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Movie Review: “Cinderella”

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Cinderella

If Hollywood has run out of ideas to the point where it has to remake animated material in live-action form, it could hardly have picked a better piece than “Cinderella”. Lacking a supernatural or mythical super-scary monster, “Cinderella” instead features a gorgeous villain of epic sociopathic potential–one that seared “evil stepmother” onto the collective consciousness.

Borrowing heavily from the 1950 animated feature, 2015’s “Cinderella” puts a new spin on the old story of an orphan girl living in servitude who finds her path to true love and a golden ticket out of a dead-end situation. Here, the young Ella grows up in an idyllic household anchored by her sweet mother (Hayley Atwell) and kind father (Ben Chaplin).

Ella and her father

Ella (James) sees her father (Chaplin) off on his last business trip

As Ella grows into a beautiful woman (Lily James), her joyous life is interrupted by the sudden death of her mother, whose parting advice is for Ella to “have courage and be kind”. Her father eventually remarries–taking Lady Tremaine as his new wife (Cate Blanchett) and bringing along her beautiful-on-the-outside-but-ugly-on-the-inside daughters, Drisella (Sophie McShera) and Anastasia (Holliday Grainger). At first, the relationship between Ella and her step-family seems relatively innocuous; the glamorous Tremaine is generally warm in demeanor, and Ella’s materialistic step-sisters are nothing more than pretty bobbleheads. But times must change, and Ella’s father succumbs to an illness while traveling on business. Ella grieves heavily for the loss of her father, while Tremaine fears the loss of standing and income.

Lady Tremaine and her daughters arrive at the ball

Lady Tremaine (Blanchett, center), flanked by her daughters Anastasia (Grainger) and Drisella (McShera)

Concerned about the servants’ wages, Tremaine releases the staff and gently encourages Ella to assume the various roles they occupied. Ella takes most of these tasks in stride, even after suffering the humiliation of being unceremoniously relocated to the drafty abandoned tower attic and renamed “Cinder-Ella” for the ash-coated face she sports after a warming night on the kitchen floor in front of the fireplace. The catty Drisella and Anastasia cackle over their breakfast with their now-openly repellent mother, and–in her frustration–Ella dashes off on a horseback ride into the woods to clear her head.

She stumbles onto a stag hunt, where she meets a handsome man who calls himself “Kit” (Richard Madden). The two share playful banter: she insists he spare the life of the stag, and he dodges her questions about his place in the palace where he claims to live as “an apprentice”. After they part, “Kit” (the prince) returns to his father’s side (Derek Jacobi) and they plan for a grand ball at which the prince may select the bride of his choosing. The king and his grand duke (Stellan Skarsgård) plan for an all-princess affair, to seal the kingdom’s future, but the lovestruck prince agrees only on the condition that all maidens of the kingdom may attend.

The King and Prince at the ball

The King (Jacobi) and Prince (Madden) hold court at the royal ball

Ella hears of the grand ball and prepares on her own to go, even after being rebuffed by Tremaine–who wants one of her daughters to land the prince. When the lovely Ella appears in one of her mother’s dresses, ready for the ball, the Tremaine harpies rip it to shreds, leaving her a frustrated, teary mess. It’s at this point that her fairy godmother (Helena Bonham Carter) performs a magical intervention, allowing Cinderella to head off to the ball in grand style, sporting a breathtaking dress and the famed glass slippers (well, okay, pumps). She spends a lovely evening with the prince of her dreams, before she dashes off into the night (minus one shoe) to escape his seeing the fairy godmother’s spell undone. The distraught prince sends out word that whoever fits the shoe will be his bride and…well, you know how this ends. (Or perhaps you don’t.)

