Cinderella

I don't think I saw Disney's animated version of Cinderella when it first came out. But I did see the comic book that accompanied it, and can still remember my fascination with the talking birds, mice, and Lucifer the cat, over six decades ago. I suppose that that Cinderella was re-released, and I did see it, perhaps with my wife and children, at a later date.

My wife and I saw the new version recently, starring Lily James, Cate Blanchett, Derek Jacobi, and others. We liked it a lot. The story was very similar to the one in the animated version, although Cinderella was more athletic -- she rode a horse, and did it well. Also, the birds didn't put her gown together in this version.

Cinderella's mother made the girl promise to do two things, namely be courageous, and be kind. Cinderella obeyed, even when her servitude to her stepmother and stepsisters made that very difficult.

In the end, of course, the prince fell in love with her, and she ran away, at the final stroke of midnight, as her magically provided horses, coach, footmen, and coachman morphed back into mice, a pumpkin, lizards, and a goose -- which scene is probably the most appealing to little kids. Nonetheless, eventually the prince identified her with a glass slipper, the only item of attire left from her fairy godmother's magical preparation for the ball, and which would fit no one else in the kingdom.

The sets, including the views of the harbor, the castle, the forest, and the surrounding mountains, were spectacular. The costumes were splendid. Lots of details clicked, such as the way the clock struck. There was a clear struggle between good and evil, and good prevailed. Cinderella's last statement to her stepmother, who showed no evidence of repentance, was "I forgive you."

A fine film. I recommend this article, from Speculative Faith, which combines a review with a reaction to some negative reactions on the part of others. Here's another article, by the same author as the first one, E. Stephen Burnett, also on Cinderella.

Thanks for reading. See Cinderella. There's probably not much hurry -- it's doing very well in theaters, so it will be around for a while.