Kenneth Branagh’s vibrant Cinderella adaptation is looking more and more like a must see for the under-13 crowd. After dropping a teaser yesterday, Disney just released the first full-length trailer for its new take on the classic fairy tale, starring Downton Abbey actress Lily James as the titular heroine.
In the first extended look at the film, we get to see a lot of James, who certainly looks the part and showcases some serious acting chops as well, but the real showstoppers are Cate Blanchett as her snobby, garishly clad stepmother and Helena Bonham Carter as her ebullient fairy godmother. Both actresses look to be having a blast with the project. Elsewhere, Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden puts his famed baby blues to good use, and we get a glimpse of Captain America: The First Avenger breakout Hayley Atwell in what looks to be a key scene with Cinderella.
Holliday Grainger, Sophie McShera, Stellan Skarsgård, Nonso Anozie, Derek Jacobi and Ben Chaplin all co-star in Cinderella, which Disney will send to the ball on March 13th, 2015.
The story of “Cinderella” follows the fortunes of young Ella (Lily James) whose merchant father remarries following the death of her mother. Eager to support her loving father, Ella welcomes her new stepmother (Cate Blanchett) and her daughters Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophie McShera) into the family home. But, when Ella’s father unexpectedly passes away, she finds herself at the mercy of a jealous and cruel new family. Finally relegated to nothing more than a servant girl covered in ashes, and spitefully renamed Cinderella, Ella could easily begin to lose hope. Yet, despite the cruelty inflicted upon her, Ella is determined to honor her mother’s dying words and to “have courage and be kind.” She will not give in to despair nor despise those who mistreat her. And then there is the dashing stranger she meets in the woods. Unaware that he is really a prince, not merely an apprentice at the Palace, Ella finally feels she has met a kindred soul. It appears her fortunes may be about to change when the Palace sends out an open invitation for all maidens to attend a ball, raising Ella’s hopes of once again encountering the charming Kit (Richard Madden). Alas, her stepmother forbids her to attend and callously rips apart her dress. But, as in all good fairy tales, help is at hand, and a kindly beggar woman (Helena Bonham-Carter) steps forward and — armed with a pumpkin and a few mice — changes Cinderella’s life forever.
