As usual, I will be fracking for Catholic content in a film, this time with The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004).  Like its predecessor, there is a brief moment in which we see two nuns.  Tangentially, the only reason I am talking about this film is because there is a predecessor.  What separates the latest one is a scene that takes place in a chapel, and what appears to be an archbishop presiding over the expected wedding (with a twist!) at the climactic moment.  Other Christian sects have clergy with similar titles, but I am going to go ahead and call it Catholic.  I have to take glimpses like this because the rest is pretty silly.  Then again, I am not the target audience, but I will tell you about it anyway.

As we roll through the opening credits of The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, Princess Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway), next in line for the throne of the fictional country of Genovia, is giving us a voice over telling us what she has been doing since last we saw her.  Among other things, she has graduated from college and is about to turn twenty-one.  This is a significant year for the Genovian heiress since it is the age at which the current ruler, Queen Clarisse Renaldi (Julie Andrews), will be stepping aside for the next generation to reign.  Once she returns from her studies, parliament is set to make an announcement until one of its members, Viscount Mabrey (John Rhys-Davies), steps forward to contend that this will not be in keeping with Genovian law.  First, an unwed woman like Mia is not supposed to be crowned.  Secondly, his nephew, Nicholas Devereaux (Chris Pine), has a claim to be king that Viscount Mabrey posits outweighs Mia’s.  Scrambling, Queen Renaldi offers a solution: Mia will marry.  She pushes for a long engagement, but he gets the other members of the legislative body who are nervous about the flighty American to cut the period to thirty days.  Mia is not happy about the arrangement, but Queen Renaldi talks of her own experiences with these matters.  Seeing how well her grandmother turned out, Mia accepts her duty with the kind of grace that proves she is worthy of her rank.  Thus, it becomes a matter of choosing the right person.  When Viscount Mabrey and Nicholas hear the news, the uncle is keen on his nephew getting a chance at Mia’s hand.  There is one problem.  Earlier, the two had met and danced at her birthday ball, but Nicholas had said nothing of his royal blood.  As such, when they are reintroduced by their social standings, Mia is not happy that he had omitted this fact.  The lie creates an animosity between them that is obviously half-hearted.  That description also pertains to the person on whom she eventually lands, Andrew Jacoby (Callum Blue), a member of the English aristocracy.  After a week of spending time with one another, the honorable Andrew proposes and the matter appears settled.  However, Viscount Mabrey has not given up his ambitions.  By pulling such tricks as using a rubber snake to make Mia’s horse spook while she is inspecting the royal guard, he is hoping to make her look unfit to be queen.  Nonetheless, Nicholas is not pleased with his uncle’s conniving.  Viscount Mabrey reassures his nephew that the young man’s father wanted Nicholas to be king, but the heir is uncomfortable with the methods.  As such, Nicholas often finds himself comforting Mia in the aftermath of her many social blunders.  He is also impressed by the poise she shows in other instances, such as stopping a parade to allow orphaned children to walk with her.  Their increasing run-ins with one another make for bad press with Genovian journalists, who are always eager for a scandal.  Following a particularly embarrassing mistake during a garden party, with an unseen kiss, Mia must come to terms with the person she is supposed to be marrying.  For Nicholas’ part, he informs Viscount Mabrey that the young man would like nothing more to do with the plot to usurp the throne.  Viscount Mabrey says he wants only for his nephew’s happiness, while Nicholas responds by saying he is going to officially bow out of the competition, so to speak.  This involves Mia sneaking out with Mia one night, and they end up chatting until the sun rises.  Upon waking up in his arms, she spots a camera and blames him for being set up.  The footage is leaked to the press, and she must explain to Andrew what had happened.  To salvage the situation, he tries kissing her, but they agree that there is no spark.  His next idea is to agree to go through with the wedding for the sake of her throne, and they will simply be friends.  However, on the day of the ceremony as she is about to walk down the aisle, she is unable to make it to the altar.  At the same time, Nicholas has learned that Viscount Mabrey had planted the camera that led to the trouble, and he makes it to the church as fast as possible.  Before he arrives, she admits to the congregation the truth about the plan Andrew had come up with, and makes an impassioned speech arguing to overturn the rule about unwed women being queen.  The motion is given a boost when Nicholas appears and renounces any claim to the throne.  With the motion seconded by members of parliament present, she is allowed to be crowned a week later.

With Mia being crowned queen at the end of The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, you might be wondering about Queen Renaldi.  The now former monarch is the one who goes through with the wedding, marrying her head of security, Joe (Héctor Elizondo).  It is a move she had been afraid to do for years despite the evident affection they have for one another.  Fear, and overcoming it, is a theme throughout the film, and a worthy one to discuss from a Catholic perspective.  Scripture has a lot to say about this topic, with many passages speaking to how trusting in God is the one true bulwark against the forces that cause it and which lead us into sin.  While I will not put anything in this movie on the same level as the Bible, it does have one good line regarding this subject.  It is one that comes up in the previous iteration, though it is not its originator, and partially goes, “Courage is not the absence of fear.”  This is absolutely true.  In the story, Mia’s fears lead her to act clumsily or into situations that get her into trouble.  There is no getting around that emotion for her because she is aware of her background.  Where she is successful is in moving past her mistakes, ones that might cripple anyone else.  Faith works in a similar manner.  When we sin, we could let the idea that we have disappointed God prevent us from seeking any kind of reconciliation.  This is a lie the enemy tells us to keep us separated from God.  Though we will always fall because of our condition as humans, the key to not only having fewer stumbles, but making getting back up easier, is a total surrender to God.  That looks different for everyone, and it is kind of strange to think of this notion through the lens of Mia’s character.  At the same time, she is committed to something bigger than herself, and that is a start.

And this is where I will stop my review of The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.  There is nothing objectionable about it, unless you are looking for a good movie without cheesy dialog and effects.  I just hope they do not go through with a rumored third installment in this franchise.