- This article is about the film. For the main character, see Cinderella (character).
| Cinderella | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Film information | |
| Directed by: | Clyde Geronimi Hamilton Luske Wilfred Jackson |
| Produced by: | Walt Disney |
| Written by: | Charles Perrault (novel) Ken Anderson Perce Pearce Homer Brightman Winston Hibler Bill Peet Erdman Penner Harry Reeves Joe Rinaldi Ted Sears |
| Music by: | Paul J. Smith Oliver Wallace |
| Editing by: | Donald Halliday |
| Studio: | Walt Disney Productions |
| Distributed by: | Walt Disney Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Buena Vista Distribution |
| Release Date(s): | March 4, 1950 |
| Running time: | 72 minutes |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $2.9 million |
| Gross Revenue: | $85,000,000 |
| Followed by: | Cinderella II: Dreams Come True |
Cinderella is a 1950 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "Cendrillon" by Charles Perrault. Twelfth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film had a limited release on February 15, 1950 by RKO Radio Pictures. Directing credits go to Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske and Wilfred Jackson. Songs were written by Mack David, Jerry Livingston, and Al Hoffman. Songs in the film include "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes", "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo", "So This Is Love", "Sing Sweet Nightingale", "The Work Song", and "Cinderella". Cinderella has the honor of being Disney's most popular and Iconic Disney Princess, as well as the most celebrated Disney movie of all time.
Development
The film was produced by Walt Disney and directed by Clyde Geronomi, Hamilton Luske and Wilfred Jackson. The songs were by Mack David, Jerry Livingston, and Al Hoffman, and included A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes (the opening and closing song of the film), Sing, Sweet Nightingale, Cinderella and Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, which became the most successful song in the film, becoming a hit single four times, with notable versions by Perry Como and the Fontane Sisters.
Disney's last financial success had been Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo and Bambi had not succeeded at the box office (the less expensive Dumbo was the only one of these films to make enough money to cover its cost), in part because of the events of World War II. Disney was forced to release inexpensive package films such as The Three Caballeros and Fun and Fancy Free, and produced propaganda for the war effort in order for the studio to survive the 1940s. Roy Disney told his brother Walt that the two of them could retire comfortably, and that this might be the desirable option, but Disney instead began production on Cinderella, his first full-length feature in eight years, and the first success for the studio since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (even eclipsing Snow White's success). For this reason, it is often considered by critics to be the film that saved Disney Animation.
To save money, the entire film (save for the cartoon-like sequences with the mice, Lucifer and Bruno, animated by Ward Kimball) was shot in live-action. As a result, Cinderella's human characters move in a more realistic way than in previous Disney films. Frank Thomas (who animated the stepmother) commented that Cinderella was the most planned-out film ever made at the studio. Critics attribute the film's success to the story's tension (carried by the film's villain/victim relationship), Disney's return to the classic fairy tale (which had not occurred since the studio's last success, Snow White, but was continued by a financial failure in Sleeping Beauty), and the added emphasis on surface glamour (owing to the art of inspirational sketch artist Mary Blair).
On October 4, 2005, Cinderella was released on Disney DVD as the sixth installment of Disney's Platinum Edition series. It sold 2.5 million copies in its first week, earning over $64 million in sales.
The Diamond Edition was released on Blu-Ray on October 2, 2012.
Plot
Title Card for Cinderella
Cinderella is the much-loved only child of a widowed aristocrat. After deciding that his beloved daughter needs a mother's care, Cinderella's father marries Lady Tremaine, a proud woman with two daughters from her first marriage, Drizella and Anastasia. Plain and socially awkward, these stepsisters are bitterly envious of the beautiful and charming Cinderella. After the death of Cinderella's father, Lady Tremaine and her daughters take over the estate, and begin to abuse and mistreat Cinderella out of jealousy, and even allow their cat, Lucifer, to torment her. Despite being forced into servitude in her own home, Cinderella becomes a kind woman and befriends the animals living in the barn and many of the mice and birds who live in and around the chateau.
At the royal palace, the King is distressed that his son does not intend to marry. Determined to see grandchildren, the King and the Duke organize a ball for Prince Charming in an effort to enable his son to marry, with every eligible maiden in the kingdom requested to attend. When the invitation to the ball arrives, Cinderella asks her stepmother if she can attend, since she too is an eligible maiden. Lady Tremaine agrees, provided Cinderella finishes her chores. Her animal friend, led by Jaq and Gus, fix a gown that belonged to Cinderella's mother. When Cinderella wears her dress just before departing, Lady Tremaine complements Cinderella's gown, subtly pointing out the beads and sash. Angered by the apparent theft of the discarded items, the stepsisters destroy the gown, forcing Cinderella to remain behind while her stepfamily leaves for the royal ball.
