Before Cinderella began, the theater was treated to Frozen Fever, an animated sequel short to Frozen. The story involves Queen Elsa, Kristoff, and Olaf celebrating Anna’s birthday with an amazing surprise party; of course everything doesn't go according to plan with Elsa surprisingly catching a cold, causing dozens of tiny snowmen to appear every time she sneezes (entertaining chaos ensues!) The short does everything right: it’s enjoyable, witty in humor, very cute (Elsa is adorable when sick), quite heartwarming, improves upon the bond between Elsa and Anna, has a very catchy song and further develops the first film’s lore. In a way Frozen Fever has similar enjoyable aspects with Disney’s animated Cinderella. The 1950 film is far from Disney’s best, yet its enjoyable characters (such as the goofy mice, wacky King and wicked stepmother), catchy songs, and lovely animation makes it an enjoyable classic. What made both Frozen Fever and the 1950’s Cinderella effective is precisely where the 2015 Cinderella falls short; a film which follows the guide lines of the original, yet abandons most of the enjoyable features.
If you've seen the 2015 Cinderella trailers then you pretty much know 90% of the plot, if you've seen the original animated film then you know around 95% of it, with the exception of its expanded opening…which I will now reveal:
- Cinderella, or Ella as she’s called here (played by Lily James) lives happily with her parents
- Mom dies and dad remarries to the Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett) who moves in with her two daughters Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and Drizella (Sophie McShera)
- Dad dies and Tremaine takes over, becoming Ella’s wicked stepmother
- Ella is cruelly renamed Cinderella and forced to work as a servant for the three
By this point Cinderella tells a near identical story to the 1950’s version, only without: the beautiful hand drawn animation, the colorful talking mice, the hilariously wacky King, and the catchy songs (including the incredibly memorable Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, which is given a remade nod two-thirds into the end-credits…after the audience has left).
From such perspective, Cinderella sounds a complete failure, with nothing new or refreshing; this is somewhat true. There are changes to the story, just very minor ones which barely alter the plot’s outcome; some (such as the one’s mentioned above) take away from the original’s charm, while others give the new film its own refreshing feel. The wicked stepmother is the film’s most prominent example of the latter change. The animated stepmother was a classic villain, one so deliciously evil you can’t help but love to hate her. Her motivations are relatively simple: to make Cinderella’s life hell and get her dimwitted daughters married to rich noblemen; yet the amount of passion she puts into these tasks (particularly the former) makes her one of the most memorable Disney villains. The stepmother shows so much enjoyment over controlling one girl, relishing every unnecessary demand given, every subservient reply Cinderella gives to such cruelty, and every false hope given to her stepdaughter. The woman is downright diabolical, which makes it all the more satisfying when Cinderella finally succeeds (the stepmother’s look of horror when Cinderella fits the glass slipper is one of Disney’s greatest villain defeats).
Cate Blanchett distinguishes herself as a wackier, yet equally sinister stepmother (who’s referred to here as Lady Tremaine), balancing her character between maliciously manipulative and arrogantly foolish; such an oddly effective combination provides both enjoyably villainous moments and the film’s funniest scenes. Lady Tremaine's ambitions are larger and more sensible, to the point where she’s willing to allow Cinderella her “happy ending” as long as it ensures her and her daughters’ success. There are elements here of Tremaine being “Wicked-fied” (aka turned sympathetic), as has been the recent craze with many former villains (The Snow Queen, Maleficent, etc…). While definitely still a villain, Tremaine's backstory and motivations make her more sympathetic than her previous incarnation (whose past was previously left untold). Blanchett was an ideal choice for playing such character, successfully portraying her villainous, comical, and sympathetic sides. These welcomed changes allow the new wicked stepmother to stand independent from the 1950’s version (though I still prefer the animated version), representing what should have been done to the entire movie itself.
The Prince (Richard Madden) is also a step up from the original version, though in all honesty anything is an improvement from the original Prince “Charming” who wasn’t even given a first name. This time the Prince has the nickname Kit, and is given more prominence to the story, meeting Ella before the ball scene (which in this version the Prince arranges solely to meet her again) while actually being involved in the finale search for her (albeit in disguise, similar to the original French tale). The film’s romance is…well to even call it a romance is false advertising. The “romantic” aspects of the film have hardly been altered from the bland, swift animated version; this is Cinderella’s greatest fault, especially considering it was made 65 years later, where humanities’ ideas on romantic development has immensely improved. At the very least, 2015 Cinderella’s romance isn’t based 100% on physical attraction, as Kit does mention more than once how appealing Ella’s personality is; yet Ella and Kit’s development hardly gets past the initial awkward first stages before jumping right into true love and marriage, an aspect which shouldn't be done for a modern retelling.
HOWEVER, I’m completely willing to overlook the poor romance due to the film’s ending where (drumroll please) Ella actually becomes a queen! That’s right people, Disney actually took one of their beloved money-making princesses (who by the way never became a princess in the 2015 version) and upgraded her, using the actual words (it wasn't just implied), to Queen Cinderella!!! If anything, I’m pleased to have seen Cinderella solely for such a gratifying moment (as well as Frozen Fever), though sadly this brings me to the film’s second most prominent flaw, Cinderella herself. 2015 Ella is so perfect she makes Mother Teresa look practically villainous. There are no character flaws to her: she’s kind, generous, polite, helpful and always keeps her promise; when she’s forced to work like a slave Ella holds her temper while turning the other cheek, when animals are in danger she protects them at all costs, when her mother’s dress is cruelly torn to shreds (along with her hopes and dreams) Ella still finds time to give her supper to an elderly woman. Ella’s even able to instantly forgive Lady Tremaine, right after being threatened by her stepmother, during the finale.
I think the filmmakers got the character of Cinderella confused with Jesus Christ, except Jesus wasn't whimsical 24/7 and actually lost his temper once in a while (so yes, 2015 Cinderella is more virtuous than Jesus Christ!) Of course 1950 Cinderella was pretty saintly herself, yet such version possessed an admirable quality of hardworking determination. The 1950 film consistently showcased the hard labor and abuse Cinderella endured on a daily basis; the pain she felt was apparent, yet Cinderella endured through it, using songs or her animal company to create what little happiness in her life. 2015 Ella endures a similar hell, yet the film goes about it through telling rather than showing; breezing through the chore scenes with brief summaries, unintentionally minimizing the character’s most admirable quality. Let’s also remember the 65 year difference between both character releases; in such regard, Ella feels more a parody of the traditional Disney princess (similar to Enchanted’s Giselle) except played entirely serious.