Helena Bonham Carter as the Fairy Godmother

Bonham Carter’s Fairy Godmother prepares to work her magic on Cinderella

This movie has many things going for it, such as a fantastic cast and truly breathtaking costumes (surely worth at least an Oscar nomination, if not a win). Blanchett’s Tremaine is nearly continuously draped in green satin that fits so wonderfully it’s hard to tell if she’s wearing the satin or if it’s wearing her, and Ella’s pivotal scene dresses (both at the ball and at the end of the film) are utterly breathtaking pieces likely to inspire many a formal gown. Blanchett gleefully and evilly chews scenery, in a rare opportunity to play the baddie, while Nonso Anozie seems to equally enjoy his turn as the pure-hearted Captain. Chris Weitz’s screenplay gives Tremaine context and depth not seen in previous versions of the story while showing mercifully precious little action from the mice and cat, making this version of “Cinderella” a bit more adult-friendly.

Where things are less perfect are in things like James’ affected performance at the ball, with flourishes that likely were meant to suggest Cinderella was transformed and carried away by the magic of it all–but coming off more like an animated movie character in a live-action film who thinks she’s still in an animated movie. Madden does a decent enough job, but some of his lines are a bit too pouty or silly; he seems better suited for the grittier and less fanciful material (or perhaps he was just so good in “Game of Thrones” that it’s hard to see him a role with a comedic aspect). And as much as I love Bonham Carter, I’d like to have strong words with whoever fitted her for the oversized, overpolished teeth the Fairy Godmother sports; she talks around them no better than a vampire in a B-grade movie. This film runs 40 minutes longer than its predecessor–due partially to Ella’s backstory–and it could have been sped up at times. Still, the run time is short enough that most kids shouldn’t be squirming in their seats.

All in all, “Cinderella” is a movie that appeals well to all ages; its non-scary nature makes it a great fit for the younger set, and its strong cast is a good draw for those of us well into the double-digits of age. It’s easy enough to overlook its shortcomings, since they don’t detract enough to keep this from being anything other than what it’s meant to be: a (updated) reboot and instant classic.

“Cinderella” is preceded by “Frozen Fever”–an animated short that returns us to Arendelle just in time for Queen Elsa to give Princess Anna the best birthday ever. Unfortunately for Elsa, the “fever” referenced in the title isn’t a metaphor, and her plans are partially derailed by the wee snowmen that manifest each time she sneezes. The short is cute, and it is a precursor to the just-announced “Frozen 2” that’s entering development, although I don’t see this as the Oscar-winning material of prior shorts, like “Feast” (which preceded “Big Hero 6”). Fans of “Frozen” will surely enjoy it, thought, and truly that’s what it’s all about.

3 out of 4 stars

“Cinderella” opens nationwide on March 13, 2015. This movie is rated PG for mild thematic elements. 

Jamberry vs OPI: Putting pretty nail options to the test

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Jamberry vs OPI Challenge

I’ve put a lot of hours into my nails over the last year or so, trying to find ways to have fun expressions of art with me all the time without resorting to more tattoos. (DH is highly amused by my nail art but gives me the side-eye every time I discuss getting another tattoo.) For those who follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you see these posts roughly once a week, as I debut whatever new concoction I’ve designed, from the simple…

Silver nail polish with multi-colored polkadots

(simple multi-colored polka dots on silver polish)

…to the more ornate…

Marvel's Agents of SHIELD-inspired nails

(inspired by Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD)

…to the event-specific…

Nails celebrating being a Star Pacesetter for the 2014 Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk

(celebrating earning Star Pacesetter status for the 2014 Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk)

…to the downright silly:

Flower nail art

(adding flowers to my nails to cheer me up while under all this awful snow)

A fairly strong devotee to specific products, I was curious about a “7-day challenge” posed by a friend who sells Jamberry nail wraps: try one “accent” Jamberry nail wrap for a week, with regular polish on the other nails, and see how they stack up. My friend sent me a set of samples, and away I went!

I pitted the Jamberry “Sheer Genius” accent against a lovely OPI color that I’ve used several times before (“You’re Such a Budapest”), resulting in the following:

Jamberry vs OPI's "You're Such a Budapest"

Spot the Jamberry!

