A Cinderella Story Once Upon A Song Disney Plus

[Emerio Boykins]

Thougha few characters (namely, the stepmother and one of the two stepsisters) are heartless and cruel, the rest are kind hearted, especially Danielle, the main character. She speaks up for the disenfranchised and grows even bolder and more courageous as the movie unspools. She is, in fact, a rare fairy-tale lead who can stand up for herself. Some characters lie, though only one does so out of spite. Some characters covet pricey things and are willing to trade servants for them.

Some swordsmanship (not gory), with one woman slashing the face of another, and a band of criminals attacking another. Characters punch each other in the face. A woman's back is shown with whip marks. A stepmother bullies and belittles her daughters.

Parents need to know that Ever After is a version of the Cinderella story that's darker than Disney's. It doesn't shy away from the nastiness that pervades the relationship between the stepmother and Cinderella (here known as Danielle). But it's also far more inspiring and empowering. Though Danielle is in dire straits, she isn't in desperate need of rescuing and is actually the one who stands up for others' rights. Younger kids may be disturbed by some characters' excessive, non-cartoonish meanness, but much of that is mitigated by the great storytelling and sweet romance, which tweens and older will enjoy. Expect some fistfights and swordplay, a sad on-screen death, plus some language ("horses--t" and some muttered, hard-to-hear "f--k"s, which were edited out of the PG-rated version that was released on VHS but remain in the PG-13 version that was released theatrically and on DVD). To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.

EVER AFTER asks the question: is the Cinderella tale made famous in storybooks told exactly as it happened? Or is there more to it? It turns out there is: Cinderella, as we know her, is actually Danielle (Drew Barrymore), a young woman who loses her father shortly after he remarries, leaving her alone with a stepmother (Anjelica Huston) who cares not a whit about her and stepsisters who follow their mom's lead. For years. Danielle toils as their servant, at their beck and call in the mansion that once was her happy home. When she runs into His Royal Highness Prince Henry (Dougray Scott), whom the king and queen are anxious to marry off, Danielle's life is changed. But can a royal fall in love with a commoner? There's no fairy godmother, but a certain Leonardo da Vinci may be able to help. ...

It's hard to imagine how to improve upon the classic that is Cinderella, but this delightful romantic drama does just that. With sincerity and girl-power can do, Ever After transforms the traditional story into a textured revision that isn't neatly tied up with a bow. It is, in fact, a heartbreaking story that's gently and beautifully told. After all, what isn't heartbreaking about a young woman who works so hard to obtain her cold-hearted stepmother's love, only to realize that she'll never get it?

Huston makes for a wickedly potent stepmother, but one who isn't caricatured to excess. In one scene, a flicker of appreciation passes through her face as she looks at Danielle, only to disappear quickly, and you understand that she's not so much monstrous as she is broken -- meant to be pitied rather than scorned. But she still gets her come-uppance in the end. Barrymore's accent jars, but her signature fiery sweetness works here. We don't quite forget she's an actress playing a role, but we enjoy her nevertheless. Director Andy Tennant moves the story along at a pleasant pace, goosing it with refreshing surprises such as Leonardo da Vinci playing matchmaker. We've never seen Cinderella like this, and, oh, what a happily ever after!

From animated classics like Beauty and the Beast to live-action blockbusters like Hamilton, musicals are some of the most beloved Disney properties for a reason. I still remember many (... ok, all) of the lyrics to songs from films like The Lion King and The Sound of Music, due to the sheer number of times I requested those films be put on when I was small.

Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke dazzle as Mary Poppins and Bert in this classic film about a nanny and a chimney sweep who help bring the dysfunctional and distant members of the Banks family back together. Mary Poppins is based on the book series of the same name by P. L. Travers and received 13 Academy Award nominations when it debuted in 1964, making it one of the only Disney films to garner so much critical acclaim.

Stephen Sondheim's lyricism is on full display in this filmed adaptation of the 1986 Broadway musical "Into the Woods." Directed by Rob Marshall, Into the Woods stars Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, and many more in a retelling of several different Grimm Brothers fairy tales, such as "Cinderella" and "Little Red Riding Hood," where the characters from the original tales are forced to contemplate the events of their stories through interwoven narratives.

