Review ‘Cinderella’ From The Editor

Last year, Disney took one of its most feared villains and made her unbearably tame for their live-action retelling of “Sleeping Beauty”, “Maleficent”. Now, they’ve taken another of their animated classics, “Cinderella”, and turned it into an epic live-action fantasy film. But with Cinderella, they’ve gone in the opposite direction—instead of doing something new with the story, they’ve largely left it alone, and, surprisingly, it works very well.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, this version of “Cinderella” stars Lily James as the titular heroine, Ella, a kind girl who is raised by loving parents. Her mother (Hayley Atwill) dies when she is a child, prompting her father (Ben Chaplin) several years later to marry the widowed Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett). But then her father takes ill on a business trip and passes away, prompting her cruel stepmother—resentful of her new husband’s obvious love for his deceased first wife—to show her true colors. Lady Tremaine and her daughters Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophie McShera) reduce Ella to little more than a servant, forcing her to live in the attic and do all the household chores.

The idea of taking the 1950 Disney animated classic, Cinderella, and making it into a live action movie could have been filled with nothing but negatives. Hiring Kenneth Branagh as director and Chris Weitz (About a Boy, recently tapped to pen Star Wars: Rogue One) as screenwriter, the project was already off to a fantastic start.

What is so compelling in this particular version of the story is that although the framework is the same, the character development of our titular heroine is completely different and how James delivers it is also a huge aspect. Cinderella is strong and that does not come out of nowhere. It is something that was instilled by her father at a young age when he told her that kindness and courage would go a long way. In this world, they are her powers. It is almost like she is a superhero of the fairy tale age.

Things start to turn around for Ella when she meets a man called Kit (Richard Madden) in the woods. Unbeknownst to her, he is actually the kingdom’s prince, and he is so taken with her that he decides to open up the upcoming ball at the palace to all the people of the kingdom, hoping she’ll show up. Of course, she does with the help of her fairy godmother (Helena Bonham Carter) and…well, you probably know the rest.

This is, essentially, an expanded, non-musical version of Disney’s 1950 animated version of the classic fairytale. Even Cinderella’s mice friends and Lucifer the cat make frequent appearances. But this movie does a great job establishing Cinderella’s character before the stepmother even makes an appearance, showing her to be an exceedingly kind and brave person who draws her strength from her parents. It also expands upon the character of the Prince (only referred to as “Prince Charming” in a passing remark, thank goodness), showing the love and respect he has for his father even though he wants him to marry a princess, not a commoner.

On top of that, the performances are wonderful. After seeing James as Cinderella, it’s hard to picture another actress in the role; she has both the right appearance and demeanor to pull it off. Blanchett is also deliciously evil as the stepmother. The film perhaps could have benefited from a bit more of her, but at least it doesn’t overuse her, and Cinderella’s quiet vengeance at the end is truly sweet. Grainger and McShera play off each other very well as the materialistic stepsisters, while Derek Jacobi and Stellan Skarsgard make appearances as the King and scheming Grand Duke. Carter is perhaps a bit over-the-top as the fairy godmother, but it is what it is.

From the Fairy Godmother transformation to Cinderella’s dank room in the attic — it is as loving of a tribute as can exist for a live action version of a beloved animated classic.

James is a vision. She emits the qualities we think of when we imagine a living and breathing Cinderella. It had to be the most supreme of challenges to find their lead, and Branagh completely nailed it. And where to start with Blanchett? She is as wicked as any Disney villain, and yet there is a grace and charm to her character that sucks you in, even though you know she is just this side of terrible.

Whereas in the animated Cinderella where Prince Charming had maybe two lines, in Branagh’s vision, Richard Madden plays him as the most fully developed of characters. The Game of Thrones star was born to be Prince Charming on many levels, not the least of which is his ability to project his own powers of kindness that mirror the woman that he so clearly adores.

Despite taking some things a little too far, “Cinderella” is ultimately a very sweet, sometimes even funny, movie that features breath-taking costumes and visuals and nice performances from its lead actors. It proves that sometimes you don’t need to update a story too much to make it relevant. Some stories are timeless, and “Cinderella” is one of them.

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Cinderella is in theaters right now!