Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella

The voices of Brandy, Bernadette Peters and plenty more make this movie so enjoyable!!
Even how it has Jason Alexander, Victor Garbour and Whoppi Goldburg in the movie brings out the fun in it. What I love about it is that the music and lyrics are all composed my Richard Rodgers and oscar Hammerstein who have given us the most fantastic musicals over the years this is just to 'put the icing on the cake'!

I loved the Cinderella story as a child and I purchased this for my daughter. She goes around the house singing the songs from the movie and dressing like a princess. It is nice to see a wonderful old story revised and still warming the hearts of children, young and old.

This movie is offensive on so many levels.

For one thing, although I appreciate multiculturalism as much as anyone, the racial combinations here are nothing short of awkward and hilarious. The Stepmother is white, her kids are white and black (huh?); the King is white, the Queen is black, their kid is Asian (now that's a mind-bender). Look, Cinderella is a European fairytale; thus, it would not be racist for all the characters to be white. Really. Heck, you could even have a Cinderella for different cultures, no problem... but it all boils down to this: this culture, even as an "invented fantasy multi-cultural culture," needs to have "rules." If the casting is distracting from the story, it means that its "rules" either failed to hold up or don't exist (I think it's the latter). Frankly, if this is a medieval culture, one that doesn't have the benefit of airplanes or cars to shuttle various races about the world to star in poor musical adaptations, it would probably be a homogenous one; let's not even talk about how a black woman and a white man produce a child of an entirely different race. Really, are the producers so afraid that if kids don't see a multi-racial culture living in harmony, they'll end up racists?

On the bright side, your kids will notice these discrepancies, but probably won't care.

Whoever thought that Rodgers and Hammerstein should be sung pop/R&B-style is an idiot. Whitney Houston's renditions were sickening, and I winced every time Brandy belted something out in her weak, gravelly, raspy voice. She sounded like she had a cold. Whoopi Goldberg shouldn't be allowed near a mike for the rest of her life, either.

The acting is atrocious; everyone involved in this film could be out-acted by furniture (with the exception of Bernadette Peters). Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother should have earned a Razzie.

The script doesn't help anyone; you'll wince at the lines. The message is just as poor, if not goofy; it's all about self-empowerment, whereas the original fairytale is quite simply about someone underprivileged and beaten-down being raised up above the forces that previously enslaved her. It's so modernized that much of the charm Cinderella had was wholly removed. For that matter, it's been updated so much that it doesn't match up with the Political Correctness foisted upon it. Brandy marries "Prince Chris" (ahahaha!) which, if she was a modern woman, she wouldn't have to do. That's right, they should just live together for a while, and if it doesn't work out, Brandi could move out and start her own kingdom as a single mom with her 4 kids (Filipino, Latino, African, and Ukrainian). When those kids grow up they'll star in weepy interviews with Barbara Walters saying how resilient their mother was.

So why three stars? Well, quite frankly, it's entertaining to a certain degree. And although all the stars and the producers seem hell-bent on twisting and warping the original intent of the story, the score, and the script, your kids won't give a care. The sets and garments are lavish; even their poorest offerings are serviceable. The ending is just what every little girl wants to see. If I were too small to notice that nothing made sense and that the script sucks, this would probably be my favorite movie on earth.

So, if you're a girl less than 8 years of age, this is going to be your favorite movie ever. If you're older than 8 but less than 13, you might like it, but you'll have to get over the "weird factor." If you're 13 and above, this movie isn't for you... unless you love movies that are so bad they're good, in which case, this one will do the trick.

This is one of my wife's favorites so I'll let her share her thoughts. Sarah Ashley:

I love it on so many levels! This is the timeless story that every girl grows up with, presented in an updated way with all of the creative support of Disney. I could watch it 100 times and not get tired of it.

