Cinderella For Today (Cinderella (2021)) (Spoiler Free Review)

Cinderella is a classic story that has been adapted in possibly a thousand different ways. A majority of them never charm us well enough to make the adaptation compelling or enjoyable, whether it's for adults or children. This Camila Cabello starring Cinderella story is an all-new retelling that stays true to its enchanting setting while incorporating the music and styles of dialogue used today. 

This Cinderella starts out similar and yet it lives up to its statement of being as modern as it could be even if it's something we've seen before. Cabello's Ella is the stepdaughter of a somewhat relatable and a tiny bit cruel stepmother played by Idina Menzel who wants her to marry off her daughters, including Ella. However, this version of Ella doesn't want to fall in love or live the life of a common woman. Ella wants to be a designer and businesswoman of her own dress shop. Instead of focusing on Ella's road to independence, we also see the struggle of women within the prince's castle as his mother, the Queen (Minnie Driver), and his younger sister are constantly being overlooked by his father, The King (Pierce Brosnan). As obvious as it is already, the movie is focusing on women's empowerment this time around, and it's considerably new within the Cinderella narrative. 

But does it live up to its expectation? In the case of making it an inclusive fairy tale, it is safe to say that the movie really does its ultimate best to be as diverse as it can which is refreshing. Seeing a Latina as the lead is also great since ALMOST every adaptation of Cinderella has been played by white women. 

I can officially admit that Camila is a star. Her acting debut should not have been Cinderella but then again, there ain't any other way to showcase her vocals as much as a musical will. So many big names are featured in this film but there is no doubt that Camila manages to outshine them all... but not Idina Menzel. No one could ever out-sing the woman who sang the crap out of Let It Go and Into The Unknown. Billy Porter was in the movie for such a short while, which was disappointing. Hoped he had a secret, unrecognizable role within the narrative before making his big entrance as the Fabulous Godmother. 

Throughout the film, I couldn't help but wonder whether the director and writers were manifesting a Baz Luhrmann-like adaptation of Cinderella with covers of radio hits by making them seem unique and sounding original the same way Moulin Rouge did with their roster of hits alongside one or two original songs. Camila's solo original, 'Million To One', is the highlight of the soundtrack featuring the second strongest vocal efficiency albeit its strong message about following dreams, making yourself known through success and hard work. The first being Menzel's performance of another original song, 'Dream Girl', with lyrics portraying the frustrations of believing in pipe dreams. The two songs manage to mirror each other but in opposite ways. One being a positive take on ambition while the other is about never achieving that ambition. These songs conflicting with each other's meanings are the only conventional parts of the movie. 

Apart from those strong performances, the covers and mashups that bombarded the screen whether it was through Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation or Jennifer Lopez's Let's Get Loud, they were not as memorable as the original numbers but managed to entertain nonetheless, getting viewers to sing and stomp their feet to familiar beats. (And you could do it as loud as you want since you will be watching it in the comfort of your home)