Cinderella - 2015 (Film Review)

Mar 14, 2015
It's the 21st century; Disney is slowly trying to rebuild its charm by re-doing its classic animated films to the live-action format. ‘Alice In Wonderland’ is a sappy snooze-fest, ‘Maleficent’ is just messy all over, and brace yourselves—there’s the Andy Serkis-directed ‘The Jungle Book’,‘Beauty and the Beast’ with Emma Watson and the recently announced 'Dumbo' by Tim Burton that’s coming out in the coming years. These cartoons being made to live-action has sparkled the eyes of Hollywood producers, and other studios (Warner Bros. is producing a ‘Tarzan’ and ehem.. ‘The Jungle Book’ re-dos) are now gearing up to follow the trend. It’s inevitable.

With the release of yet another take on the Cinderella story of Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Cinderella’, the question now if how it will stand on its own considering we have seen the story on the big screen a lot of times already. Does it offer something new to the table? I kept my expectations lowered to nothing going to see this movie, and you know what, I actually like this movie.
The reason why this film succeeded in many ways compared to say ‘Maleficent’ is that it never draws itself to the “dark” and “moody” plot twist that became a thing nowadays. Instead, it pays utmost respect to the 1950 animated classic by retaining its style and design. Kenneth Branagh sure does succeed in bringing this story for the modern audience by applying the “Shakespeare-an” trademark he was known for in his films.
Lily James is a charmer as the titular role. The ‘Downtown Abbey’ actress captured the beauty of the character with her strong-willed performance that makes her very likeable. Robb Stark himself, Richard Madden is a welcome presence as Prince Charming (I don’t think anyone calls him that in the movie.). I’m very glad they gave him a story to work out to, since there was no actual character to represent him in the 1950 cartoon. Cate Blanchett is a scene-stealer for sure as the stepmother. The bitter cruelty of her character was given a lot more depth than how the cartoon stepmother was portrayed.
All in all, this rendition of Cinderella was an honorable tribute to the 1950 classic, glamorizing its charm even more with the beautiful costume and set designs. Though  there were a few moments here and there where it gets really slow, this is still a magical rendition of the story. ‘Cinderella’ was a welcoming surprise; make sure to check this out this weekend with the family.

The geek rates it 8/10!

‘Cinderella’ is now showing in cinemas nationwide from Walt Disney Pictures!
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