Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Release Date: March 13 2015
Disney has started having a knack for taking their classic tales and creating live-action retellings. Earlier this year we had Maleficent, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty from the perspective of the villain, and we also have future projects like The Jungle Book on the horizon. If we take Maleficent as an example, the main issue that a lot of Disney fans took from it was its disregard for a lot of the "source" material (the 1959 animated film) and completely rewriting a lot of what we already knew. So, is it a good idea for Disney to reimagine the story of one of the most iconic princesses?
It's really no surprise that Disney has decided to Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo around with the story of Cinderella. Aside from their animated film from 1950, there have been many adaptations of this Grimm tale. One that I hold close to my heart is the Rodgers and Hammerstein's versions, this includes the Broadway show and the Brandy TV special. I grew up with In My Own Little Corner and Ten Minutes Ago was one of the first songs I learned on the ukulele. With all these different adaptations of one classic fairytale, it does make me wonder how far away Disney is willing to veer away from their version of the story of which they established.
Watch the new trailer here!
Cinderella follows the story of Ella (Lily James) who's father marries Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett) after the death of her mother. Unfortunately for Ella, she suffers from years of abuse at the hands of her stepmother and her stepsisters Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophia McShera). Ella, now working as a servant girl for her ungrateful family, is renamed Cinderella for she often works amongst the cinders. She hopes to honour her mother's dying words to "have courage and be kind" despite her hardships in life. One fateful day, she crosses paths with a stranger in the woods who unbeknownst to her is the Prince (Richard Madden) who she grows to develop a special bond with. The Prince later sends out an invitation throughout the kingdom for all eligible maidens to attend his ball and Ella hopes to attend. With the help of her fairy godmother (Helena Bonham-Carter) and some helpful mice, Ella just might make it in time to meet with her new friend "Kit".
Although the trailer pretty much gives away the entire plot, I don't think anyone is expecting any massive shockers. It's a well-known story so Disney isn't really losing anyone by shoving the entire storyline into 2 minutes and 20 seconds. That being said, it's nice to see that so far it looks like it's going to be staying pretty close to the story we have grown to know. I don't think they're going to be pulling a Maleficent on us by making Lady Tremaine a misunderstood villain. And the Prince doesn't look like he's going to be absolutely redundant like Prince Phillip ultimately became. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Maleficent but that was only once I really put it as far away from canon in my head. But I guess Cinderella will be much more different as the main focus is really on our heroine rather than the mistress of all evil.
At the moment the trailer makes the film look classic and timeless. I'm thinking more along the lines of Pride and Prejudice. Except I don't think the characters would wear anything as vibrantly coloured as Lady Tremaine and her daughters. We also see a lot of CGI in the castle, the mice, the carriage and well.. practically everything. I get it Disney. I guess this is what's going to make it feel more connected to the animated movie. A sense of magic that could only really occur in fairytales and fantasy lands. But aside from that, I think the CGI is pretty good. It's not overbearing on everything else and blends in quite nicely.
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| Lily James as the new Ella |
Lily James looks like she's grown into her princess role quite nicely. She'll be the second live-action Cinderella that Disney will have in a few months. The first being Anna Kendrick in Into the Woods coming out this December/January (depending on where you live). That's another movie that I'm definitely looking forward to. Appearance-wise, James reminds me of Mia Wasikowska as Alice from the Tim Burton remake. But so far, James looks like shes got the grace to pull it off. When I first heard that Cate Blanchett was going play Lady Tremaine, I was ecstatic... and with good reason. She looks cold, cruel and her stoic face is on point. I'm probably one of the few people who doesn't actually watch Game of Thrones (sorry) but I do have to say Richard Madden does make a good Prince Charming. He's got that smooth and buttery speaking voice to match as well. Now, when you think of Helena Bonham-Carter with a wand, I don't think I would be the only one that would instantly think Bellatrix Lestrange. Thankfully, as the fairy godmother, she doesn't appear overly kooky which could turn her into a character who was present mainly for humorous purposes. She's got the right amount of quirkiness without appearing off the walls.
Disney also seems to be really hammering it in that Cinderella's dress is blue. Yeah... a lot of us still think it's supposed to be white, but whatever, It's still a dress fit for a princess. Let's also take a moment to appreciate the revamped glass slippers which according to the fairy godmother are quite comfortable. How considerate! I think they're gorgeous! The costume department is definitely outdoing themselves for this film.
And on a final note, the music in this trailer was so beautiful and I'm expecting great things from the score, I wonder if we'll get a cover of one of the songs from the animated film. Lana Del Rey gave a dark and sinister spin on Once Upon a Dream so it would be cool for Disney to make it a bit of trend with these live-action remakes. A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes perhaps?
Check out the initial teaser trailer for Cinderella (2015) below!
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