MPAA Rating: PG for suggestive material and language. [37] Despite concerns that Hart's "biting" lyrics would sound too abrasive against the rest of the score, James, Hammerstein's son, was very much open to the idea. [103], Praising its score and faithfulness to the source material, Eileen Fitzpatrick of Billboard called the film a "sure to please" remake while lauding Brandy's performance, joking that the singer "slips into the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway-like score as easily as Cinderella fits into the glass slipper". Con Brandy Norwood, Bernadette Peters, Veanne Cox, Natalie Desselle Reid. [105] In a mixed review, The New York Times journalist Caryn James found the film's multi-racial cast and incorporation of stronger Rodgers and Hammerstein material improve Cinderella overall, but admitted the production fails to "take that final leap into pure magic", dismissing it as "a cobbled-together 'Cinderella' for the moment, not the ages. "[147] Khoo observed that the film continues to be constantly praised in social media by fans who had grown up with the film for its diversity, concluding, "With so much talk about the lack of diversity in Hollywood these days, Rodgers and Hammerstein's 'Cinderella' is a shining example of the diversity we need. It was the 5th most popular movie at the British box office in 1951. [17] Although filmmakers are usually hesitant to interpolate songs from other sources into adaptations of Rodgers and Hammerstein's work, Ted Capin, President of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization,[10] challenged the producers to conceive "compelling reasons" as to why they should incorporate new material into the remake,[52] allowing the filmmakers significant freedom on the condition that the additions remain consistent with the project. [21] Hoping to relaunch the series using "a big event", Disney CEO Michael Eisner approached Zadan and Meron about potential television projects; the producers suggested Houston's Cinderella, which Eisner green-lit immediately. "I auditioned some 7,000 times for Cinderella ," James jokingly recalled to The Hindu in 2020. [99][132] Brandy's performance earned her the titles "the first Cinderella of color", "the first black Cinderella" and "the first African-American princess" by various media publications,[32][98][140][141] while Shondaland.com contributor Kendra James dubbed Brandy "Disney's first black princess", crediting her with proving that "Cinderella could have microbraids" and crowning her the Cinderella of the 1990s. [32] Houston would encourage the singer to "Sing from your gut" as opposed to singing from her chest in order to get her to sing louder. "[37] Goldberg found the film's colorful cast to be reflective of "who we are", describing it as "more normal" than all-Black or all-white casts. Cinderella grows distracted while waiting upon her stepmother and two stepsisters in the marketplace, where she meets a charming young man. All of these elements make watching or re-watching the film incredible, but a deeper look reveals a main reason why it was enchanting to begin with: The whole film is refreshingly diverse. Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella is a 1997 American musical telefilm produced by Walt Disney Television. Box office. [19][24][25] Houston believed that Brandy possessed the energy and "wonder" to play Cinderella convincingly, admitting that their fictional relationship as godmother and goddaughter translates "well on-screen because it starts from real life";[4] when Houston telephoned Brandy to offer her the role, she introduced herself as her fairy godmother. Based on the French fairy tale by Charles Perrault, the film is the second remake and third version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical, which originally aired on television in 1957. [45] A public screening of the film was hosted at the Sony Lincoln Square Theatre in New York on October 27, 1997. ", "From Hilary Duff to Brandy: The Top 7 Cinderella Movies", "Watch Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella cast reunion with Brandy, Whoopi Goldberg, and more: 'It was a game changer', "A 25th anniversary special for the Brandy Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella will air on ABC", "How a PR problem led to Disney's first Latina princess, "Elena of Avalor", "Keke Palmer Makes History Again As The First Black Cinderella On Broadway! [9], In his book The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, author Nicholas Everett identified Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella among important television musicals that "renewed interest in the genre" during the 1990s,[54] with Playbill recognizing it as "the resurgence of televised movie musicals". Taylor Swift & Martin McDonagh | Directors on Directors [37] The main characters were dressed in costumes that complemented their roles and personalities, the stepfamily's "loud" dresses in contrast to Cinderella's warmer, more neutral tones. [50] Disney CEO Michael Eisner introduced the program. Disney's recent streak continued over the weekend with the $70.1 million North American debut of its traditional, sumptuously costumed fairy tale adaptation "Cinderella," according to studio . 