Cinderella. Rated G (very mild themes). 105 minutes. Directed
by Kenneth Branagh. Screenplay by Chris Weitz.
Verdict: An
unforgettable telling of a magical story.
What a relief that
the unmitigated disaster a contemporary re-telling of the much-loved Cinderella
fairytale might have been never eventuates. Instead, in the hands of the
accomplished Kenneth Branagh (Thor, Hamlet), the story’s values shine through
in scene after scene of expertly acted and brilliantly designed cinematic
beauty, superbly photographed by Cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos (Thor).
The modernised,
pop references that might have appeared are all rejected in favour of lavish,
traditional production values from Production Designer Dante Ferretti and
Costume Designer Sandy Powell (who worked together on Shutter Island and The
Aviator). The scale and beauty of their creativity is never less than
astonishing. Every time the magnificent Cate Blanchett’s evil stepmother
appears, it is in another stunning costume that risk becoming the only aspects
of the film you’ll remember.
While Walt
Disney’s Cinderella (1950) is the most memorable cinematic telling of the story
to date, Branagh’s version capitalises on state-of-the-art visual effects, of
which the sequences involving Helena Bonham Carter’s Fairy Godmother and Lily
James’s perfect Cinderella preparing to go to the Ball are the magical highlights.
As the clock strikes midnight, the chaos of Cinderella’s flight home from the
palace in a disintegrating pumpkin carriage is brilliantly realised.
But the heart of
the story is the potentially ill-fated romance between a cruelly mistreated
young commoner and her Prince Charming, Kit (Richard Madden). The onscreen
chemistry James and Madden share is heart-felt, and restores our faith in the
power of genuine romance. Where Cinderella also bucks the ‘fake it till you
make it’ trend of young, cinematic heroines, is the way that even though
Cinderella presents at the Ball as gorgeous princess in a stupendous gown, it
is actually the courageous, loyal and determined young woman with whom Kit
falls in love.
This review was
commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.
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