My typical home manicure involves one coat of Seche Clear, two coats of OPI polish, and one coat of Seche Vite. If I’m doing nail art, I put on a second coat of Seche Vite afterwards. That typically keeps my nails in good shape for about 5-7 days, at a lower cost than if I went to a nail salon. Of course, there’s the downside of needing to have an entire drawerful of polishes in order to give me variety, and there will be the once-in-a-while “Oops, I accidentally dropped the hot pink nail polish on the carpet and THAT’S not coming out anytime soon” event, but all in all, it’s me time to chill out and do something creative.

I don’t typically need a lot of tools; I have a nail trimmer, a file, and a buffer. Jamberry, however, requires a whole suite of tools: tweezers, scissors, a cuticle pusher (potentially also a spoon pusher), alcohol wipes, and some form of heat applicator to set the adhesive. I’ve seen YouTube videos instructing on the use of a heated rice bag, and I myself used a heating pad set on HIGH, but the recommended method is either a hair dryer or one of the official Jamberry mini-heaters. In other words, there’s more investment required, but–with the exception of the alcohol wipes–these are tools that you can use for long stretches of time, if not forever.

So, how did it go?

After six days, I finally had a crack on the OPI polish–while the Jamberry still looked the same. In other words, Jamberry wins the 7-day challenge *by a nose*. Ultimately I’m the winner, since now I have a better understanding of how the two options stack up against each other.

Here’s the breakdown on other considerations, though, especially if you don’t mind changing your nail designs weekly:

Value Relative to Cost
Comparing the two options, the polish comes out ahead just on product alone:

Cost comparison of OPI + Seche products vs Jamberry nail wraps

In both cases, note that I’m just talking about the product used to apply the design to the nail, not the additional accessories (pushers, buffers, files, scissors, heaters, etc.). With far more required tools, Jamberry runs a higher overall cost–assuming the mani or pedi lasts roughly the same amount of time. Jamicures, as they prefer to call them, are supposed to last from 7-14 days (comparable to a gel or shellac, minus the chemicals and UV rays), but my Jamicure lasted for 7 days before it started to peel and come apart, so your mileage (as always) may vary.

Designs
OPI doesn’t come with ready-made designs in a bottle, so you are the artist. For those who don’t feel their hands are steady enough (or who don’t want the added expense of multiple nail art pens), Jamberry provides a more straightforward way to apply nail art of all complexity levels. There are, of course, other options–nail art stickers, glue-on gems, etc.–but I typically stick with 2-dimensional artwork, so I can’t comment on the pricing or degrees of difficulty. Jamberry nail wraps come in dozens of styles and the custom wraps option makes the variety nearly limitless. I say “nearly” because Jamberry won’t violate licensing agreements, so things “inspired by” licensed items (like superheros) may be okay, but using licensed imagery without an agreement in place is NOT.

Jamberry "Porcelain" jamicure

My first “jamicure” – Jamberry “Porcelain” nail wraps

Ease of Application
Nail polish, in general, is pretty darn easy to apply. Jamberry is not too terribly difficult to apply, but the requirement for heat is a bit annoying. Unless you’re totally unplugged, using a pre-heated rice bag (which you had to heat in a microwave in the first place!), you’ll need electricity nearby. For me, doing my nails after the kids go to bed, the heating pad was the only noise-free heating option I had readily available. Jamberry, once applied, can be a real pain to adjust; place them properly the first time, since any moves tend to cause you more heartache than they’re worth. Of course, who hasn’t accidentally touched something with a wet nail and messed it up? Jamberry nail wraps are ready to go as soon as they’ve cooled, so there’s no real “drying time”; however, the sheer volume of stuff needed to apply them really lowers the whole “ease” rating, in my mind. In this category, I’d give a slight edge to OPI.

“That chemical smell”
There are no two ways around it: polish smells awful. My long-suffering DH puts up with it, but we both agree that the smell of polish can be pretty awful at times. Jamberry nail wraps have no smell associated with them, so they’re definitely great for keeping your house from smelling like a nail salon.

