Cinderella 2015: Courage, Kindness and A Whole Lotta Sparkle

I attended a sneak peek of Cinderella. All opinions expressed are my own.

“So this is love, mhm mhmm mhm mhm” rang through my head while I watched the newest Disney film debuting in theaters today: Cinderella. While the song never actually appeared in the film {or much vocal music for that matter}, the classic story was brought to life in a stunning manner, from the England landscape to every detailed costume.

The film followed the Disney animated classic pretty tightly, but did have a few little surprises sprinkled throughout. The mice did not talk {I was SO relieved over this}, but they were pretty adorable and their personalities shown through — even fan favorite chubby Gus Gus.

Lily James was excellent in the role of Cinderella. She was so sugary sweet with her perfect teeth and cool hair, I couldn’t help but fall in love with her myself! The evil stepmother – Cate Blanchett – also rocked the role and her cold hard stares had me shaking in my boots. I was hoping for a tad more depth to Helena Bonham Carter’s role as the Fairy Godmother and narrator, but the brilliant costuming and CGI during her scene made up for it.

The film was visually beautiful and brought some new sparkle to this classic love story. Like literal sparkle…The glass slippers were amazing in Swarovski crystal. Swarovski also provided more than 7 million crystals that were used in costumes and 100 tiaras for the ball scene. “Sparkly” is pretty much the perfect word to describe this film. The film’s scenery also made me want to travel to the countryside of England. Simply gorgeous.

But is it kid-friendly? Surely the Frozen Fever short shown before the film will get little ones into the audience {and is SO well done, it may be worth the price of admission}, but will little ones be able to sit through this live action film? My answer is likely no.

When I showed Kinley {age 4.5} the trailer, she had little interest. So much so that she decided she wanted to skip the preview with me. I was stunned — she loves movies, and does really well at them, but she said the step sisters and stepmother were too scary. It’s impossible to know what truly will scare a little kid, but I decided to not fight it with her. This film is rated PG, so suitable for kids, but there definitely may be a few darker elements that may stick with sensitive children.

We’re all familiar with the themes: Heartbreak from parents dying, kindness to all creatures, betrayal, finding love and feeling alive again. Concepts that are easy for adults to comprehend, but my guess is little ones may not grasp the bigger picture. For that, my age recommendation for this film is 7 years and up.

More than anything though, kids and adults of all ages will embrace the film’s overarching theme, which is to be kind and have courage. Wouldn’t the world be such a wonderful place if we all lived by those rules?

I give this film a 3/5 stars. It’s beautiful to watch, but the fact is, it has been done many times, and I preferred the unique plot twists Maleficent offered. If your child is a diehard princess fan, it definitely will be worth a watch on the big screen, if only to see those glass slippers the way God intended — super sparkly and over-the-top.

Do you plan to see Cinderella? Enjoy!