Penelope is true fantasy. It asks the audience to believe that men would not want to do Christina Ricci just because she has a pig nose. I mean, come on, you're going to dump that curvy little body? It's not even ugly, it's cute. But that's the suspension of disbelief.
Movie Review: Penelope
Penelope (Christina Ricci)'s family was cursed that their daughters would be born with a pig's nose to teach them a lesson. The family had all boys until Penelope. Now she lives in seclusion, auditioning suitors who might break her curse, but freak out when they see the nose.
It's a fairy tale, totally heightened. It's filled with eccentric characters, visual set pieces and extreme actions. It is set in the modern world so they play with our reality in the realm of this fantasy.
First, they explain why plastic surgery is not an option. They deal with the issue of a modern day media reporting on a pig nosed girl. When she finally gets out into the world, it's cute how she doesn't know how to deal with money or other simple outdoor activities. Oh, there are plenty of pig puns also. They have to be sensitive about bacon, the game you play on babies' toes and of course the newspaper articles.
Everyone plays their role broadly. There's the sniveling rich brat, the frantic mom, the oblivious dad and the doe-eyed heroine. That's part of the fairy tale world. The cool chick she meets on the outside world and the romantic lead may be a little more realistic but they're still fitting in the grand scheme of this.
Penelope is a perfectly cute movie. It's funny in a smiling kind of way, if not a laugh out loud kind. It's got a good heart and a good moral. Everyone involved is appealing. Except for the fact that it's not really going to open in major theaters, it could be a real movie.
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