And while the main character is essentially a slave, her character motivations at least made sense within the context of the story. Ironically, by trying to update this Cinderella by giving her the sort of education and independence the original never had, the reboot actually dumbs her character down to a crumbling pile of glaring inconsistencies. Apparently Uncle Walt didn’t foresee the rise of The Bravo Channel. Still, the film gets a bit of a bad rap as being an archaic example of early 50’s gender roles. Yes, they’re in there. But those were the times. Yes, God help us if men became involved in fashion design. Mice from 1950’s “Cinderella.” Courtesy of Disney. “Leave the sewing to the women!” one of the mouse girls chirps to the boys. I could forgive this overly lavish attention to detail if I had any investment in the character of Cinderella. But I don’t. The film’s only moral, stated with ruthless redundancy, is: “Have courage and be kind.” And it gets delivered with the sort of frequency that, if one were to make a drinking game out of it, they’d have alcohol poisoning by the end credits. Seriously. Depending on how one counts each statement, it’s either nine or eleven times in the film.īut I know what the film’s defenders will say: “Wasn’t that the overly simplistic moral to the original Cinderella?” Well, yes. However, it’s a little more complicated than that. True, the original animated Cinderella will never win any awards for its shining feminism: On and on she goes, endlessly twirling with the sort of orgasmic ecstasy that would make Sailor Moon hang up her tiara for good. The scene drags on for an obnoxiously long time, making me wonder if I’m watching an update of an old classic, or a glittery pornographic film made for little girls. In a key scene in Kenneth Branagh’s “Cinderella,” a Fairy Godmother transforms Cinderella’s mother’s dress into a sparkling blue ball gown. Like many scenes in the movie, it’s a profound technical achievement. The film, at least, bristles with stunning cinematography, gorgeous costume design, and vibrant direction. And yet, something seems “off.” The camera hovers over Cinderella with fetishistic intensity. Lily James in 2015’s “Cinderella.” Courtesy of Disney.Īs a counterpoint to my recent article on “Cinderella,” I’m pleased to present the following essay by my cherished colleague, Rob Walker of.
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