Ladies & gentlemen, tonight, we are going to take a short break from reviewing the Fast & The Furious films. This time, we will be talking about the latest addition to the Disney live-action remake library. Featuring Emma Stone, Emma Thompson, Mark Strong, and some other people in the cast, the movie is Cruella.
Plot: Set during the 1960s, and 1970s, the movie begins with Cruella De Ville’s origins, and up to showing how she came to be the villain that has become one of the most infamous Disney villains to this day!
Right off the bat, 2021’s Disney film, Cruella, which is of course a remake of the 1961 Disney animated film, 101 Dalmatians, has a really interesting premise. We basically get to see how she started her journey to the vial lion that is well-known, how she came into contact with sidekicks Horace and Jasper, and things like that. We also get a better understanding of why Cruella decided to behave the way that she did. Also, Cruella’s journey is written up in a way that can be very relatable to many people in the world. The acting is also very strong. Emma Stone, and Emma Thompson especially steal the show fight from the start of the film. Now true, Emma Stone may not quite be Glenn Close from the live-action version of this story that was released back in 1996. However, Emma Stone really knows how to play the part of Cruella well. This is especially the case with Stone really capturing the spirit of who Cruella is in terms of acting like her, knowing how to dress like her, and things like that. Yeah, even if Cruella is clearly younger in this version, Emma Stone undoubtedly recognizes the nature of Cruella’s character. In addition to all of this, nearly all of the characters are written up really well. I mean you may love to really like them, or you know when to strongly dislike them. For instance, even if you might dislike the sidekicks, you can tell that they were trying to recapture the same spirit of who Horace, and Jasper were. Heck, they know how to bring out the comedy, just as Cruella, and those two minions did in the 1961 Disney animated film. It’s also good how Disney really captured the setting of the 1970s, with the music, the way buildings were made, and other aspects of that time period as well. Oh, and as for the backgrounds, it’s good to see more live/action footage, as opposed to making even all the CGI computer generated, you know? There’s also the score by Nicholas Britell. I’m not sure how many other films that he’s scored for in the past. Still, you may like the score for it’s jazzy flare, along with knowing how to be in the same mood that the audience might be at times. One other thing to appreciate about this film is how it tries to be very, very different from the animated film. Yes, we get to understand the journey of the events that led to those of 101 Dalmatians. Still, at least this Cruella film is trying to be it’s own material as well. Not to mention that it’s willing to be longer than 120 minutes in order to try to be a really good film. One other thing to mention is how this movie is a good example of how people often react to tragic events in their lives.
Besides these good things about the film, it also falls in other areas as well. First off, there were quite a few plot holes in this film. Now there are times when plot holes don’t seem to affect a film, at least not by much. In this case, however, they can probably distract the viewer from enjoying the film. The movie can also be very depressing at times. The movie, Cruella, can also have a mixed message about how hardships seem to make people feel entitled that they can do corrupt things, or believe lies about how hardships make us automatically born being bad, or whatever else. Seeing as we can choose to still make our lives better even through hardships, that’s not the best message to send out there, you know?
And that’s my review for Cruella. It was nice to have a remake that is trying something new, while also not trying to be exactly like it’s animated counterpart, or even the other live-action Disney film from 1996. Still, because of how this film can have some rather unsettling messages in this movie, I would say that if you have kids, wait until they are in their teens, maybe even adult years to show them this film, when your kids are mature enough to think about the world critically for themselves. Otherwise, definitely check the film out, and see what you think!
Final Grade: B+
P.S. Happy 60th anniversary to the old animated version of 101 Dalmatians!
Matthew’s Animated & Live-Action Movie Reviews 