disney’s “Godmothered” is a modern Christmastime-set fairy tale and a fish-out-of-water comedy à la “Enchanted," "Elf," and "Noelle," one of Disney+'s first features. Director Sharon Maguire (2016’s “Bridget Jones’s Baby”) and writers Kari Granlund (2019’s “Lady and the Tramp”) and Melissa Stack (2014’s “The Other Woman”) put their own charming spin on the fractured fairy tale and the magical-being-dropped-into-the-real-world formula with a blend of the sweet and silly with a welcome acknowledgment that happily-ever-afters have by now evolved (but more on that later). “Godmothered” aims to please and gets most (if not all) of its magic from a daffy, ebullient lead turn by Jillian Bell as a fairy-godmother hopeful with a can-do attitude. 

In the magical land of Motherland, where godmothers live and learn all about godmothering, Eleanor Fay Bloomingbottom (Bell) is the most eager of the fairy godmothers in training. She’s always the first to raise her hand in class as taught by-the-book headmistress Moira (Jane Curtain), but Eleanor will only ever be a true fairy godmother if she goes on assignment. When she finds a letter from a little girl named Mackenzie in Boston, Eleanor sets out to a portal into the real world to help Mackenzie find her happily-ever-after. Making it to Boston, Eleanor comes to discover that Mackenzie (Isla Fisher) is now a single mother living with her two daughters, Jane (Jillian Shea Spaeder) and Mia (Willa Skye), and her adult sister Paula (Mary Elizabeth Ellis), and working for a flailing TV network. To make the fairy godmother’s mission even more difficult, conflict arises when Moira plans on disenchanting Eleanor and closing the portals back to the Motherland in two days’ time.

Son of a butterscotch is Jillian Bell just a delightful elixir of life. Absolutely adorable and fully committed to playing Eleanor with pure sincerity, Bell brings an infectious joy to every situation as she brings a lightness into the lives of Mackenzie, her sister, and her two daughters. Her polite “no, thank you” reaction to a sandwich seemingly glued to a plate is priceless, and she can somehow make a breaking-wind joke cute. Isla Fisher is appealing as Mackenzie in what could have been the drab straight woman to Bell, but her arc of finding joy in her life after a great loss is warmly felt and gently touching. MADtv alumna Stephnie Weir also adds oddball laughs as a self-tanning anchor at Mackenzie’s workplace (while her male partner awkwardly smiles). Lastly, any movie is working in its favor when casting June Squibb as a FaceTime-savvy fairy-godmother DJ (even if her voice-over narration jarringly comes and goes).

“Godmothered” doesn’t quite reach the inspired heights of the 2007 instant classic “Enchanted,” but it is more than just a pleasantly easy watch. Eleanor’s snow-saucer hijinks and a house-cleaning raccoon named Gary are mainly for the kids, but enough of the film makes one smile so frequently that his or her face will hurt. “The Sound of Music” nicely figures into the proceedings, and Mackenzie’s eldest daughter Jane’s choir stage performance of Andra Day’s “Rise Up” during the Boston holiday parade is a stirring climactic moment. Then, on the right side of feel-good without being cloying, there is a progressive make-over of what a happily-ever-after can be. Despite what the traditional fairy tales have taught, love can come from more than just ending up with a handsome prince. Jillian Bell’s pep, heart, and spark are almost expected, but the fact that “Godmothered” is unsuspectingly wise and even emotionally honest makes it more special than a throwaway distraction for the kids to watch on the family iPad.

Grade: B

Disney released “Godmothered” (113 min.) on Disney+ on December 4, 2020.