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The Princess Switch: Switched Again

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The Princess Switch: Switched Again
Official release poster
Directed byMike Rohl
Written by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyFernando Argüelles Fernandez
Edited byLara Mazur
Music byAlan Lazar
Production
companies
  • MPCA
  • Brad Krevoy Television
Distributed byNetflix
Release date
  • November 19, 2020 (2020-11-19)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Princess Switch: Switched Again is a 2020 American Christmas romantic comedy film directed by Mike Rohl. As the second installment in The Princess Switch trilogy, it stars Vanessa Hudgens, Sam Palladio, Suanne Braun, and Nick Sagar.[1][2] The story follows Margaret Delacourt, the Duchess of Montenaro, who suddenly inherits the throne to her home country of Montenaro. As her Christmas coronation approaches, she and Stacy switch places once again so Margaret can fix her relationship with Stacy's friend Kevin. Unbeknownst to both women, a third look-alike, Margaret's evil cousin Lady Fiona, disguises herself as Margaret in a scheme to steal the throne.[3]

The film is produced by Brad Krevoy and was released on Netflix on November 19, 2020, and received mixed reviews from critics.[4]

Plot

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Two years after the end of the first film, Stacy is now the Princess of Belgravia, while Margaret is preparing to ascend to the throne of Montenaro following the death of the king and the decision of his son Howard to abdicate. Nervous about taking on the responsibilities of ruling a nation, Margaret has ended her relationship with Kevin, who is now running his own bakery with Olivia in Chicago.

Stacy makes a surprise visit to Chicago on her way to the coronation and finds Kevin miserable since the breakup. When Olivia reveals she never mailed in the RSVP to the coronation, Stacy persuades him to reconsider and travel with her and Prince Edward, even though the couple has their own relationship problems as Stacy has increasingly neglected Edward while she focuses on her duties as Princess.

Upon arriving, Kevin reunites with Margaret and helps her, Prince Edward, Stacy, and Olivia decorate her palace for Christmas. Margaret also feels depressed about how things ended with her and Kevin. At an evening event, they dance, only to be interrupted by Lady Fiona Pembroke, Margaret's cousin.

Unbeknownst to anyone, Fiona has spent nearly all of her family's small fortune and has resorted to using her servants Reggie and Mindy to rob the guests at the party. Back at the decrepit Pembroke estate, Fiona suddenly has an idea: to assume Margaret's identity, get crowned as queen, and loot the royal treasury, setting her up for life. Reggie and Mindy are enthusiastic and help Fiona dye her hair and copy Margaret's makeup while studying the queen's upcoming schedule.

Back at the palace, Margaret admits that she's been too busy with royal affairs to spend time with Kevin. Complicating matters further is Count Antonio Rossi, her chief of staff, who woos her and plants seeds of doubt in Kevin's mind that he could ever be a good match for a future queen.

Stacy decides the only way to fix things is for her and Margaret to switch identities again so she and Kevin can have the afternoon to themselves while Stacy takes care of Margaret's schedule. The switch takes place, with Olivia staying behind to distract Edward while Margaret and Kevin go to a local Christmas park. There, Kevin expresses his doubts about being Margaret's equal and she convinces him that such concerns are irrelevant as long as they love each other.

Reggie and Mindy abduct Stacy, thinking she's Margaret, locking her up in Pembroke Manor. Fiona steps in just as Margaret returns. Realizing that the woman she's speaking to isn't Stacy, Margaret explains the truth to Prince Edward. They then rescue Stacy from Reggie and Mindy, who are arrested and reveal Fiona's plan.

Meanwhile, Antonio deduces the truth on his own as Fiona forgot to cover up a tattoo on her finger. He tells her that he will move up the coronation and help her escape the country if she agrees to divide the treasury with him, as he also needs money.

Just as the coronation is about to take place, Margaret and Stacy arrive and expose Fiona and Antonio. The latter is arrested while the former admits her deception and reveals that Kevin is on his way to the airport with Olivia after she told him she didn't want to be with him anymore.

They stop Kevin just as he is about to board a plane, and he and Margaret get married on the spot officiated by a nearby priest. Stacy and Edward reaffirm their love for each other as she promises to make more time for them, and he promises not to smother her with attention. Margaret is crowned Queen of Montenaro with Stacy, Edward, Olivia, and Fiona (escorted by police) cheering her on.

