Cinderella

I had high expectations for Cinderella. After it was released, all I kept hearing was that it was fantastic, that it had all the magic of the Disney animated classic. So, when I finally saw Cinderella, I expected to be thoroughly entertained. I was more than entertained, I became emotionally invested in the outcome of the story. The live action remake doesn't just focus on Cinderella/Ella, the wicked stepmother and stepsisters, we get Ella's back story, as well as the prince's and a glimpse of Lady Tremaine's. I loved Ella's mother. (Though that might just be because she's Peggy Carter.) I think through meeting the mother, we get to see where Cinderella's kind spirit came from. However, even more than the mother, I appreciated the depth given to the wicked stepmother. You can see in Lady Tremaine's eyes and expression that she is genuinely hurt by Ella's father and he is unaware that he is hurting her. Though she should not have taken that pain out on her stepdaughter, her wickedness didn't come from nowhere.

The costumes were amazing. That dress! I bet there was a lot of pressure to make that dress perfect. I really think it was. It wasn't just a copy of the animated dress, it was something people could respond to now. I loved the little butterfly details. Watching the movie with my sister-in-law, we commented on how hot the dress would be to wear.  There was no cage holding it up, it was all material.  We both remembered on our wedding days, how sweaty we were in our dresses.  I remember feeling the beads of sweat rolling down my back and legs. Cinderella's dress was much thicker, with layers upon layers of crinoline.  My Hubby and his brother then commented about how hideous a lot of the other dresses were.  The step-sisters dresses were a couple of the worst, of course, but a lot of the guests' dresses were not that nice, ranging from dull to awful.  Then we made it a game of picking out the "not bad" ones. The stepmother's dress was nice, though "wicked-looking", but nothing compared to Cinderella's.  I'm sure it was done to make hers stand out even more, with only picky adults (like us) noticing.  It is highly unlikely a child would notice, their eyes glued to that blue dress.  The men's costumes were nice too.  I think they did a good job with the guards, Arch Duke and King, but the Prince, he looked amazing. I'm sure it was also designed to make the actor look that much more handsome and appealing.

The relationship between the Prince and his father was fantastic.  It was sad, but also heartwarming, knowing that the King wanted his son to be happy. Also, can I mention the Prince's eyes?  Bam! Amazing.  Also, the Captain of the Guard was perfect.  I thought he was a great match for the Prince. I liked that he spoke his mind and the Prince appreciated it.  I loved the slight ditziness of the fairy godmother.  She was lovely.  I just think that the characters, the way that they came alive on screen, the way that they were given depth, was fantastic.  I appreciate the happy ending and I'm glad that they didn't mess with it too much.  I like when kindness wins.

Because I love a good movie poster...