From the very first shot of Kenneth's Branagh's live-action remake of "Cinderella," one thing is immediately clear--the following two hours are going to be full of gorgeous filmmaking. Branagh knows what aspects of film are a necessity when adapting one of Disney's most famous fairy tales. In terms of cinematography, the colors are vibrant, the scenery is bright, and the costuming is beautiful. These aspects could have easily allowed the film to feel over-the-top and cheesy, but the solid performances and heart-felt script make this another solid entry in the Disney live-action canon.Since 2010's "Alice and Wonderland," the Mouse House has been cranking out live action remakes of some of their most famous animated films (in fact, "Alice" did so well that Disney hired Tim Burton to direct another remake for them, Dumbo in 2018/2019). "Cinderella" sets itself apart from these other remakes in a couple ways.
First, it doesn't suffer from the CGI overload that plagued "Alice" and "Maleficent." Instead, there are beautiful shots of sweeping countrysides and glistening ballrooms (where one of the film's greatest scenes takes place). And the film is all the better for it. It feels all the more real when a film is shot on location as opposed to a green screen warehouse. That being said however, when the film does take advantage of CGI, it is indeed magical. The sequence when the Fairy Godmother (a very fun performance by Helena Bonham Carter) transformers various objects and animals into the royal coach and coachmen for Cinderella (played by Downton Abby's Lily James) looks spectacular and is just another example of Branagh's excellent vision for this film. He knows to use visual effects sparingly, and that allows for those select sequences and shots to stand out.
Second, unlike the two other films previously mentioned, that sought to present a revisionist take on the original musicals, "Cinderella" does not deviate at all from the original. On paper this way seem like a drawback, but I consider it a strength. The film may not be refreshingly original, but it is refreshingly traditional. I don't want to see a "gritty" remake of Cinderella. I don't want to see how Lady Tremaine was actually the hero of the story (besides Cate Blanchett is much too delightfully evil in this film for me to want anything else). The story of Cinderella is a timeless fairy-tale, it's ok to have a remake that pays homage to that by keeping everything the same! Plus, its been 65 years since the Disney released the original "Cinderella." In today's Hollywood, that's plenty of time to justify a remake (especially when you have two Spider-Man remakes in five years).But the film has more than great cinematography and directing. The cast performs wonderfully as well. The true scene-stealer is Blanchett, who seems to be having a ball playing the evil stepmother, Lady Termaine. Every line of vile dialogue is delivered in a cold, yet civilized way, and her way of carrying herself around each scene sets her high above anyone else in the room. Yet she is not just a throwaway villain. The film does humanize her to an extent and allow to audience to see why she has become so bitter towards the world. There isn't much of it, but there is just enough in a film as short as this (just over 90 minutes) for it to work.
I've praised Kenneth Branagh a lot in this review, but he deserves every bit of that praise. Disney could not have chosen a better director to bring the tale of "Cinderella" back to the screen for a new generation. Thanks to his vision for the film, the newest Disney remake is full of gorgeous cinematography, charming performances, romance, and most importantly...magic!
