Considering that kids sometimes view their parents -- rightly or wrongly -- as overbearing sorts who order them around and don't let them have any fun, it isn't surprising that parental units are often portrayed that way in children's stories. One of the more enduring ones, of course, has been Cinderella.
Hundreds of years old and presented about a gazillion times in one fashion or another since its unknown inception, it's the familiar tale of a young woman who manages to overcome having to live with and endure the behavior of her ill-tempered family members.
While the classic story is usually portrayed as a period or at least fantastical piece, it occasionally gets a contemporary or "realistic" setting. Such is the case in "A Cinderella Story" where Lizzie McGuire herself, a.k.a. Hilary Duff, inhabits the put-upon character that goes through the standard Cinderella routine.
Except, of course, that there are no Disney-esque mice or pumpkins and the legendary glass slipper has become a less than romantic cell phone (although one Maxwell Smart might have found that symbolic link disturbingly sexy). All of which means it will be easy for the targeted "tween" demographic to identify with the character and setting.
Yet, it also means that most of the "magic" and/or charm is gone as well, which also holds true for the necessary suspension of disbelief to accept what occurs. And that mostly applies to a far-fetched story and especially the exaggerated character types and caricatures that populate the film.
While the over the top mean and overbearing qualities of the stepmother and step-sisters are usually fairly easy to buy -- and sometimes almost desired -- in the period settings, they just don't work in a contemporary one where the rest of reality is supposed to be, well, real.
As portrayed by Jennifer Coolidge (the "American Pie" and "Legally Blonde" films), Madeline Zima ("Second Chances," "Til There Was You") and Andrea Avery (making her feature debut), the evil stepmother and her equally bad brood are nothing but cartoon caricatures that are far more annoying than entertaining.
I realize that's somewhat of the point and that the picture is aimed at an age group and gender of which I no longer and never belonged (respectively). Yet, the characters and their related storylines just don't work that well. In another setting or if presented as an animated film of one form or another, they may have, but that's obviously not the case.
The same holds true for Prince Charming -- a.k.a. high school QB and class president Chad Michael Murray ("Freaky Friday," "Megiddo: The Omega Code 2") -- being unable to identify his Cinderella. Of course, maybe the film is set somewhere near Metropolis since the apparently equally oblivious populace can't recognize Sam sans her tiny costume eye mask (although at least that's a tiny more of a covering than a pair of black-rimmed spectacles). Unfortunately, there's simply nothing super about this film that never comes close to lifting off in any sort of "up, up and away" fashion.
That is, except in straying ever further away from the successful formula. The filmmakers -- newcomer Leigh Dunlap and director Mark Rosman (the little seen "The Invader" and "Evolver") -- have changed the fairy godmother into a divorced waitress -- played by Regina King ("Daddy Day Care," "Down to Earth") in a well-intentioned but mostly thankless part -- while adding a John Hughes type male sidekick embodied by Dan Byrd ("28 Days," "The First of May"). Thankfully, he's not Jon Cryer and fortunately doesn't harbor an unrealized secret love for little miss "Cindy."
As the main character, Duff ("Cheaper by the Dozen," "The Lizzie McGuire Movie") is what she is in most every film in which she's appeared -- pretty and perky. Although that will appeal to her diehard fans, that alone doesn't make the character appealing, even with all of the built-in strikes against her that are obviously designed to make us root for her success. With a heavily reworked script, the character and possibly the movie might have succeeded, but that's nothing more than an unfulfilled fairy tale wish at this point.
The effort considerably pales in comparison to other Cinderella type stories of recent such as the far better and infectiously enjoyable "Ella Enchanted," while coming up as a "Mean Girls" poseur with lots of social bark, but little bite in the character played by Julie Gonzalo ("Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story," "Freaky Friday"). If anything, that material feels just as artificial as the rest of the film, including some poorly conceived, executed and absolutely unnecessary slapstick moments and verbal jokes that land with a thud.
I have no idea if this film will turn into a pumpkin at the box office or later on home video, but the clock strikes twelve on it long before the end credits roll. "A Cinderella Story" rates as a 3 out of 10.
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