Cast

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  • Vanessa Hudgens as
    • Stacy Juliette DeNovo Wyndham, Princess of Belgravia or simply Princess Stacy and Edward's wife
    • Margaret Katherine Claire Delacourt, Queen of Montenaro or simply Queen Margaret (formerly Lady Margaret Delacourt, Duchess of Montenaro), Kevin's eventual wife and Olivia's eventual stepmother
    • Lady Fiona Pembroke, Margaret's cousin and Lord Percival and Lady Bianca Pembroke's daughter
  • Sam Palladio as Edward Wyndham, Prince of Belgravia and Stacy's husband
  • Nick Sagar as Kevin Richards, Stacy's best friend, Margaret's future husband, and future Prince Consort of Montenaro
  • Mark Fleischmann as Frank De Luca, Prince Edward's driver
  • Suanne Braun as Mrs. Donatelli, Duchess Margret's personal assistant
  • Ricky Norwood as Reggie, Fiona's “minion”
  • Florence Hall as Mindy, Fiona's “minion”
  • Lachlan Nieboer as Count Antonio Rossi
  • Mia Lloyd as Olivia Richards, Kevin's daughter, Stacy’s goddaughter, and Margaret's eventual stepdaughter

Cameo appearances

Reception

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On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 58% based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10.[5]

For Variety Dennis Harvey opines, "'Switched Again' isn't really about suspense, romantic troubles or even identity swapping. Instead, what it's selling is Yuletide." Terming the look of the film as a 'high-caloric treat', Harvey praised the production designer Pat Campbell, cinematographer Fernando Arguelles Fernandez, and the costumes by Johnetta Boone and Francisco Rodriguez-Weil. Harvey feels that the [switching] story is weak in certain places but the Christmas decorations will, "satisfy viewers’ itch for confectionary-looking Christmas fluff".[6]

Helen T. Verongos of The New York Times found the movie to be an "appealing" Christmas film, saying that it was "syrupy, and no, beyond its central gimmick, there is little substance to be found. But the same could be said for many a beloved romance film or holiday movie".[7]

Alex Abad-Santos of Vox was called it "a perfectly harmless way to burn 90 minutes, during which you won't worry about the awful things happening in real life. It's inoffensively fine — the conflict is never too high-stakes, and the happy ending is happy enough."[8] Sarah El-Mahmoud of Cinemablend.com praised the film's atmosphere, but ultimately described it as "safe" and "generic".[9]

Sequel

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In November 2020, Netflix confirmed that a third film in the series, The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star, had been ordered.[10] The film premiered on Netflix on November 18, 2021.[11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Walsh, Savannah (October 7, 2020). "'The Princess Switch' Sequel Premieres Next Month—And A Third (!) Movie Will Follow". ELLE. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  2. ^ Ng, Philiana (October 7, 2020). "'The Princess Switch' Sequel Sets Premiere Date Set and a Third Film". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  3. ^ Snierson, Dan (October 7, 2020). "See first photos of Netflix's 'The Princess Switch: Switched Again'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  4. ^ Mallenbaum, Carly (October 21, 2020). "Everything new on Netflix in November: 'The Crown' Season 4 to Shawn Mendes documentary". USA Today. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  5. ^ "The Princess Switch: Switched Again". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  6. ^ Harvey, Dennis (November 19, 2020). "'The Princess Switch: Switched Again' Review: It's Vanessa Hudgens Times Three in Cozy Netflix Sequel". Variety. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  7. ^ Verongos, Helen T. (November 19, 2020). "'The Princess Switch: Switched Again' Review: A Who's Who of Hudgens". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  8. ^ Abad-Santos, Alex (November 19, 2020). "The Princess Switch: Switched Again is more Vanessa Hudgens drag variety hour than holiday rom-com". Vox.com. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  9. ^ El-Mahmoud, Sarah (November 19, 2020). "Netflix's The Princess Switch: Switched Again Review: A Predictable Holiday Rom-Com Recipe With A Wild Card Vanessa Hudgens Performance". CINEMABLEND. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  10. ^ "'The Princess Switch' Sequel Sets Premiere Date Set and a Third Film". Entertainment Tonight. October 7, 2020.
  11. ^ "Netflix Sets Release Dates for 'Princess Switch 3' and More Holiday Movies". Variety. October 6, 2021. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
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