A Cinderella Story
A Cinderella Story is a by the book modern telling of Cinderella. It used to be a guilty-pleasure of mine. I know it’s dumb, cliched and very early 2000’s but really there something clumsy and likable about it that I don’t dislike it, I don’t it but this shit could be so much worst.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Chad Michael Murray as Austin
Story follows smart, down-earth Cinderella named Samantha in this movie. Of Course, in the trope of making her “likable,” Sam is more “guyish” as she doesn’t like fashion or girly stuff like her arch-rival, the popular bitchy mean girls, who prefer rice crackers to big macs. Anyway, she has the world bestest childhood evar, till her dad remarries and dies. She the does chores and works at a diner so she can go to Princeton, which is why she stays the awful people. Through a chat she meets the Prince character who is the popular guy at her high school. He plays football but also likes Lord Alfred Tennyson because it’s he is less well known than Shakespeare. Also her mean nickname is Diner Girl, real clever kids.
It’s pretty by the book, you have the godmother, who is Sam’s kick-ass manager, a cell phone fills in as the slipper. And instead of getting “married‘ they both go off to New Jersey.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Regina King as Rhonda
I think the real reason I don’t dislike this movie as much as I probably know it, is the supporting cast sells the movie more than the leads. Like everyone but the leads are making the cast work, maybe because they don’t need to be likable and perfects and since Sam and Austin are bland and boring, there is nothing to work with for characterizations. But methinks Duff isn’t the most talent actress and a better actress could have made the dialogue more natural sounding.
Jennifer Coolidge as Fiona, Madeline Zima as Brianna, & Andrea Avery as Gabriella
The Technicals aren’t specials in any way. They feel a lot like Ella Enchanted with the cheesy styling. The camera work and editing is very basic. There isn’t much to it. This movie also seems to be ad for it’s soundtrack.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Dan Byrd as Carter
A Cinderella Story
This movie like next week’s movie has a be your self theme, which is trite and has been done a billion times because it’s easy yet seemingly genuine, very basic.