Disney Plus’s new original movie, Godmothered, tries its best to update the fairy tale format, and it certainly succeeds in that, but it doesn’t make the film any less predictable.

Set at Christmas time, Godmothered is a comedy about Eleanor, a young, inexperienced fairy godmother-in-training (Jillian Bell) who upon hearing that her chosen profession is facing extinction, decides to show the world that people still need fairy godmothers. Finding a mislaid letter from a 12-year-old girl in distress, Eleanor tracks her down and discovers that the girl, Mackenzie, is now a 40-year-old single mom (Isla Fisher) working at a news station in Boston. Having lost her husband several years earlier, Mackenzie has all but given up on the idea of “Happily Ever After,” but Eleanor is bound and determined to give Mackenzie a happiness makeover, whether she likes it or not.

Much of the movie’s charm comes from Eleanor’s (played by the delightfully brilliant Jillian Bean) experience in the real world. She is intrigued by cars and even offers to dig a moat around Mackenzie’s (played by the amazing Isla Fisher) home. At times though, the endless gullibility starts to get tiresome, and the same goes for Eleanor’s fixated obsession with helping Mazchenzie find her true love.

This isn’t the first time Disney has tried to update the fairy Tale formula. Godmothered echos Enchanted, 2007’s live-action princess movie in which a cartoon character crosses over into our world, but isn’t as charming.

Director Sharon Maguire (Bridget Jones’s Diary) knows how to deliver a decent comedy and Godmothered has plenty of hijinks perfect for the whole family. Eleanor explodes pumpkins and gives Mackenzie a horrid makeover with her wand.

Overall, Godmother is an enjoyable film but gets a little tiresome in some areas. The film doesn’t pay that much attention to Makenzie’s two children, making it seem like it was pitched to be for adult Disney fans, but it has something for everyone. Jillian Bell is a fearless performer, so hoping we will see more of her character in the future.

What did you think of the film? Sound off in the comment!

3.5/5