Synopsis

From Rotten Tomatoes:

Academy Award winner Emma Stone stars in Disney's Cruella, an all-new live-action feature film about the rebellious early days of one of cinemas most notorious - and notoriously fashionable - villains, the legendary Cruella de Vil.

Review

I think I am one of the only people on the planet that will defend (most of) Disney’s new age live-action remakes. I know. I know. I know most of you hate them, or think that The Jungle Book is the only good one, but I genuinely enjoy most of them and think they are more than serviceable (Dumbo not included). Many folks feel that these remakes often don’t add anything new to the story or view them as a hacked-up rehash of the original that is more boring. I don’t necessarily agree with that (again, not including Dumbo). While that argument could be made for some of them, I think they all added elements to the stories that I appreciated. This is not to say that they are better than the originals. That is ever the case. But, I do think it’s fair to say that, with the exception of Dumbo (and yes, I am including The Lion King), they are all good films. And I am fortunate enough to say that Cruella, the new live-action origin story for the iconic Disney villain from 101 Dalmatians, can be added to this list... and pushed up near the top.

Cruella is a different kind of film for Disney. For starters, it is rated PG-13 (only the second remake to earn this rating, after Mulan) which allows for it to be a bit more wild with its subject matter. It’s dark. MUCH darker than any of the remakes we’ve seen (except for maybe Mulan or Alice in Wonderland; and it’s not insanely dark, it just is comparatively). Also, this is the first original story in the recent live-action canon (yes, I know I’ve been calling it a remake but I’m only considering it a remake because it is based on a character originated in animation) so it has more opportunity to be fresh and clever. Which it is. So, like I said, this is a different kind of film for Disney. And that’s a VERY good thing.

This film is *cue British accent* delightful dahhhling. The first trailer for this film had me excited for it, but I was not prepared for how much I would come to enjoy this film. The best way to describe this film is in a fashion that I’m sure you’ve heard: an interesting mix between Joker (2019, dir. Todd Phillips) and The Devil Wears Prada (2006, dir. David Frankel). Now I really like both of those films (Devil is one of my all-time favorites) and when I heard this for the first time, I was like “no way.” Now that I have seen the film, I can say that it is a very apt description. It’s more like Devil than Joker, in terms of the story, and more like Joker in terms of the tone and visual style, but it definitely feels like those two films melded together. This film has perfectly blended the dark and comedic elements provided by those two films. It also plays a bit like a heist movie at times which I LOVE. Heist films are my favorite kind of film (those and musicals) so I really liked that they incorporated elements of that genre as well. This film is very creative and it should be commended for that.

I think the craft that went into the making of this film is the most stellar aspect, though. Do not be surprised when you see this film nominated for Costume Design, Production Design, or Cinematography come Oscar season. The costumes, done by Jenny Beavan, are... IMMACULATE. Absolutely stunning. I read somewhere that Emma Stone, alone, had 40-something looks. That’s over 40 original pieces of clothing for ONE character. It’s stunning. I also love the design and look of the film. It is set in mid-70s Britain and the production design is really accurate. Well... let’s say it’s the right amount of right and wrong. The music also really helps influence the setting. The soundtrack for this film is straight fire. I don’t know any other way to say it. I was vibing with it so much, I got mad when it cut off LMAO. And shout out to the music supervisors for using the Ike and Tina cover of “Come Together.” That was very much appreciated. I also thought it was very well shot. Also the performances are great. Both Emmas, Stone and Thompson, are fantastic. I actually think I liked Emma Thompson in her Miranda Priestly moment more than Emma Stone, but Emma Stone was so dynamic in her role, it’s hard to say that neither of them did a bad job.

Now, the film does suffer from some pacing issues. It’s about 20 minutes too long. There are parts of the film that fly by and others that drag for a bit. I noticed at about the halfway mark, I was like “we still have another hour and 10 minutes to go... ok.” Ultimately, it proved to not be a very damaging aspect of the film, but it’s length is undeniable. Other than that, I can’t point to anything else in the film I didn’t like.

This was really unexpected for me. I did not think I would like Cruella as much as I did. I think the dark elements balanced with the comedy in the film works really well. There are some great visuals and even better costumes and music. The lead performances are great. There are other supporting characters (Paul Walter Hauser and Joel Fry as Horace and Jasper are great as well) but this is really a two-handler between the two Emmas. It’s too long, but I think the rest of the film makes up for it... But yeah, this bitch is GOODT! It’s the battle of the EMMA’s, and oh what a sweet one it is.