Film Comparisons: Ever After vs. Cinderella
Ever After (1998), with Anna Maguire, vs. Cinderella (2015), with Eloise Webb
These two retellings of the classic fairy tale are both solid, watchable adaptations of the story, and each one takes it in a different direction. Ever After, aimed mostly at adults and teen girls, is one of the few non-musical, non-magical Cinderella movies; it gives the story a more historical context, replacing the Fairy Godmother with the Renaissance painter Leonardo da Vinci. The writing is smart enough that the plot still feels relevant and fresh to modern viewers, which is an impressive feat, but it also makes the movie too sophisticated and dramatic for most kids.
Cinderella, a live-action remake of the Disney cartoon, is also a non-musical, and to draw kids in, it makes up for the lack of songs with some silly and goofy moments. (Cinderella is still friends with the house mice, and her Fairy Godmother still turns them into horses so she can go to the ball.) But the writing and acting are good enough that most adults should enjoy this movie, too. So far, this is definitely the best film to come out of Disney's recent trend of live-action remakes of classics. (See previously, Alice in Wonderland, Oz: The Great and Powerful, and Maleficent. Up next, Emma Watson in Beauty and the Beast, due out July 2017.)
Drew Barrymore and Lily James as adult Danielle and Ella.
Take a guess: Which movie is actually realistic, and which one is just pretty?
Something else that these two movies have in common is that each one has an excellent adult actress giving a great performance as the wicked stepmother. Angelica Huston (Ever After's Baroness Rodmilla) and Cate Blanchett (Cinderella's Lady Tremaine) are both so impressive in creating fun, love-to-hate-them villains, and they even give their characters a touch of depth and sympathy behind their cruel facades. But let's talk about the child actresses.
In Cinderella, Eloise has about six minutes of screentime as young Ella. She's almost all wide eyes and smiles, cheerfully proclaiming, "I believe in everything!" when her ill-fated mother (Hayley Atwell) mentions fairy godmothers. And even after growing up, she remains constantly upbeat and passive, never once getting angry at her stepmother or stepsisters, no matter how badly they treat her. The film is good, but this character is bland beyond belief, despite adult actress Lily James's best attempts to give her some personality.
Danielle and Ella both exclaim, "Papa!" and run to their fathers when he comes home.
Danielle is dirty because she's just been mud-wrestling with a friend.
But while Cinderella focuses on Ella's kindness and optimism, Ever After highlights Danielle's wit and intelligence. As young Danielle, Anna gets almost the exact same amount of screentime (about seven minutes), and her role is a lot like Eloise's: they both start out sweet and happy, and end crying over the death of a parent. But Danielle has so much more spirit and spunk than Ella. As a little girl, she's sweet but also fun-loving and mischievous, and as an adult (played by former child star Drew Barrymore, in her early 20's here), she's kind but also strong and able to stand up for herself. As I said, both movies are good in their own ways, but to me, there's no question that of the two child actresses, Anna gives the stronger, more believable performance. It's also great to see Drew in something other than a romantic comedy that doesn't deserve her.
LINKS
The premiere of Cinderella, March 2015. All Disney live-action film premieres and remakes here.
Awards: Cinderella nominated for Choice Movie: Sci-Fi/Fantasy at the 2015 Teen Choice Awards.
Other reviews of Drew's films: Firestarter (1984).