To steal (and paraphrase) my favorite line from Monte Carlo, it’s like the “Sisterhood of the Traveling de France”. If you don’t get the reference, you’re probably way outside this movie’s target demo.
Monte Carlo is a sweet little chick flick that’s tailor-made for the tween set but will keep tag-along adults moderately entertained as well. It stars Disney Channel darling Selena Gomez (Wizards of Waverly Place) as Grace, an ordinary gal from Texas who gets mistaken for a snooty British heiress while on a post-high school graduation trip to Paris. At first, Grace is reluctant to cash in on the remarkable resemblance, but one thing leads to another and before ya know it, Grace and her traveling companions (step-sister Meg, played by Leighton Meester and best friend Emma, played by Katie Cassidy) are living out a fairy tale in Monte Carlo.
The biggest surprise to me was that nobody sang in the movie, despite a cast of teen-friendly singer-actor types, including Cory Monteith (Glee). But that’s okay. Another time, another movie perhaps – assuming they don’t fall into the Lindsay Lohan/Miley Cyrus downward Disney spiral.
Monte Carlo is a formulaic but fun Disney message movie with strong female characters – much in the vein of Princess Diaries. It’s also a surefire hit for all those girls who watched and re-watched Gomez in the Disney Channel original movie, The Princess Protection Program. Sure, we’ve seen it all before. But hey, if the shoe/slipper fits, wear it. Or in this case, watch it.