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The Glass Slipper was the Cinderella of my childhood. I was sick a couple weeks ago and found it on the DVR, so I watched it with hopes it would live up to my memories.
Then:
I remember the dancing. I love dancing and always have - so the ballets were stuck in my memory. Especially the one in the kitchen. I remembered an odd fairy godmother. Lots of pretty dresses and those ridiculous hoop skirts. I also didn't like Leslie Caron's hair - it was so short and back then I was all about long hair. Probably because I never managed to grow it long - gum, snarls, and mats having to be cut out before I got it past my shoulders.
Now:
Didn't catch that bit in the narration about the prince being educated in "boudoirs" before. Snicker.
My first thought upon seeing the prince was "The Prince is forty!" Which, when combined with the fact that Caron plays Cinderella like a child, is a little creepy. There's an almost twenty year age gap between Caron and Michael Wilding. To be totally fair though, Caron was often paired with much older men.
Hey, Cinderella's stepmother is the Bride of Frankenstein. Cool.
I can see why little me liked this movie so much. It wasn't just the dancing, which was even better than remembered, but Caron's Cinderella is angry, rebellious, wild, awkward, and a dreamer. I can't see little me relating to the sweet, kind, and saintlike Cinderella that is often shown in other versions. But dang, if Caron wasn't me all over the place. Of course, minus being a servant in my own home and she's a much better dancer than me. I'm sure she still is.
As an adult I appreciate that there is an established relationship between the prince and Cinderella that occurs outside of the ball. I don't like that he lies to her but I also understand why.
I guess I didn't understand/remember, that Cinderella's hair isn't meant to be pretty. She chopped it off in a fit of anger and despair.
I think I kind of like it better when the "ugly" stepsisters are pretty on the outside.
The end is kind of strange, no wedding (though it's implied), just a walk towards the castle. Not even a final dance?
