Ella Enchanted is a 2004 musical fantasy comedy film directed by Tommy O'Haver from a screenplay co-written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, loosely based on Gail Carson Levine's 1997 novel. Starring Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy, the film is a satire of the fairy tale genre. The cast also features Cary Elwes, Vivica A. Fox, Joanna Lumley, Minnie Driver and Eric Idle. As an infant, Ella (Hathaway) receives a misguided present from her fairy godmother, a spell to be constantly obedient, a fact she must hide from everyone especially from her new stepfamily in order to protect the prince and soon to be king, a friend she is falling for.