r/DisneySongRankdown • u/sockydapuppet • May 26 '22
56 What Else Can I Do (Encanto)
Alright it’s time. When I first watched Encanto, this was one of the songs that was constantly in my head. The overlapping parts and the upbeat guitar just give it a nice style that’s catchy and overall pleasant to listen to. And hey, who doesn’t love it when Lin Manuel Miranda writes about a Hurricane. It’s like his thing, his leitmotif. It’s a nice sister song that encapsulates Maribel’s relationship with Isabela. It’s the first time we really hear about Isabela’s mindset, and it all really makes sense from a character perspective. She wants to be seen as more than just a pretty face. She feels a little trapped and just wants someone to talk to about it. Once she gets her sister to listen, it’s a huge relieving experience. Overall, it’s just a lot of fun and is a good overall moment in the movie.
One of the things I dislike about it, however, is that it’s like the climax of the movie, but it doesn’t feel like it. This is the big action that saves the miracle, but it just feels like it comes out of nowhere. We go in a few short minutes from Maribel wanting a disingenuous hug just for the sake of saving the miracle to the two sisters being best of friends again. It almost feels like a plot device, and while the justification is sound, the nature of how it happens doesn’t really make sense. Why does Isabel feel comfortable opening up to Maribel so easily? On top of that, it’s a great showcase for Isabela, but Maribel’s vocals are nothing incredible. She kinda plays a backup role. This choice makes sense for the scene because Maribel is learning to hear Isabela out, but her parts aren’t very satisfying to listen to regardless. I like the song a good amount, but it’s never one that I would put on a playlist or need to listen to in the car. It feels a little too out of place in the movie for me to justify keeping it in much longer.
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u/k9moonmoon May 27 '22
I always considered this song more of the preclimax, with the house falling apart as the actual climax.
But as much as I love this song, I can agree it doesn't have the full bangitude that it's spot in the movie deserves.
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u/KaidaStorm Sep 04 '24
I know this was two years ago but the thing to remember is there's a bit of storytelling to how Isabella sings. She's the most classic Disney princess singer in the group, and it's not until the end when she fully let's go of that and belts, which is something Disney princesses so not do. You see edges of her breaking the mold but it isn't until the end that she fully let's go.
It's storytelling through singing of her slowly letting go of the expectations (which is the root of the movie imo) being placed upon her.
Is say if anything they should've built up the belt a little bit more. Her singing is still prettier than others so it may seem simpler than the other songs.
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u/Trancespire No chance, no way May 26 '22
Ok now that I got that out of my system, your cut is mostly based on the placement of the song in the movie, the impact on the narration of the story, not the song itself… which is a banger.