Cruella

This review may contain spoilers!

 

Cruella is the origin story of a young Cruella de Vil who rises from homeless street urchin to anti-hero fashion heiress. After features like The Lion King, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil and Mulan I've grown a bit tired of the live-action adaptation efforts because they've been lacking a sense of creative vision. Cruella is like a breath of fresh air by comparison, an origin that is styled to a 70s punk aesthetic with an anti-hero protagonist I never thought I'd find so fascinating. As an antagonist Cruella de Vil has been remembered as the wild woman chasing Dalmatian puppies down with her roaring auto-mobile, but this film anchors on to familiar traits while defining this why this particular woman is worthy of being an immortalised Disney villain. Watching how this young woman has always wrestled with a more aggressive, impulsive side before straightening out as a means of keeping a promise to her deceased mother; you grow attached to Cruella as she fends for herself on the streets of London. Yet the passion she holds for fashion and design pushes her beyond this desperate lifestyle, but also forces her to confront the demons of her past. When Cruella is pushed to a point of no return by a revelation of her past the timid, earnest facade cracks and that aggressive fighter returns to the forefront to face off against her mentor turned rival. Just seeing how well the character development is written for this role is brilliant, Cruella is a fighting force to be reckoned with and grows into her antagonistic traits nicely. From a genre perspective I also really liked how it juggled a heist film with revenge elements, all while telling a sort of coming of age tale. Cruella de Vil could've had any background but seeing her use her fashion ability as a weapon against those she has to face is a very impressive thing and works brilliantly alongside the punk aesthetic. The cinematography for this film is really fun, setting up gorgeous shots that highlight ke fashion and action moments alike. The special effects that we see aren't the most impressive for a Disney feature but the way things like the fall from the cliff or the moth swarm are shown certainly leave their mark. The soundtrack for this feature is a brilliant collection of tracks; there are comedic tracks but also anthems of empowerment and rebellion which strike right to the theme of the film.

 

Emma Stone, who played Cruella, is absolutely exemplary as the titular character; Stone dances with cunning and mad temper as if her role was on the edge of a knife throughout the film and this is a performance that has given new life to a classic character. Joel Fry, who played Jasper, is really charming as the pickpocket who has grown up and helped out Cruella; I thought Fry played to his character's trepidation and even bitterness towards Cruella's change in persona well. Paul Walter Hauser, who played Horace, is a comedic powerhouse throughout the whole feature; a kindly thief with a heart of gold who is very loyal to his family from the streets. John McCrea, who played Artie, is a fantastic fashion ally and friend to Cruella; I think McCrea plays strongly to the thrill of the film and has a role who works well with both sides of Cruella's personality. Emily Beecham, who played Catherine, is a very morally good figure who struggles under the pressure of impoverished living and raising a temperamental Cruella; the genuine love Beecham plays and care she shows for the young Cruella sets a lot of the more positive themes for the film. Jamie Demetriou, who played Gerald, is absolutely hilarious as the stiff, uppity manager of the Baroness department store; his stark frustration with Cruella is tempered nicely with his lilting polite facade in front of customers. Tipper Seifert-Cleveland, who played Estella (12 Years), is a brilliant young performer with a solid career ahead if this performance is anything to go by; Seifert-Cleveland plays well to the flairs in temper and vulnerable grief that Stone delves into deeper as the feature progresses.

However, the best performance came from Emma Thompson, who played The Baroness. This is a role who feels like power walking, she radiates control in almost all of her scenes. Thompson has this restrained manner of presenting her character, a stern manner that is meant to intimidate others and tell the world exactly who is in charge without question. I enjoyed those subtle moments of insecurity we see from the Baroness when Cruella begins undercutting her or when she begins taking ideas from Estella/Cruella unflinchingly. This role is brilliant because she has an unbelievable ego which is well earned thanks to her incredible success and prowess, yet it also leads to her hubris. Thompson and Stone have a wonderful onscreen chemistry both as mentor and student, and as rivals at one another's throats. The Baroness is the perfect foil to pit Cruella de Vil against and Thompson creates a figure somehow more sinister than the lead role.

Cruella is one of the best live action Disney adaptations I've seen since Aladdin, but it isn't without flaws. I thought the change from Estella to Cruella comes as quite the harsh switch at first; it takes awhile to really keep up with the change in character because this villainous side comes out very swiftly. I think the film relied on us perceiving her temperamental childhood being enough foreshadowing but it was clear they needed to do a bit more leg work. While it was fun seeing Cruella and the Baroness go head to head for most of the film it was very difficult to believe the protagonist's foe was unable to unmask her fashion foe sooner. I also found the delivery of Cruella's secret past and lost fortune to be a bit of an extravagance, the film had a nice fashion feud going but that twist took a bit of a soap opera angle even if it did lead to a great final confrontation. The Darlings being in this film was a nice nod to the original film but neither role ever really did a thing to enhance the feature.

Mark Strong, who played John the Valet, is an absolutely wasted choice of casting; Strong languishes in a dull background figure who only ever steps in to dish out exposition. Kayvan Novak, who played Roger, really does nothing of significance in the film; Novak may well appear in this film but he is overshadowed by the easter egg that is his character's identity and link to the original film. Kirby Howell-Baptiste, who played Anita Darling, never really plays to either her role's profession nor her character's link to the protagonist; I never believed for a second that Howell-Baptiste and Stone were portraying an old friendship which failed to set things up for any future stories to be told.

 

A really inventive, unique take on a classic Disney villain with a phenomenal cast all round. I would give Cruella a 7.5/10.