#fam analysis

[phoenixlionme]

An underappreciated mother-daughter moment between Julieta and Mirabel

After Pepa informs Julieta of Mirabel being in Bruno's vision, Julieta looks worriedly at her youngest daughter. And Mirabel's response (and a very cute one honestly) is to immediately look away and drink her juice. Mirabel's whole demeanor screams, "Gotta turn away. Don't look at mama, I can't keep a straight face. How did this happen?" But getting serious, Julieta's surprised look to Mirabel also shows that the former think her talk with the latter earlier about Bruno didn't stick. Julieta also might be putting together that it means Mirabel broke into Bruno's room. Maybe Julieta feels like she may have accidentally pushed Mirabel to get more info on Bruno. And Mirabel can't even look in her mother's eyes, feeling small and lonelier because she wasn't given a chance to explain.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 35 - Camilo and Pepa

A clear (if only heavily implied) example of a loving mother and son relationship. Look at Camilo's behavior with her in contrast to Felix; with the latter, he is impish and likes to make light fun of his father but with the former, Camilo is nothing but soft and gentle. When Pepa is stressing over the magic potentially disappearing, Camilo's first instinct is to offer her tea and sweetly reassure her. He's a gentle mama's boy. As for Pepa, she has shown to be a doting mother, so I see her being nothin but doting to her eldest son and middle child. Unlike her husband, Pepa finds Camilo's shapeshifting habit endearing, especially since she knows that he would never maliciously abuse said powers despite his joking, playful personality. I also think that Camilo wouldn't use his shapeshifting to soothe his mother, thinking that changing into different people might stress her out even more; so he stays as himself to better calm her. And again for Pepa, she sees her son as the sweet, gentle boy who earnestly doesn't want the people he loves to be sad beneath his clowner personality he exudes the most.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 33 - Mirabel and Pepa

NOTE: I know. It's been a while again.

This is one of the more complicated relationships solely due to how little interaction they have and the ones they do aren't good ones (i.e., Pepa's brief anger over Mirabel taking her seat, Pepa evading Mirabel's questions on Bruno, Pepa telling Julieta about Mirabel in the prophecy); this being a result of the story not taking the time to have a single moment that showed the daily life of the Madrigals prior to Antonio's ceremony. However, all that stuff often have a section of the fandom wrongly and negatively assuming that Pepa hates Mirabel and/or they have a bad relationship. That's not true - going back to the examples I listed - yes Pepa was angry over the taking the seat but the next scene they had together has Pepa not angry about that anymore and apologizing for scaring Mirabel and was heard vocally screaming for Mirabel to forget the candle and come down to safety; both moments show her having both tenderness and protectiveness towards her youngest niece. For Mirabel, the former openly praises Pepa's powers, never making a comment of them being a burden or problem. Plus, I like to think that instead of typical jealousy, Pepa feels nothing but gratitude and respect for Mirabel for how much she took care of Antonio (many people theorize that Mirabel did alot of care for Antonio since they shared the same room), and might even feel bad because she thinks Mirabel should've been a kid; if true, Mirabel would instantly state that while sharing a room with a newborn was challenging, she would NEVER change it because of how much she loves Antonio. In a sense, while Pepa is closer to Isabela and Mirabel is closer to Bruno, these two love one another and Pepa (I like to believe) confides in Mirabel over her issues with Alma.

[phoenixlionme]

These two screenshot comparisons are VERY telling. Now, before I start, I want to make it clear: This is not me calling the Madrigals "evil" or anything like that, it's just an observation. Kind of a sad one but still a simple observation.

In the first shot, we see all of them listening to Alma's speech. All of staring up at the matriarch with attentiveness and reverence; at the same time, huddling together in closeness and vulnerability - Luisa's hand on Julieta's shoulder. Julieta and Camilo holding each other, Isabela and Dolore holding one another, and Agustin holding onto Dolores' shoulder. We see that they are tight knit and close family that have zero qualms about being affectionate with each other. But, then something happens...

Onto the second screenshot, their closeness doesn't change but their attention and attitudes shift. Why? They just witnessed Mirabel (whose ceremony failed) agreeing to help Antonio to his door. And they don't smile at Mirabel's sweet gesture even after shock dissipates. All of their reactions are either shocked (Camilo, Dolores, Agustin), concerned (Julieta), quiet understanding (Luisa), or quiet disapproval (Isabela, when asked about her reaction Jared Bush confirmed on Twitter that Isabela made that face because she thought Mirabel was going to mess up Antonio's night).

