Penelope (2006)

I love the fantastic and surreal. The kind of movies that are magical and romantic. I especially love modern retakes of fairy tale idea.

"Penelope" jumps into mind immediately. Not only does it star one of my favorite actresses, Christina Ricci, but also my new favorite male actor, James McAvoy. I fell in love with McAvoy after the movie and again in "Wanted".

The base of the movie is absurd but it's all right with me. Ready?Penelope is a young aristocrat that was born with a pig nose.

Still there? Good.

The story goes that her ancestors had stopped the romance between a servant and of the aristocrats son. The son goes on to marry another of his peer. The servant girl was heartbroken and committed suicide. The mother of the servant was so furious she laid a curse upon the family. A curse for any future young girls of the family to be born with a pig nose.The curse went unheeded for several generations since only sons were borne in the family. Until now.

The only way to break the curse is when the young heiress will be loved by "one of her own".

Cursed with a pig nose, Penelope's family forces her to hide herself until she can find someone who can break the curse. When she becomes of age to get married, her family hires a service to find suitors. They would be interviewed through a mirror. They would confess their interest and she decides to come out and face them. Unfortunately they would bolt.


Poor girl. How much of that would mess up her self esteem?

Fed up with the long trail of terrified males, she escapes her mansion. With a scarf wound tightly around her nose, she experiences the outside world. She meets new friends and falls in love with Mc Avoys character.

There's a whole bunch more to this movie. It's sweet and romantic but that's not the main point. The highlight is Penelope's acceptance of herself and having the courage to go through with life. It's another female empowerment movie amidst the comedy and romance.

Fun enjoyable movie that makes you cheers up. If your a girl.