'Cinderella' Producers Hope Valentine's Day Rebroadcast Hits Big", "Flashback: With Whitney Houston on the 1997 Set of 'Cinderella', "The Cast Of 'Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella' Movie: Where Are They Now", "On the Tube Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella", "That 1997 'Cinderella' with Whitney Houston and Brandy is the best live-action princess remake", "Cinderella (1997) - Cinderella: the best film versions", "Cinderella's a Sistah Whitney Houston & Brandy Work Multi-culti Magic on TV", "Brandy Tells All: The Stories Behind Her Classic Records", "Brandy gets back in game after sad loss", "10 Things You Didn't Know About Disney's Cinderella", "How Modern Cinderella Adaptations Have Given The Tale's Outdated Feminism A Makeover", "Happy Anniversary, Cinderella.. Times Two! [16] Mary Rodgers and James Hammerstein, relatives of the original composers, also approved this casting decision, with Mary maintaining that the production remains "true to the original" despite contemporary modifications to its cast and score,[35] and James describing the film as "a total scrambled gene pool" and "one of the nicest fantasies one can imagine. Cinderella currently has a score of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Cinderella (1950 film) | Disney Wiki | Fandom "[4], Casting the prince was significantly more time consuming, with Chase likening the process to searching for the owner of Cinderella's glass slipper. [37], Brandy found the recording process "challenging" because the film's songs were different than any material she had recorded before, explaining that she was nervous since her "voice wasn't fully developed", especially in comparison to her idol Houston and at times struggling to project. [20][52] Few songs remaining in Rodgers and Hammerstein's repertoire were deemed suitable until they re-discovered "There's Music in You", a little-known song from the film Main Street to Broadway (1953),[20] in which the songwriters play themselves. The clock strikes midnight as Cinderella and the Prince share their first kiss, but Cinderella flees on foot while the spell is reverted, leaving behind a single glass slipper. [38] Cinderella has a conversation with the prince in which she explains that a woman should always be treated "like a person. [111] In its year-end edition, TV Guide ranked the program the best television special of 1997. [146] Media criticism professor Venise Berry found Brandy's casting and performance to be a "wonderful opportunity to reflect the true diversity in our society", writing, "I think that Brandy will help African-American females see there are other possibilities that their lives can blossom into something good, and you don't have to be white for that to happen," in turn making the classic story more accessible "to little black girls" who had believed that ascending into a life of privilege was only possible for white people. [110] While praising the performances of Houston, Peters and Montalban, Ellin joked that "Cinderella's glass slippers are far too big for Brandy", criticizing her acting while saying that the singer "delivers her lines so timidly and flatly that it's hard to stay focused on the story when Brandy is on the screen", concluding that her co-stars "only makes her weak acting all the more glaring", and causing her to wonder how the film would have turned out had Houston been cast as the lead instead. [47] Den of Geek ranked the film the second best "Cinderella" adaptation, describing it as "the first time the story truly felt magical" and writing "Almost twenty-five years later, this adaptation still feels like the television event it was when it premiered. Despite this, Cinderella proved a major ratings success, originally airing to 60 million viewers and establishing itself as the most-watched television musical in decades, earning ABC its highest Sunday-night ratings in 10 years. Cinderella (1950 film) - Wikipedia Cinderella is a musically-driven bold new take on the traditional story you grew up with. Although mistreated by her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, Cinderella is able to attend the royal ball through the help of a fairy godmother. Distributor Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. "[20] The filmmakers also agreed that it would be wasteful to cast Peters without allowing her to sing. ", "How Brandy's 'Never Say Never' Invented 'The Vocal Bible', "Keke Palmer will play first black Cinderella on Broadway", "Keke Palmer to be Broadway's first black Cinderella", "Will Cinderella's Keke Palmer Return to Broadway? Cinderella (Brandy) chafes under the cruelty of her wicked stepmother (Bernadette Peters) and her evil stepsisters, Calliope (Veanne Cox) and Minerva (Natalie Desselle), until her Fairy Godmother (Whitney Houston) steps in to change her life for one unforgettable night. [49], Houston originally hoped that the film would earn a theatrical release. In Release 294 days/42 weeks. ", "TV Weekend; The Glass Slipper Fits With a 90's Conscience", "11 Cinderella Movie Adaptations, Ranked", "It's Beauty and the Beast: A multiracial 'Cinderella' and a bloody-bad 'House of Frankenstein' kick off sweeps", "Bernadette Peters will star in a new production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic, Cinderella, to be aired on ABC-TV Nov. 2", "Why Brandy's Cinderella Is Actually the Best Cinderella (Yes, Including the Original)", "Cinderella Screening: A Star Sapphire Evening", "Brandy & Whitney Houston's 'Cinderella' Is Airing In Honor Of Its 20th Anniversary & You Won't Want To Miss It", "Adding More To Cinderella's Score? [121] Bill Carter of The New York Times predicted that the success of the broadcast "will mean more musicals for television, probably as early as" 1998. "[12] With a then-unprecedented production budget of $12 million, Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella is one of the most expensive television films ever made;[21][62] some media publications dubbed the program "the most expensive two hours ever produced for television. "[106] Describing the film as "big, gaudy, miles over the top and loads of fun", Variety's Ray Richmond found some of its aspects distracting and opined that the entire project "could have been toned down a notch and still carried across plenty of the requisite spunk. "[46] Theater director Timothy Sheader found the production "harsh and unmagical". [118][119] Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella was nominated for three NAACP Image Awards, including Outstanding Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special,[citation needed] while both Brandy and Goldberg were nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Movie or Mini-Series.
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