Editor Reviews:

Product Description:
Special Disney presentation of the classic musical of Cinderella, who suffers the torments of her wicked stepmother and spoiled stepsisters.
Genre: Feature Film Family
Rating: NR
Release Date: 4-FEB-2003
Media Type: DVD

Amazon.com:
More is not necessarily better. A glitzy Hollywood cast and a big budget did not improve the wonderful 1957 teleplay (or its equally charming 1964 remake) upon which this version is based. This is partly because Brandy, cast in the title role, cannot act. Not helping matters are Whoopi Goldberg as the prince's mother and Jason Alexander as his valet. Their shtick wears thin very quickly. However, Paolo Montalban is charismatic as the prince, and Whitney Houston plays a fairy godmother with pizzazz. The production cost millions, and is certainly lavish, but the whole affair feels forced and overdone, reminding one of a prom queen wearing too much makeup. It does deserve credit for a multi-ethnic cast, the addition of two new songs and a hip attitude. However, the 1964 version (the original was not taped) is much sweeter and more romantic. Originally released as Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Rating : - A Little Girl's Dream and Not Much Else
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.