Review: Cinderella

In an era when deconstruction and revisionism of childhood tales are the norm, Disney's live-action Cinderella is almost brave and transgressive in its reverential adherence to the 1950 animated classic. One could call it a safeguarding of the canon but, as written by Chris Weitz and directed by Kenneth Branagh, Cinderella explodes with such colour and romance and purity of heart that to begrudge its avoidance of the tale's darker corners would be curmudgeonly at best.

Indeed, unlike last year's Maleficent, Cinderella rarely ventures into the shadows though sadness is the engine that undergirds both our heroine (Downton Abbey's Lily James) and her wicked stepmother, the Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett) or "Madam" as she has Cinderella address her. Though not reimagined to the degree that Maleficent or The Wicked Witch of the West (2013's Oz the Great and Powerful) were, Cinderella's wicked stepmother has been humanised. This is a woman who has known love and happiness, but also realises that love and security are mutually exclusive. Her marriage to Cinderella's father (Ben Chaplin) is one of mutual convenience - she provides companionship in exchange for social and financial stability. If there was any love in the mix, it may have surely curdled at the knowledge that she is very much an interloper in both her husband's heart and home, both of which are still dominated by her predecessor (Hayley Atwell).

Blanchett conveys the bitterness and desperation behind the polished veneer, but her true colours come out in ways both subtle (her recovery when she discovers her stepdaughter's fluency in French) and overt (her increasing resentment at having to scrabble for stability). The actress has always had a mutable appearance - it is often hard to reconcile that it is the same person who essayed Katharine Hepburn, Veronica Guerin, Jasmine French, and Galadriel; even her two turns at Queen Elizabeth seem the work of two different actresses - and here there is something of the vulpine and reptilian about her. There were instances when she recalled Joan Crawford or Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford (greenlight that Mommie Dearest remake stat). Her malevolence is almost unbearable in its deliciousness, and her penultimate scene - her figure at the staircase, horror stricken at her fate and perhaps even the extent of her cruelty to one who has never been anything but kind - is as striking an image of comeuppance as Glenn Close denuding her face in Dangerous Liaisons.

Very few actresses possess the extraordinary power of Blanchett's magnetism, and Branagh wisely desists from having Blanchett and James share too many frames together. James is about as perfect a Cinderella as one could hope for, emanating a goodness that is unforced and never verges into the treacly, but she diminishes in Blanchett's presence. Otherwise, she's utterly charming and spirited; it is no mystery that she captures the heart of the young prince (Richard Madden) who, in order to encounter the mysterious maiden once again, convinces his ailing father (Derek Jacobi) to invite all of the ladies of the land to the ball.

By any regard, the section of the film that starts with the reveal of the Fairy Godmother (the always wonderful Helena Bonham Carter) and ends with Cinderella arriving home after the ball is over-the-top in its extravagance. Branagh leaves no stop unpulled as mice are transformed into horses, lizards into footmen, a goose into a driver, and, most magical of all, Cinderella's torn, handmade dress into a breathtakingly beautiful gown. Her entrance at the ball is a moment for the ages, an unabashed tribute to the likes of Powell and Pressburger, Vincente Minnelli, and Max Ophuls, all of whom knew how make celluloid swoon.

The visual effects are first-rate, but the bulk of the enchantment derives from production designer Dante Ferretti and costume designer Sandy Powell. Though Cinderella's early release may hinder its chances come Oscar time, make no mistake: the Oscars rightly belong to these two titans who surpass themselves with their exquisitely detailed and astonishingly inventive designs.

Cinderella

Directed by: Kenneth Branagh

Written by: Chris Weitz

Starring: Cate Blanchett, Lily James, Richard Madden, Helena Bonham Carter, Derek Jacobi, Stellan Skarsgård, Nonso Anozie, Holliday Grainger, Sophie McShera, Rob Brydon, Ben Chaplin, Hayley Atwell