 

Summary: Each option has pluses and minuses, and it’s up to the individual to decide which works better for them for a given occasion. I will continue to use both (though probably not with each other), and I’ll tend not to use the Jamberry nail wraps in successive weeks. Using nail polish week after week strengthens my nails, so I’d lose out on that if I use Jamberry wraps week in, week out. Jamberry has the benefit of offering art patterns that I simply can’t do on my own, so I consider them my utility player for fancier nails. Choose what works for you, but know that there are different options–of varying degrees of cost and difficulty–that can be less expensive than the salon and have just as attractive results.

Movie Review: “Rosewater”

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Rosewater

If you asked me a few decades ago whether the Jersey-based comedian I’d seen on MTV’s “Half-Hour Comedy Hour”, Jon Stewart, was going to end up being the man who’d bring you the realest fake news you’ll ever find, I probably would’ve given you a sideways glance. These days, it seems not only believable but also desperately important; Stewart has become one of the few reliable sources of stories that mainstream media would often leave untold. In this case, the chilling story of an interviewee from “The Daily Show” attracted Stewart’s attention and inspired him to take his first turn running the show behind the camera.

“Rosewater” is based on the novel “Then They Came for Me” (recently re-released under the name “Rosewater”), the true story of Iranian-born journalist Maziar Bahari (Gael García Bernal), who was in Iran in 2009 at the time Mahmoud Ahmadinejad squared off against Mir-Hossein Mousavi for the Iranian presidency. Bahari returned home to Tehran for a week, to report on the election for Newsweek magazine, but his family’s history of dissidence and subsequent imprisonment made him somewhat gun-shy on photographing even something otherwise so innocuous as a satellite dish array run by opposition-party supporters.

When Ahmadinejad declared a landslide victory before the polls even closed on Election Day, Bahari got a sense that something had gone horribly wrong; any optimism he felt upon arrival home was effectively squashed. Worse still, the protests that erupted subsequent to the news of Ahmadinejad’s re-election turned bloody and violent. Chided by his friend and driver, Davood (Dimitri Leonidas), for his failure to use the weapon in his hands – his video camera – Bahari sheepishly began videotaping a fiery protest that attracted gunfire from the Iranian military. He then passed his recording along to the BBC, who transmitted it to London that very night. The next morning, he was escorted to a prison where – much like his father and sister before him – he underwent confinement, interrogation, and systematic attempts to strip away his hope.

Bahari was often forced to wear a blindfold, so “Rosewater” refers to his near constant companion, an interrogator who perfumed himself with rosewater (Kim Bodnia). The interrogation sessions, filled with psychological and physical attacks, were aimed at breaking Bahari’s spirit and securing a confession that he was a spy for the West, working undercover as a journalist to help foment revolution and spread lies. One of the pieces of “evidence” used against Bahari was an interview with Jason Jones of “The Daily Show”; whether or not the satire was lost on the Republican Guard, Jones’ humorous attempts to paint Bahari as a spy were used as ammunition during at least one interrogation session. Over the course of 118 days, Bahari was held in captivity, his sanity and salvation constantly just outside of his reach. Ultimately, multiple confessions – including one where Bahari agreed to spy on behalf of Iran – were required to secure his release.

All of the actors give incredible performances, and the writing and directing (both Stewart) are top-notch. García Bernal, in particular, is astonishing in his range of feelings and expressions; you experience the roller coaster of emotions along with his Bahari, while watching from the uncomfortable comfort of a cushy theater seat. Lighting and technical overlays highlight the impact the Internet – especially Twitter – has in supporting the flow of information and communication. The importance of freedoms of association and communication can’t be oversold. Bahari’s story is a cautionary tale of false freedom and real imprisonment, and Stewart & co. have brought it to the screen in an Oscar-worthy manner that’s touching, shocking, and altogether mesmerizing.

4 stars out of 4

“Rosewater” opens nationwide on November 14, 2014. This movie is rated R for language, including some crude references, and violent content.