Encanto: 10 Unpopular Opinions About Abuela, According To Reddit

Disney’s latest movie Encanto has sparked a lot of conversation on Reddit since its release. Between its use of magical realism and the implied theme of generational trauma, this movie leaves a lot of questions for viewers to answer for themselves, and Redditors have gladly taken up the challenge.

Most can agree on the overall theme of the movie; younger generations learning to empathize with their elder’s pasts, and older generations reflecting on how their past traumas affect their families. But there are a few Redditors who are not buying Abuela’s redemption. While they may not make up the majority, these Redditors have expressed their opinions on why Abuela doesn’t deserve her family’s forgiveness.

She Wasn’t Trying To Protect The Family, Just The Magic

At the end of the movie, Abuela realizes that she had focused so much on protecting her family that she forgot the individuals she was trying to protect.  When her family is stripped of the magic she had been counting on, she sees her error and changes her ways.

Redditor Pearltherebel sees where viewers may disagree with this realization, stating that Abeula’s actions “[weren’t] to protect her family.” Instead, they feel that Abuela is fighting to protect the magic itself, as it is her family’s gifts that give Abuela power and status.

She Shows Favoritism To Some Family Members Over Others

The Madrigal family tree is large, consisting of nine people other than Abuela. Mirabel is the only one of the 9 that does not have a gift and is therefore often treated differently than everyone else. Abuela realizes this error and in the end, participates in trying to make Mirabel feel more a part of the family.

Mirabel (and of course Bruno) may not be the only members of the family that are not treated as equals, however. Redditor local_dum_dum points out that Abuela “prioritizes some siblings over others.” Abuela had her favorites in the family and they arguably had the most useful gifts: Julieta, Luisa, and Isabela. These characters seem to receive the most affection from Abuela, while others are almost ignored.

She Has Narcissistic Tendencies

Abuela has certainly made mistakes as a mother and grandmother. Among those mistakes is using her family’s gifts without enough regard for the family members themselves. This takes a toll, but after realizing she does this, she gets on the path to doing better.

But what if she cannot so easily improve? User urminecraftgf98 feels that redemption is completely out of reach for Abuela due to her narcissistic tendencies. “That’s part of narcissistic parenting. They see their children as assets rather than individual humans,” they said. If Abuela is a narcissist, her recovery will not be quite so simple.

She Turned The Town Against Bruno

In the song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” Encanto villagers describe to Mirabel how Bruno is a villain who makes terrible things happen. Later, in one of the funniest moments of Encanto, Mirabel finds out that Bruno is really just a very odd, slightly introverted man who has completely objective visions.

Some Redditors feel that the misperceptions surrounding Bruno are actually due to the way Abuela views him. “It’s clear her treatment toward him was not good. She didn’t see Bruno’s gift as helpful,” says Redditor YokaiBuster675. Abuela’s need for perfection didn’t allow for Bruno’s negative visions, and the rest of the family and village took up her feelings.

She Doesn’t Care About Pepa’s Feelings

Pepa’s gift is controlling the weather, but she does not always have a great handle on it. When she is feeling strong emotions, especially anxiety, the weather around her goes out of control. Abuela chastizes Pepa throughout the movie for her rain clouds, and Pepa will normally snap or yell back at her.

In the movie, other than Mirabel’s confrontation, Pepa is the only one who raises her voice to Abuela. Redditor emma3mma5 believes they have the reason; “She knows they won’t have a helpful conversation about what’s making her anxious or stressed, so she really has nothing to lose by snapping back.”

She Was Using Isabela To Bring About New Gifts

Abuela was excited at the idea of Isabela marrying a man from the village and bringing about another generation of gifts. This is in an attempt to continue serving the village and protecting the family. When Isabela finally admits that she doesn’t hold the same dreams, Abuela ultimately accepts it.

However, user hank888 felt that Abuela’s plan was downright creepy, going as far as saying that Abuela was “farming gifts out of her granddaughter’s womb.” While that’s definitely a disturbing way of thinking about it, it seems to hold true to Abuelas intentions and expectations for the Madrigal’s family responsibilities.

She Has No Gift But Still Sees Herself As Useful

Abuela runs the show of the Family Madrigal. She is the one who first received the miracle as a result of her husband’s death, and the one who continues to protect and guard the candle that keeps the miracle alive. Other than that, however, she has no gift like each of the other main Encanto characters do.

Redditor MaybleQueen points out that Mirabel and Abuela are “basically the same.” So the fact that Abuela treats Mirabel as if she is useless because she has no gift is hypocritical. It may just be that Mirabel isn’t of lower value because she has no gift, but because she let Abuela down, to begin with.

She Wasn’t As Happy As She Should Have Been To See Bruno Again

At the end of the movie, while Mirabel and Abuela are having their moment, Bruno comes bursting through the trees, ready to stand up to Abuela for the first time in his life by coming to bat for Mirable. However, before he can continue, Abuela pulls him into a long hug, completely surprising Bruno.

While the moment was fairly sweet, some Redditors are demanding better justice for Bruno. “If I saw my son again after such a long time I would freak out with tears of joy,” says Reflexive. It’s possible that there simply wasn’t time at that moment, but it does seem that after all that happened, Abuela could show a little more emotion.

She Blames Her Bad Behavior On Her Losses

At the end of the movie, Abuela finally bares it all to Mirabel, explaining the level of the trauma she went through when her husband passed away, and apologizing for allowing her fears to hurt her family and destroy the miracle. Mirabel, now possessing an understanding of her Abuela’s past, forgives her.

Some Redditors thought that this felt more like an excuse than an explanation. Aestheticbear felt that Abuela’s motivation for telling her story came from a place of manipulation, “and if that’s not horrible, I don’t know what is.” While past traumas can seriously affect the way that someone acts, it’s possible that Abuela is taking advantage of this to gain her family’s sympathy.

Her Apology Wasn’t Enough

After Abuela apologizes to Mirabel, they go back to the wreckage of their home where she apologizes to her children, who graciously accept. Together they all forge a new home, with the help of the villages they had been helping for generations; a beautiful and happy ending.

This apology didn’t seem like enough to some, however. Many Redditors expressed their frustration at the way the family wholeheartedly forgives Abuela and moves on. “One epiphany and apology doesn’t change [her actions]” said Goddessthatshines. While a grudge wouldn’t be characteristic of a Disney movie, the family letting years of trauma go in a single evening may be a little unrealistic.

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Angel Shaw
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Angel is a Senior List Writer at Screen Rant. She is deeply in love with any form of storytelling, whether it be books, movies, TV Shows, or video games. In her free time, Angel can typically be found binge-watching comfort shows, playing any Zelda game, or goofing around with her family.

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