First, the classic music is absolutely addictive. It's beautiful, fun, and performed so incredibly by the stars. The performances tug at your heart and pull you in. The choreography also adds to the joy of this film. The costumes are pure Disney magical, with wonderful color combinations, fabrics and designs. Combine that with the whimsical world created by the set designers and you end watching a beautiful fantasy and a work of art.

Okay, granted the acting isn't academy award winning. And while it's true that my husband is the author of Walt Disney World® with Disabilities and we're huge Disney fans, I've loved this movie long before the book was a gleam in his eye, so I don't thing I'm biased towards Disney. This movie is a wonderful time and I highly recommend it!

Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Cinderella" was originally written in 1957 as a television showcase for Julie Andrews. That original live broadcast was seen by an estimated 107 million viewers. The charming musical's reputation was nearly destroyed by an embarrasingly amateurish 1965 TV remake featuring Lesley Ann Warren. It is this version, unfortunately, that was videotaped and shown on TV for several decades. Richard Rodgers obviously took leave of his senses, since he was executive producer of the 1965 remake. Oscar Hammerstein II died in 1960. If he had still been alive, the 1965 remake, which has all the charm and professionalism of a First Grade School Play, would certainly have killed him!
Nearly forty years after the original 1957 TV presentation came this 1997 candy-colored remake. It's all very attractively staged by director Robert Iscove and choreographed by Rob Marshall ("Cabaret," "Annie," "Chicago"). Kudos to Whitney Houston for insisting on "rainbow colored" casting. Many reviewers have commented on this version's interracial cast. Some love it, some are confused by it, some can't get past it and just enjoy the show. I say this: 1). Fairy tales exist in a realm beyond such petty things as racism and other assorted prejudices. 2). It seems fitting that a major Rodgers & Hammerstein production DOES AND SHOULD feature a multiracial cast who don't talk about it, and simply act and sing the story as they should; since moving beyond racism and other assorted prejudices is a MAJOR plot point in both Rodgers & Hammerstein's "South Pacific" and "The King and I." If the multi-racial casting here still bothers you, please listen to the song
"Carefully Taught" from "South Pacific."
But, back to the subject of this particular "Cinderella": There are several musical interpolations and alterations here. "The Sweetest Sounds" from Richard Rodgers' 1962 musical "No Strings" has been added as a rather fitting introductory duet for Cinderella and The Prince. A cynical song by Rodgers And Lorenz Hart (Rodgers' partner prior to Oscar Hammerstein) titled "Falling In Love With Love" is added for Bernadette Peters, in a particularly nasty turn as an emotionally abusive Stepmother. There is a noticeable shift in star power here, too. Whitney Houston's Fairy Godmother rules here. She brings plenty of DIVA POWER to her role; perhaps too much. Houston always gets the last word and also the last song (a forgotten Rodgers & Hammerstein ballad titled "Music In You.")
Caught between the star power of Houston and Peters, AND the charismatic sex appeal of Paolo Montalban as Prince Christopher Charming, Brandy Norwood does project a certain wide-eyed innocence as Cinderella, but she projects very little else. Being a pop music Princess, Brandy does not have a musical theatre voice, which the role definitely requires. Her speaking and singing voice barely registers above a faint whisper. Super-Sexy Montalban (who does have a beautiful, legitimate "theatre voice") carries her through the lovely duets "Ten Minutes Ago" and "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful?" The thrill of "Impossible/It's Possible" is lost amidsts all the CGI Special Effects used to affect the magical transformations. Whoopi Goldberg as the Queen and Jason Alexander as Prince Christopher's valet Lionel do manage a few moments of real comedic sparks. But I found myself missing the simple, black and white, genuine charms of the original 1957 production.
Thankfully, however, the 1997 remake almost erases the stench left by the 1965 version. You should be pleased, delighted, and/or entertained by both the 1957 and 1997 versions. Let's just hope the 1965 version, that real GOD-AWFUL 'amateur production", remains buried forever in a dark and lonely place.