First let me get to Frozen Fever, the short before Cinderella.
It is Anna's birthday and Elsa is doing her best to make it Anna's best birthday.
We are introduced too new dresses for the birthday (cha-ching). We are also introduced to a new song, which is not as good as Let It Go, but it is not bad. I am sure you can download it on ITunes (cha-ching). Also we are introduced to "Snowgies", I will not spoil what they are, just a little weird but cute. You can buy them also (cha-ching). Yes it seemed like a commercial but it had a sweet message at the end and its harmless.
Now to Cinderella 2015
Directed by Kenneth Branagh
Screenplay by Chris Weitz
Starring: Lily James; Cate Blanchett; Richard Madden; Helena Bonham Carter
Oh No. It is me on a pedestal again!!!
This movie was made because of the success of Frozen. Huh? I think if Frozen was not as big as it was this would have not been made. I think Frozen taught Disney something.
Lets go back in time shall we?
Disney's Princess And The Frog. It was looked by some as a failure. I disagree, it made back it's money and then some. The music was really good. However, the press called it a failure because it did not make "Pixar" money. At that point Disney made adjustments to films with female leads.
Brave comes out. Merida was a great female character that Disney did not believe in. So a poorly written story becoming more of a mess with a bunch of little brothers who were annoying and not funny, but Disney felt they needed them to pull in little boys by highlighting them in the trailers.
Tangled comes next. Overseas it was called Rapunzel. Here they felt the name Rapunzel will make little boys shy away. Tangled was a wonderful story, filled with love, humor, and excitement. In fact I think it is second only to Avatar as the best 3D film released. I still think Tangled is a little better than Frozen. Tangled also made pretty good money. Not Pixar money.
Now comes Frozen. Two female leads. A story about love between sisters. Sisters not being saved by a male but saving each other in their own way. BOOM. Disney got a wake up call. In fact if you think back they were not ready for this... they could not get the dresses and other movie paraphernalia out quick enough. They had no idea. Girls/females do go to movies and boys will also go to cheer on the girls.
We now come to Cinderella 2015....and I am off my soapbox.
I was intrigued because this movie was being directed by freaking Kenneth Branagh!!!
Casting....Casting....Casting...Casting.
I can't say it enough. Everybody in this film is perfectly cast.
Lily Collins as Cinderella...a star is born.
Cate Blanchett as the evil stepmom.....we just found our first Oscar nomination of the year for best supporting actress.
Bonham Carter, I can just imagine her reaction to that phone call. "You want me to play what? Have you seen my other movies?"
Richard Madden as the Prince is perfectly played as a kind soul not pompous like we usually see in films with a Prince.
I will not insult you and go through the plot but I will tell you some differences between this version and the classic animated version:
The first half hour is heavy. It is Disney and people have to die. And boy they do. We have three in this film. Kinda heavy. And I also wish they would have some how highlighted the word "Evil" a little more when it came to the stepmother. I can imagine a stepmom watching this with her step daughter thinking "HEY"!!!!There are Carol Brady's out there dammit. They are all not evil..just saying stepmother with a disgusted look made me cringe a bit.
Ella meets the Prince for the first time in the woods before the Ball which is different. The meeting is kind of cute.
We also get some more backstory on the characters. And I really liked that. All the additions to the story are well done.
A quick note: costume designer Sandy Powell may have not only got a nomination here..she may have just won an Oscar .Moms get the dress now for Halloween!!!
In an age where girls are bombarded with Kardashians fighting on TV. And wives from East Coast to the West Coast throwing things at each other, this film is a must see for adults and children with a theme of kindness through out. And what Cinderella says to the Evil Stepmother at the very end, and I will not spoil it..is fantastic.
4 1/2 stars out of 5. The world can be cruel. It is up to you on how you approach it. The best film I have seen so far this year.
Again thanks for your time.
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