At the point of giving up her dreams, Cinderella's Fairy Godmother appears and bestows upon Cinderella a silver blue dress with glass slippers, and transforms a pumpkin and various animals into a carriage with horses, a coachman and a footman. Cinderella departs for the ball after the godmother warns her that the spell will break at the stroke of midnight, meaning that her dress and everything else will change back to the way they were. At the ball, the Prince rejects every girl, until he sees Cinderella. The two fall in love and dance alone throughout the castle grounds until the clock starts to chime midnight. Cinderella flees to her coach and away from the castle, inadvertently dropping one of her glass slippers. After the Duke tells the King of the disaster, they plan to find Cinderella with the slipper they recovered during her exit.
The next morning, the King proclaims that the Grand Duke will visit every house in the kingdom to find the girl who fits the glass slipper, so that she can be married to the Prince. When this news reaches Cinderella's household, her stepmother and stepsisters prepare for the Grand Duke's arrival. Cinderella, overhearing the news, begins dreamily humming the song from the palace ball the previous night. Upon realizing that Cinderella is the girl who danced with the Prince, Lady Tremaine locks Cinderella up to her attic bedroom.
When the Grand Duke arrives, the mice steal the key to Cinderella's room, but before they can deliver it they are ambushed by Lucifer. The animals alert Bruno, Cinderella's Bloodhound, who scares Lucifer out of the house. As the Duke prepares to leave after the stepsisters unsuccessfully try on the slipper, Cinderella appears and requests to try it on. Knowing that the slipper will fit, Lady Tremaine trips the footman, causing him to drop the slipper, which shatters into hundreds of pieces. The Duke laments over the broken slipper, but Cinderella then produces the other glass slipper, much to her stepmother's horror. Delighted at this indisputable proof of the maiden's identity, the Duke slides the slipper onto her foot, which fits perfectly. Soon after, Cinderella and the Prince celebrate their wedding, surrounded by confetti tossed by the King, the Grand Duke, and the mice.
Cast
| Character | Vocal actor | Supervising animator |
|---|---|---|
| Cinderella | Ilene Woods | Marc Davis Eric Larson |
| Lady Tremaine | Eleanor Audley | Frank Thomas |
| Fairy Godmother | Verna Felton | Milt Kahl |
| Anastasia | Lucille Bliss | Ollie Johnston |
| Drizella | Rhoda Williams | Ollie Johnston |
| Jaq | James MacDonald | Ward Kimball |
| Gus | James MacDonald | Ward Kimball |
| Bruno | James MacDonald | Ward Kimball |
| Lucifer | June Foray | |
| Prince Charming | William Philips Mike Douglas (singing) |
Milt Kahl |
| The King | Luis Van Rooten | Milt Kahl |
| The Grand Duke | Luis Van Rooten | Milt Kahl |
Home Video Releases
On October 4, 2005, there was a Platinum Edition released. It sold 2.5 million copies in its first week, earning over $64 million in sales. It returned into the Disney Vault in January of 2008.
_(Platinum_Edition_2-Disc_DVD).jpg "6. Cinderella (1950) (Platinum Edition 2-Disc DVD).jpg (33 KB)")
Cinderella: Diamond Edition
There was a Diamond Edition release on October 2, 2012 (has taken instead in the Blu-ray release of Aladdin).
The Following Diamond Edition versions:
- DVD two-disc
- DVD + Blu-ray Combo
- Blu-ray + DVD Combo
- Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy Combo
- 3 Movies Jewelry Box Collection (6 discs)
(Tangled Ever After was released as a bonus feature with the Cinderella Diamond Edition.)
Trivia
- Talk show host Mike Douglas was the singing voice of the unnamed Prince in this film.
- The sequence in which Cinderella's rags turn into a magnificent ball gown, animated by Marc Davis, was Walt Disney's favourite piece of animation ever to come out of the studio.
- In the CBS television special AFI’s 10 Top 10, the movie was named the ninth Best Animated Feature of all time.
- Not only is the name of the Prince never revealed, he is nowhere in the film mentioned as "Prince Charming".
- Ilene Woods beat exactly 309 girls for the part of Cinderella, after some demo recordings of her singing a few of the film's songs were presented to Walt Disney. However, she had no idea she was auditioning for the part until Disney contacted her; she initially made the recordings for a few friends who sent them to Disney without telling her. In 2003, she was awarded a Disney Legend award for her voicework on the film Cinderella
- When the film was released on the Platinum Edition DVD, Cinderella's hair was colored yellow-blonde instead of strawberry blonde like it was originally, and her ball dress was recolored blue instead of white, presumably to match the merchandise.
Gallery
- Main article: Cinderella (film)/Gallery
External links
- Cinderella Diamond Edition website
- Cinderella at the Internet Movie Database
- Cinderella at the Big Cartoon DataBase
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