Usually when a director tries to remake a beloved story, he or she ends up butchering it. Just think of all of the television adaptations of fairy tales that fall short of their intended mark. This story, however, succeeds in being clever and sweet, while still maintaining the basic elements of the classic story. There is an evil stepmother who works the main character to the bone, evil stepsisters (or at least one evil stepsister), a prince who is looking for a wife, our heroine posing as nobility to win the prince's heart, and a glass slipper. Only, instead of a fairy godmother, we have Leonardo da Vinci.
The actors are interesting, the dialogue funny and touching. True Dougray Scott may be a little too mature to play the immature prince, but he is so wonderful that you forget his age. Drew Barrymore is delightful, and is brilliant when it comes to humor. Angelica Huston and Megan Dodds are deliciously evil, and Melanie Lynskey is well-cast as the sweeter and less glamorous of the stepsisters.
In short, this film would make a wonderful addition to your family's film collection, and would make a particularly nice gift for a young girl.
The actors are interesting, the dialogue funny and touching. True Dougray Scott may be a little too mature to play the immature prince, but he is so wonderful that you forget his age. Drew Barrymore is delightful, and is brilliant when it comes to humor. Angelica Huston and Megan Dodds are deliciously evil, and Melanie Lynskey is well-cast as the sweeter and less glamorous of the stepsisters.
In short, this film would make a wonderful addition to your family's film collection, and would make a particularly nice gift for a young girl.