Cinderella

Sometimes I forget that Disney's Cinderella was released in 1950, but it is impossible not to remember that when watching the opening credits. If the style of the song "Cinderella" does not show the films age, the artful and antiquated background on the credits sure does. And then, the screen fades to the classic storybook scene, the one that makes you all excited because you know it's going to be a great fairytale, but Cinderella did it first. Cinderella is the OG fairytale, and while that is respectable and well worth its due, it makes me think I may not enjoy this film as much as I did thirteen years ago, or as much as my grandparents did forty years ago.

                How are Drizella and Anastasia already vain and selfish? They are literally like ten years old. Why are ten year olds being blamed for the frivolous spending and cold hearted ways of their mother? And Lady Tremaine’s hair is literally the evilest hairdo to ever exist. I did not recall her hair to be that unreasonably shaped and grey when tried to picture the characters, and I surely don’t remember the ice cold scene of the three of them standing over Cinderella as she mourns her father. I do remember Anastasia’s bright red hair, but this is probably due to the fact that she is the main character in a later film.

                The tower in Cinderella seems very symbolic. Being high up does not only mean Cinderella is trapped, both literally in life and figuratively in your circumstances, it also means she is above her surroundings. Cinderella, a pure character is above the stepmother and evil stepsisters in character and in beauty. She is also worth a much better lifestyle, like a princess’s maybe, because she is kind and fair. (It is only a coincidence that she has a perfect view of the castle) Jaq Jaq and Gus Gus also show their innocence and purity as they instantly become friends after Gus is rescued from the trap, and as Jaq risks his life to stop the evil Lucifer from eating the pudgy mice.

                Speaking of animals, where did this dog come from? I don’t remember Bruno at all, but as soon as I saw him I figured he belonged to Cinderella and her father. Dog people are inherently good. Cats are the sidekicks of minor villains, and evil people. It’s just a fact of life. The cat’s also named Lucifer, so that might help with the dark characterization. The animals also play prominent roles in the film. The birds and mice that dress Cinderella and eventually recreate the dress for her show an innate good in doing so. Maybe it Is to show that because Cinderella is kind, and not super evil, nature is more inclined to help her. Lucifer also spends a lot of screen time chasing the mice and wreaking Tom and Jerry like havoc. This makes up the bulk of the movie, (it literally takes like five minutes for Cinderella to get gussied up, go to the ball, and fall in love) and I can’t find a particularly reasonable symbolic analysis for it. It could also be that you need to laugh for thirty minutes after you watch the cold blooded step mother glare at Cinderella as she sobs.

                You also need that feeling of triumph once Cinderella pulls the glass slipper out of her dress and you realize that she is too clever to be played with. After an hour of seeing white doves, white horses, and white castles you are ready for a happy ending with a white wedding. Never mind that we have no idea how many words Cinderella has exchanged with the prince. We should just be happy that there will be no more visibly dark and symbolic close ups on the stepmother’s face.