Mia Thermopolis is fifteen, lives in a converted firehouse with her artist mother, and is invisible at school. Her grandmother Clarisse, who she has never met, arrives from Europe and tells her over tea that her late father was the Crown Prince of Genovia and that Mia is the heir. The Princess Diaries was Anne Hathaway’s first film, and Julie Andrews’ first big role in years after losing her singing voice.
What Happens Before The Ball
Clarisse gives Mia princess lessons: posture, waving, eating soup. Paolo gives her a makeover that removes the glasses and the hair. Suddenly the popular boy Josh is interested, her best friend Lilly is furious, and Lilly’s brother Michael, who was always there, is overlooked. The beach party where Josh kisses her for the cameras is the disaster. The foot-popping kiss and the Genovian Independence Day ball are the recovery. Mia has to decide by the ball whether she accepts the crown.
Why It Still Works
Garry Marshall shot it like Pretty Woman for kids, which was the brief. Hector Elizondo as Joe the bodyguard gets every warm scene. The Mustang that Mia crashes into a cable car is real. The sequel, Royal Engagement, followed in 2004 and a third film has been talked about for twenty years.
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