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Why this live-action Disney is better than the later ones

posted 4 years ago by AmeriGirl26 (15110)
13 replies | jump to latest

I was watching this again, and remembered why I love this film (and a few others) more than the other live-action Disney remakes of classic cartoons.

I love that they didn't tell the exact same story the cartoon did, nor did they recreate a musical. In fact, they gave this film its own unique music and songs, with a few familiar ones added in (thank you, Helena Bonham Carter ;) ). The acting was very good and natural, (the scene where Ella talks to her mom for the last time still makes me cry a little), the romance between her and the prince, while a bit unrealistic, still feels like they actually have feelings for each other. And there are some funny parts. The actors could actually do their job and convince you they were their characters, they weren't behaving like a bunch of bored, high school drama kids following a script they had read a million times. While they did follow some parts of the cartoon story, such as Ella's pink dress being shredded by her stepsisters, and being temporarily transformed into her ballgown, there were other parts where they either followed non-Disney Cinderella tropes, or added in a few one would not expect. They also gave each character their own unique look, instead of copying the cartoon like a cut-and-paste book. I didn't even mind the random black people in this one, because it wasn't in-your-face and snotty like in later Disney films, and I like the Prince's right-hand man :D. That actor always plays very likeable characters. And the costumes were gorgeous! You can tell someone put a lot of love and work into this film, unlike the later Disney live-action flicks.

[–] sslssg (35179) 4 years ago

I agree. I don't hate some of the other live action remakes, but they are missing heart and certainly don't work as well as this one does.

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

Indeed.

[–] MovieBooker94 (412) 4 years ago

I totally agree with you. This, The Jungle Book, and Pete's Dragon are much better remakes than the other ones I'm even making a top 3 reasons why on a word document. I'm not done with it yet but I'm halfway there.

[–] AmeriGirl26 (15110) 4 years ago

I'm kinda in the minority here, but I liked the live-action "Alice in Wonderland" they made in 2010. I find I like Wonderland better in general when there's an actual storyline in it.

[–] MovieBooker94 (412) 4 years ago

To your credit, I can see why the Alice in Wonderland remake didn't make the same mistakes of retreading the animated version as much as the later remakes did. Even though it had the cliche Chosen One narrative that was done better in the Narnia movies, you can at least argue that it was doing it's own thing.

[–] AmeriGirl26 (15110) 4 years ago

I especially loved how all the characters in "Underland" now had their own names and personalities, instead of just having the generic names from the book. Plus, Tarrant Hightopp was awesome :D

[–] MovieBooker94 (412) 4 years ago

Yeah, I'll admit, they had creative names, but to me though it was just an OK film with gorgeous visuals and a mostly solid cast of actors (I have nothing against Mia Washikowska just the way the character was written), but a cliched plot that had a bit of creativity but still predictable.

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

One main reason: Lily James

She is the perfect Cinderella.

[–] aavfreak (3396) 4 years ago

I think the live action remakes work better with more real-world settings. Cinderella is mostly real people doing real things.

The movies with heavy fantasy elements don't work as well for live action and are better suited for animation. Aladdin has genies and flying carpets and such. The Lion King is the best example. It's animals doing animal things. I can't imagine why anyone would think that live action would be a good idea for it.

Cinderella on the other hand works well in this regard and the fairy godmother stuff was well done enough that you don't feel that it should be animated instead.

[–] melissah1982 (883) 4 years ago

Agree. This is probably the only live Action I could really get into. Actually even saw it in the theaters. Though I do have some very minor gripes, over all it's a beautiful story. I always enjoy when they flesh out the Prince and Kit was a great prince. I liked that they didn't try to force the look/feel of the original movie like they did with Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. When they do that and the characters don't look right, it bothers me. So when they make the choice to make original looking character designs, it works MUCH better.

[–] AmeriGirl26 (15110) 4 years ago

If you like Cinderella stories where the prince has more character development, try "Ever After" too :D. I love that movie!

[–] melissah1982 (883) 4 years ago

Ever after is a great movie. And Angelica Huston was amazing as the Step Mother. I have actually been really into the old TV mini series versions of some of the stories. You can find them free on You Tube. Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, and 1000 and One Nights (Aladdin). They are really good. I don't know the full story of them, it they are foreign because there's over dubbing in voices but they are great.

The beauty And the Beast (Alessandro Preziosi as the Beast) is a very interesting watch. It does it's completely own thing but has little nods to the Disney movie in there. I don't think the Disney nods are needed but it's fun to pick out. There is definitely a gothic romance feel to it but I like how the Beast is made from his own actions instead of an enchanted spell. It has some Phantom of the Opera imagery too.

The Cinderella one (Vanessa Hessler as Cinderella) is a more modern take that takes place in, I believe, the 40's or 50's Rome. Definitely more of the Prince. It's another 'no magic' version of the story, so it's fun to see how things happen.

1000 and One Nights (Also with Vanessa Hessler as Sharazad) is good. It's the story of Aladdin and they have a couple little Disney references but is over all a completely different story. Has some great action and stuff. I actually remember this one being on TV at one time. I like the guy who Plays Aladdin and it has one of the most heart breaking moments where Sharazad (instead of Jasmine) flat out rejects him at court.

I don't know if you know of any of these, but if your bored one weekend, give them a shot.

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

Again it is thanks to the absolute perfection that is Lily James.