She gets to narrate the whole thing in a soothing, British whisper.īranagh, as evidenced in his later-career directorial work, understands well enough what movie he’s agreed to make. Nobly disheveled in a way only this actress can pull off, it is good that Branagh did right by his film in casting her, (and that she accepted) even though they share a much ballyhooed romantic past. It’s this character who benefits most from the extra minutes freed up to the (familiarly thin) story by the lack of singing, proving again that it pays off far more to play an antagonist with bite than a forgetably kind protagonist.īut the film’s most noteworthy get has to be none other Helena Bonham Carter in the Helena Bonham Carter role of the elegant yet flighty Fairy Godmother. They worked hard to pour the attractive Blanchett into a gaunt, erudite crassness, but at a glance, one nonetheless sees why Cinderella’s father may’ve opted to take up with the woman in the first place. Although my daughter was perplexed as to why the typically aging harpy Wicked Stepmother was played by someone so… pretty. Cate Blanchett is gleefully wicked as Cinderella’s marrying-up gold-digging stepmother, evoking a sort of cruel Blue Jasmine. (Although that particular classic tune does turn up, accompanying the later end of the loooong closing credits.)Įven if Lily James’ Cinderella ultimately parlays virtuousness almost exclusively via innocuous gentility, there are a few fun casting coups herein, both of the acclaimed veteran variety. (My seven year old daughter and Disney animated Cinderella devotee liked this film, even though three people died, all parents.) A dream may be a wish your heart makes, just don’t wish it in song here. With no song singing to bring it to life in the mopey parts, Cinderella also come off as a sad film for much of its running time. As respectable a job as Branagh does in sidestepping the things that the ever-growing legion of embittered anti-Disney moms hate (unhealthy priorities in the way of pining for a charming prince, unrealistic body image portrayals, breeding of narcissism, and a perceived unnatural tilt toward outward beauty, at least in the “Disney Princess” marketing) in favor of pursuing something that is truly classical, he ends up with a film that is, well, kind of dull.Ĭate Blanchett is The Wicked Stepmother in CINDERELLA. Apparently the Fairy Godmother forgot to visit director Rob Marshall and composer Stephen Sondheim in that regard.)Ĭinderella wrings with the artistic hopes of an evergreen effort, something that will play for ages to come. (Those involved with Disney’s other recent major live action fairy tale offering, Into the Woods, claim that a part of that film’s satisfying withholding of visual detail came down to the fact that Cinderella, in production concurrently, had most of the available money. Kenneth Branagh has helmed nothing short of the biggest, grandest, most across-the-board version of Cinderella ever committed to the screen. Timeless beauty, and “it’s what inside that counts” is something that the film manages to sincerely pull off, a failure of so many other Cinderellas that end up inadvertently selling little girls on the virtues of making an entrance in the most dazzling dress and shoes. Equal parts ordinary and pretty, this Cinderella never comes off as a fashion plate or runway model, even post-Fairy Godmother makeover (spoiler alert?), with the actress covered with glitter and ruffles. And even as the casting of James isn’t quite a grabbing of the brass ring, the actress remains a good choice nonetheless. Kelly that Branagh, and all of Disney proper behind him, were striving, at times straining for. Clearly, it is the particular timeless elegance of Ms. There’s a certain Grace evoked in this Cinderella, via Downton Abby‘s Lily James in the title role: Grace Kelly. And if the many tellings of this enduring tale have a common point, it is to take the grace we’re given, even as it piles on in most unexpected places, from the weirdest of sources. Perhaps more to the point, grace doesn’t cost. Such are the paraphrased pronouncements at a key point of Kenneth Branagh’s tempered and well measured take on the oft-told tale of “ Cinderella”. Kindness doesn’t cost… Love doesn’t cost… Kenneth Branagh’s Take Offers Grace But Lacks Charm
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