Directed by Kenny Ortega and starring Christian Bale, Bill Pullman, Robert Duvall, and more, Newsies features the story of Jack "Cowboy" Kelly, a newspaper hawker in New York who wants to bring justice to the newsies he represents by striking against their mutual employers and ensuring that they all earn a just wage. Newsies is consistently ranked low on critical lists, but the songs and book from the original film were adapted by Disney Theatrical Productions in 2011 to rave reviews, the Broadway show earning eight Tony Award nominations.

There have been several film and television adaptations of the story of Annie, an orphan who is adopted by a wealthy New York businessman, but the 1999 Annie starring Kathy Bates, Broadway legend Kristin Chenoweth, Alan Cumming, Victor Garber, and Broadway queen Audra McDonald is absolutely fantastic. Apart from having a powerhouse cast, the 1999 Annie also has incredible songs such as "Hard Knock Life," "Tomorrow," and "I Don't Need Anything But You."

Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, and Lucas Grabeel star in this deeply iconic live-action musical about teens performing in their high school musical. Troy Bolton (Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Hudgens) meet and later try out for the lead roles in their high school musical, competing with Sharpay (Tisdale) and Ryan Evans (Grabeel) for the roles and navigating their individual high school cliques.

In case that wasn't meta enough, you can also catch High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, a series about teens producing and starring in "High School Musical" from the original film, on Disney+.

Hugh Jackman, Zach Efron, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya star in this musical about P. T. Barnum's creation of the Barnum's American Museum. Directed by Michael Gracey, The Greatest Showman features hit songs like Academy Award-nominated "This is Me," "The Other Side," and more.

Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers star in this upbeat, pop musical about a young girl, Mitchie (Lovato) who goes to rock camp over the summer to try her hand at becoming a pop sensation. While at Camp Rock, she meets teens with similar musical dreams and forms a connection with Shane Gray (Joe Jonas), one of the members of a pop group that attends Camp Rock.

Cheetah Girls, Cheetah sisters. This musical film (based on the books of the same name by Deborah Gregory) stars Raven Symon, Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Sabrina Bryan as the Cheetah Girls, a girl band trying to make it big in the music industry. If you ever owned a Disney Mix Stick, it's likely you had "Cinderella" or "Girl Power" on a loop.

Whitney Houston's live-action Cinderella starring Brandy, Jason Alexander, Whoopi Goldberg, Bernadette Peters, and Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother, is one of the most delightful adaptations of "Cinderella." The film features a diverse cast and a more modern orchestration of the classic "Cinderella" songs.

Lin-Manuel Miranda dazzles again through the music for Moana, a musical about a young girl named Moana (Auli'i Cravalho) who lives on an island called Montunui in the Pacific Ocean. For many years, the sailors of Montunui traveled beyond the island across the sea, but in recent years their home has begun to experience blight and sailors find it hard to sail beyond the reef surrounding the island. With the help of the god Maui (Dwayne Johnson), Moana sets out to return the god Te Fiti's heart and restore her people to what they once were.

Prepare to cry. Academy Award-winning Disney Pixar film Coco, the story of a young boy named Miguel Rivera who dreams of playing music despite his family's deep dislike of music, is rooted in the imagery and tradition of the Mexican Da de Muertos and follows Miguel on a journey through memory and history as he goes to the realm of the dead to find his great-grandmother Coco's father. Featuring stellar voice performances by Gael Garca Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Anthony Gonzalez, Alanna Ubach, and more of the all-Latinx principal cast, Coco is an instant classic that will have you singing along to "Remember Me" long after you've watched it.

The Princess and the Frog is one of the most original Disney animated musicals to date. Set in New Orleans, this joyful, upbeat tale of a hardworking young woman named Tiana who becomes embroiled in the middle of a magical mixup that turns her into a frog is beautifully animated and has some of the best songs in modern Disney musicals to date. The Princess and the Frog stars Anika Noni Rose, Oprah Winfrey, John Goodman, Keith David, Jennifer Lewis, and more, and features hit songs like "Friends on the Other Side," "Almost There," and many more.

Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi star in this musical retelling of "Rapunzel." Rapunzel (Moore) is stolen away from her parents upon her birth by Mother Gothel (Donna Murphy). When Gothel realizes that Rapunzel's hair has magical healing properties, she locks the child up and raises her in a tower. After living for most of her life in a remote tower, Rapunzel gets a chance to escape in the form of Flynn Rider (Levi), who helps her discover her identity.

3a8082e126