Rather than anything original or humorous or, heaven forbid, romantic developing from this fable, we get only tired clichés and worn-out stereotypes.
The movie was directed by Mark Rosman, who may have been chosen for the job because he directed Ms. Duff in one of her "Lizzie McGuire" TV shows. But I remember Rosman as the director of "The House on Sorority Row," one of the most god-awful slasher movies in history. Not a propitious association.
Everything that happens in "A Cinderella Story" is telegraphed about two days in advance, but I have to admit I did laugh once at something Sam's stepsisters say. However, one laugh in ninety minutes is hardly worth the effort, nor is the wholly manipulative ending worth the wait. Most adolescent female comedies seem pretty silly and vacuous to me, not unexpected since I am not a part of the movie's target audience of adolescent females, but the fact is "A Cinderella Story" makes most of its competition look good. Where are the Olsen twins when you need them?
Video:
The colors in this anamorphic widescreen presentation are as natural as you could want. Usually, in a comedy of this sort, the screen is awash in brilliant, unrealistic hues, but this time we're fooled and the image is quite truthful and lifelike. However, the definition is not perfect, with some minor indistinctness to the picture, some slight, hazy color bleed-through. The screen dimensions measure about 1.74:1 across my standard-screen HD television, and, overall, the transfer is free of digital artifacts, grain, moiré effects, or halos.
Audio:
To be honest with you, I wasn't even aware through most of this movie that it even had sound. The dialogue is irrelevant, and there are no special effects. So there's not a lot for the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio to do. There is hardly any surround sound, nor is the front-channel stereo particularly wide. But it is all very clear and clean and well balanced, which is a blessing, even if the frequency and dynamic ranges are limited.
Extras:
Most of the extras are of the ordinary and expected variety, apt accompaniment to an ordinary film of ordinary expectations. There's an audio commentary by Hilary Duff and other cast members, referred to as "Hanging Out With Hilary and Friends," as though we were all part of one big, happy gang. Then, there is an eight-minute featurette, "Cinderella Couture: The Making of a Fashionably Modern Fairy Tale," which deals mainly with the film's costumes and makeup. After that is a "Find Your Prince/Princess Challenge" where you answer questions to find your own true love. Sisters Hilary and Hallie Duff do a music video together, "Our Lips are Sealed," and there are about two minutes of uneventful additional scenes and eight minutes of blurry screen tests. Twenty-six scene selections and a widescreen theatrical trailer round out the bonus materials. English and French are the spoken language choices, with English, French, and Spanish subtitles.
Parting Shots:
In all fairness, "A Cinderella Story" is not as bad as the Olsen twins' "New York Minute," because at least there is a plot involved, however silly or contrived it may be. But that's not saying much. The whole thing's still nowhere near as good as the original fairy tale. By comparison, Drew Barrymore's "Ever After" is as delightful a retelling of the old tale as "A Cinderella Story" is drab. I'd highly recommend the 1998 Barrymore film over this 2004 retread any day.
Everything that happens in "A Cinderella Story" is telegraphed about two days in advance, but I have to admit I did laugh once at something Sam's stepsisters say. However, one laugh in ninety minutes is hardly worth the effort, nor is the wholly manipulative ending worth the wait. Most adolescent female comedies seem pretty silly and vacuous to me, not unexpected since I am not a part of the movie's target audience of adolescent females, but the fact is "A Cinderella Story" makes most of its competition look good. Where are the Olsen twins when you need them?
Video:
The colors in this anamorphic widescreen presentation are as natural as you could want. Usually, in a comedy of this sort, the screen is awash in brilliant, unrealistic hues, but this time we're fooled and the image is quite truthful and lifelike. However, the definition is not perfect, with some minor indistinctness to the picture, some slight, hazy color bleed-through. The screen dimensions measure about 1.74:1 across my standard-screen HD television, and, overall, the transfer is free of digital artifacts, grain, moiré effects, or halos.
Audio:
To be honest with you, I wasn't even aware through most of this movie that it even had sound. The dialogue is irrelevant, and there are no special effects. So there's not a lot for the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio to do. There is hardly any surround sound, nor is the front-channel stereo particularly wide. But it is all very clear and clean and well balanced, which is a blessing, even if the frequency and dynamic ranges are limited.
Extras:
Most of the extras are of the ordinary and expected variety, apt accompaniment to an ordinary film of ordinary expectations. There's an audio commentary by Hilary Duff and other cast members, referred to as "Hanging Out With Hilary and Friends," as though we were all part of one big, happy gang. Then, there is an eight-minute featurette, "Cinderella Couture: The Making of a Fashionably Modern Fairy Tale," which deals mainly with the film's costumes and makeup. After that is a "Find Your Prince/Princess Challenge" where you answer questions to find your own true love. Sisters Hilary and Hallie Duff do a music video together, "Our Lips are Sealed," and there are about two minutes of uneventful additional scenes and eight minutes of blurry screen tests. Twenty-six scene selections and a widescreen theatrical trailer round out the bonus materials. English and French are the spoken language choices, with English, French, and Spanish subtitles.
Parting Shots:
In all fairness, "A Cinderella Story" is not as bad as the Olsen twins' "New York Minute," because at least there is a plot involved, however silly or contrived it may be. But that's not saying much. The whole thing's still nowhere near as good as the original fairy tale. By comparison, Drew Barrymore's "Ever After" is as delightful a retelling of the old tale as "A Cinderella Story" is drab. I'd highly recommend the 1998 Barrymore film over this 2004 retread any day.
Average user rating (1-5):
Not yet rated.
Not yet rated.
[release]13289[/release]