And given how Mirabel was positioned with Antonio, she most likely noticed the reactions of her family. And even though it's not said, I think it paints a clear picture of something even Mirabel most likely knows but doesn't say out loud: For all the talk about familial love, the Madrigals don't have the highest respect for Mirabel. I am NOT saying they don't love her, but they don't fully respect her.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 30 - Isabela and Bruno

Both are the golden child of their respective generations/sibling groups. Both always under the ever-demanding pressure of strict matriarch, Alma. And both, in their own ways, emotionally drifted away from their families, even having a strained relationship with one of their sisters. Despite their outwardly different demeanors, both uncle and niece have much in common. And I believe this is one of the reasons why Isabela was one of the few who spoke highly of him during WDTAB; he was one of the few who could truly understand the pressure she was under. On his end, Bruno deeply loves his niece, just as much as he does his other nieces and nephews. And I think Bruno would be one she would listen to with utmost reverence (possibly only seconded by Dolores and Mirabel). Bruno, like with all his nieces and nephews, loves Isabela with all his heart; I believe he would help give her advice on how to better cope with the trauma of being the "Golden Child". Like with Pepa, Bruno would encourage Isabela to explore her powers while Isabela would encourage Bruno to pursue his own personal passions (i.e., acting). While Bruno and Isabela are closer to Mirabel and Pepa, respectively, the uncle and niece have a quiet understanding of one another and are all about supporting each other in being their genuine selves.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 28 - Antonio and Bruno

This is my favorite moment between this uncle and nephew duo; admittedly, it's one of the very few scenes they have together, but I still stand by my point. Antonio offers his stuffed jaguar, made by Mirabell (his favorite relative), to Bruno (a man he's just met and only heard about through his family and town's bias opinion). Jared Bush as confirmed in a twitter post that Antonio considers Bruno his pal. And I can understand why - given his gift, Antonio was told by Bruno's rats not only of the future teller's true personality but also the lengths the latter went to, to protect Mirabel, who Antonio greatly loves, cherishes, and admires. Of course, he would think of Bruno as his pal. And while it wasn't seen in the movie (which should've been), Bruno definitely returned Antonio's jaguar and genuinely thanked his young nephew for the help. And they would develop a tight bond because they are both shy but helpful guys who have an affinity towards animals more than people, and would do anything to help Mirabel, the person in the family who helped them the most (not hating on the Madrigals but the way Mirabel helped them was more beneficial). I can totally imagine Antonio cheerfully dragging Bruno along to play with him and his animals and Bruno happily agreeing since he loves being an uncle in general. I can also see Bruno trying to give good advice to Antonio that it's okay to prefer animals to people, a similar convo like the one Mirabel and Antonio had before his gift ceremony. In conclusion, these are PHENOMENAL PALS FOR LIFE.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 25 - Mirabel and Felix

Not much is now about this uncle-niece duo but I think one scene in particular sheds light on their relationship: Their talk right before the WDTAB song - When Mirabel is curious about Bruno and his gift, Felix comes in (dramatically) to tell her, even explaining to Pepa that it's best for Mirabel to know. In that short moment, Felix listens to and honestly gives his youngest advice the answer she's seeking (even if said answer is vague and not entirely accurate). But, we see that Felix is genuinely taking Mirabel's concerns seriously; that shows how much he respects and loves Mirabel. Then, when the house is collapsing, Felix can be heard shouting for Mirabel to get out and he's then shown looking for her when she goes missing; both times indicating that Felix has a strong, paternal protective side for his niece. On the other hand, Mirabel has nothing but respect and love for her uncle; if you were to ask her the best description of him, she would say without hesitation, "The definition of cool uncle!" And I also think she and Felix (with Agustin) formed their own special "non gift" trio (as seen in a deleted scene), mainly because they wanted to help Mirabel not feel bad about not having a gift.

[phoenixlionme]

Encanto: Madrigal Family Relationship Analysis Part 32

NOTE: I know. It's been a while.

One of the most complex relationships in the movie. In fact, the gifs I chose perfectly encapsulates their relationship, or at least, at the start. Luisa is seen proudly using her superstrength while Alma looks onto her grandchildren in quiet supervision. Luisa respects Alma but is also extremely terrified of disappointing her strict grandmother; in turn, Alma does genuinely love Luisa but had a habit of overworking Luisa to better help and secure their home. This had to a relationship of one asking and expecting too much from someone and the overworked one never feeling entirely comfortable with expressing their stress or negative feelings. And even with Alma's growth, I believe Luisa still has a habit of not being entirely open with her grandmother which leaves the elderly woman feeling confused on how to get a more open relationship while also feeling guilty for making Luisa feel nervous over being honest with her. In summary, it's complicated. And I also wouldn't be surprised if Luisa held some resentment for always putting so much pressure on her with seemingly little thanks. It'll take time and effort, but they would gradually grow to have a more affectionate and open bond.