A Meta-Analysis of Cinderella Films

Friends….Romans….lend me your bedazzled slippers!

Recently, I watched the Amazon 2021 film version of Cinderella to much pre-fairy tale film hype touted by Prime Video for some time. Let’s just say that this most recent version…left me wanting to review historically all the Cinderella films to dissect what worked, and what didn’t work…in this fairy tale. 👡

Here are some things I learned on my journey about a girl who really just wanted a night off and a party dress, but usually ended up with a bit more:

• Historical: This story has roots back to films in the 1800s! It almost appears to have had at least one remake of the story or more per decade since the late 1800s. Considering film itself didn’t really go mainstream until later, this story has been around in film as long as film itself has been around!
• Generally, directors of this film were pretty much a boys’ club — this was kind of odd, but the earlier versions of the film were co-directed by women and men, then it hit a serious boys’ club until 2016 again, when the majority of the Cinderella film stories filmed after that year became majority women again.
• My favorite things about the films were not so…Cinderella — it’s the variations of what Cinderella aspired to that really got my attention. One was into fixing motors, one wanted to be an event planner/entrepreneur with a pet rabbit, and one even had a very dark meet-cute between the ‘Cinderella’ and the ‘Prince’ type characters.
• Bank: I wonder if this story could be one of the largest money-making film franchise stories of all time? Considering so many versions of this story have been produced on film, I wonder if it stomps out even stories like Star Wars, or Harry Potter? Since it’s been around forever, I don’t quite know all the box office #s here because I couldn’t find all the info publicly, but I have to believe this franchise bundled together has to be in the top 20 stories of all time on film.
• Independence Day: It feels like modern-day Cinderellas are getting a little more independent — which I think is actually a good thing. Less about the happily ever after with the prince, and more happily ever after for herself, maybe? I viewed this from my analysis on what Cinderella said she really wanted during the film. (Hint: most of the new versions did not have “prince” at the top of Cinderella’s list.)
• Cinderfella: There’s only been one gender swap film — this kind of surprised me, but the only Cinderfella film was with Jerry Lewis back in the 1950s? Maybe I’m missing some, but I’d love to see more where Cinder-dude meets up with the princess.
• No Indie Cindi: There are no versions that I’m aware of where Cinderella didn’t catch a prince.

The version I want to see, but haven’t seen yet: Since they make one every other year or so now, here’s the plot version I’d like to see: a middle-aged Cinderella, not quite so under the thumb of her family, a little more independent, and a prince who digs Cinderella’s independence. I’d also like to see a happily ever after without wedding bells (props to the Amazon version for that one.) Instead, the film ends with Cinderella’s dreams coming true (of being a nuclear physicist? Forensic Scientist? Engineer?)

Anyway — here’s the spreadsheet I started on the previous Cinderella Films as a franchise. Let me know if I’m missing some. And regardless, Hollywood — keep making this film. One day, maybe it will get closer to my ideal version!

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Erin L. Albert is an author, thinker, and not in film — nowhere near it, just a sucker for a Cinderella story. Opinions are her own.