While Disney’s recent live-action fantasy films have gotten
a generally mixed reception from critics, they’ve definitely been much more
successful with audiences which if you ask me is what matters the most at the
end of the day. I for one have generally liked them. I’ll admit I wasn’t the
biggest fan of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ but on the other hand I absolutely loved ‘Oz
the Great and Powerful’, to the point where I even listed it as my favorite
film of that year. Last year gave us ‘Maleficent’, a retelling of ‘Sleeping
Beauty’ from the perspective of its main antagonist. While some may have issues
with the fact that the film portrays her more as the protagonist, I did still
enjoy it, mainly for Angelina Jolie’s outstanding performance in the role of
Maleficent. And now Disney returns with their latest re-imagining, this time
revisiting one of the most iconic films in their lineup, ‘Cinderella’. Unlike
the previous three major fantasy films, which were a sequel, prequel, and
re-telling, respectively, this new ‘Cinderella’, directed by Kenneth Branagh (‘Thor’),
instead opts to basically just tell the same story as its animated predecessor.
Some may find this to be unnecessary but ultimately this new ‘Cinderella’ does
end up being an excellent adaptation of this classic story. That is thanks to
not only beautiful production design, classy direction, and a top-notch cast,
but also a clear sense of appreciation for the original film while in some ways
also updating it for a new generation.
After the death of her mother (Hayley Atwell), young Ella’s
(Lily James) father (Ben Chaplin) remarries to Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett),
who also has been recently widowed after the death of her husband, who was an
old friend of Ella’s father. Unfortunately, not long after this, he dies while
on a business trip, leaving Ella in the care of her new stepmother, who ends up
revealing her true wicked nature as Ella becomes a horribly mistreated servant
to both her stepmother and stepsisters, Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and
Drizella (Sophie McShera), who nickname her ‘Cinderella’ due to the fact that
her face was covered in soot one morning after sleeping by the fireplace. One day,
while riding in the woods, Ella comes across a nice young man (Richard Madden)
named ‘Kit’ who claims to be an apprentice living in the nearby kingdom. In
reality, however, he is actually the Prince, who’s being pressured by his dying
father (Derek Jacobi) to find a bride, specifically a princess, at an upcoming
ball. But because ‘Kit’ is so entranced by Ella, he convinces his father to allow
every maiden in the kingdom to attend in the hopes of seeing her again. On the
night of the ball, Ella is eager to go but is forbidden by her stepmother to do
so because she doesn’t want her to ‘disgrace’ her and her daughters. But with
the help of her Fairy Godmother (Helena Bonham Carter), Ella’s fortunes soon
begin to change.
This basically is the same general story as the original ‘Cinderella’,
save for a few differences that actually do kind of improve on certain elements
of that film. For one thing, Cinderella and the Prince do meet before the ball
so it isn’t as ‘rushed’ of a romance as it was in the original film. We see
Ella with her original parents more than we did in the original and while we
don’t get the full details of it all, we even get a little more insight into
Lady Tremaine’s back-story, giving us an idea as to why she acts the way she
does towards Cinderella. Ultimately though, this film really benefits from just
having an overall positive tone. After all, the film begins with Cinderella’s
mother giving her the advice to ‘have courage and be kind’ and let’s be honest
folks, in the cynical world that we live in today, that is some genuinely good
advice to follow. From a technical standpoint, this film is an absolute visual
delight thanks to the terrific production design, from the incredible costume
design by Sandy Powell to the visually splendid set design. But at the same
time, this film also has quite a lot of heart to it as well due to the
aforementioned feel-good atmosphere. Branagh’s solid direction shows nothing
but respect to the original film while also doing just enough to make it so
that it isn’t just a ‘carbon copy’ of the original, which admittedly hasn’t
aged very well in some aspects, namely in regards to the main character.
I mean I think it’s safe to say that Cinderella is a rather
controversial member of the Disney Princess lineup. This is mainly due to the
fact that in the original film, she is viewed by some people as being a rather
passive protagonist who doesn’t really do much until she’s rescued in the end by
the Prince. However, at the same time, she should be also given a lot of credit
for her inner strength, positive attitude and perhaps most of all her ability
to put up with all of the s*** that she’s put through by her Stepmother and
Stepsister. This new film in some ways may follow the same route as the
original but I don’t think that this Cinderella is passive at all. Her kindness
really shines through the toughest of times and at one point she even tells
Lady Tremaine that she’ll do whatever she can to ‘protect’ the prince, even if
it comes at her expense. This results in, in my opinion, a very strong female
heroine who is defined not by her actions but because of her overall character
and Lily James does a phenomenal job in conveying Ella’s charm, likability, and
most importantly, her inner strength and beauty. Because the relationship
between Ella and the Prince is expanded upon here, their chemistry feels very
genuine and Richard Madden definitely brings the right amount of, for lack of a
better term, charm to the role. And of course, Cate Blanchett absolutely owns
the role of Lady Tremaine, who’s definitely one of the greatest Disney villains
of all time due to how she manages to gain so much control over Cinderella’s
life without any special powers, while Helena Bonham Carter is a definite
scene-stealer as Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother.
‘Cinderella’ may be one of the most iconic Disney films of
all time but at the same time it may not exactly be the most ‘pro-feminist’
story out there. And while the same could be argued about this new version of
the story as well in certain areas, I don’t think that it’s as prevalent here
as it may have been in the original film. The Cinderella in this is not just
some damsel in distress who doesn’t do much. This one is more involved in
determining her own fate and even if she may still not be the most proactive
female protagonist ever, her likability and sweet persona more than make up for
it. All in all, director Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Cinderella’ really stands out
amongst Disney’s recent fantasy re-imaginings, even if it’s not doing much
different when compared to the original animated film. The production design is
worth the ticket price alone but the film also succeeds in terms of its heart,
showing much appreciation towards its animated predecessor while also
maintaining an overall ‘feel-good’ atmosphere even with all that Cinderella
goes through while living with her stepfamily. And really, as someone who’s
finding that he’s really starting to favor films like this over ones that are
much bleaker in tone, I really believe that this film is a must-see, especially
if you’re someone who is looking to cheer themselves up. I guarantee you that
this film really will put a genuine smile on your face by the end of it. There’s
no better way of saying it; this film is pure cinematic magic (pun totally
intended) that is absolutely gorgeous both inside and out.
Rating: 5/5!
(P.S. This film is
paired in its theatrical release with the short film ‘Frozen Fever’, a
follow-up to Disney’s hit animated film ‘Frozen’. Because it’s just a short
film, I’m not going to go into too much detail about it. However, what I will
say is that if you are a fan of ‘Frozen’ (I know I am), then you’re definitely
going to love this short as it brings back all of your favorite characters as
well as yet another catchy song a la ‘Let it Go’ in the form of ‘Making Today a
Perfect Day’.)
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