why Cinderella (2015) is a visual masterpiece

when I watch Disney's live-action Cinderella remake I believe that fairy godmothers exist and that pumpkins can turn into carriages so how come I don't feel any of that magic with Beauty and the Beast Aladdin or the 30 minutes of Mulan I watched before turning it off there are two reasons the first so many have already discussed on YouTube which is that these other remakes don't fully respect the themes and characters of their animated counterparts but I want to focus on a less talked about but just as important second reason Cinderella is the only live action remake that visually looks good the sets the costumes and the colors transport me to a believable fairy tale world I don't love these remakes okay but this movie genuinely gets me excited about bringing the animations to life all these other live actions they look manufactured and cartoonish and this matters because Disney movies are supposed to highlight creativity and wonder and so much of that is how you see the magic unfold on screen so I'm gonna take you on a journey and explain why visuals are so important especially for these Disney princess remakes and how the live action Cinderella does it exceptionally well because you can show The Glass Slipper the clock the carriage and the ball gown but it won't mean much unless you execute it well to understand why I think Cinderella looks so good I think it's important to explain why I think the other remakes don't the remix I'm going to be comparing Cinderella to are the other princess movies made after 2015. so what even makes a movie visually pleasing well this is somewhat subjective but there is a combination of many techniques that movies will use for example good composition and this is the use of camera angles lenses and framing to arrange the scene and there's also the costumes the sets the props colors lighting and of course when the cameras stop rolling there's still the editing special effects and CGI if all of these elements are combined well you will get a cohesive and beautiful visual there isn't one style that looks best whether it works depends on the context of the story and if it looks good aesthetically now look at the recent live actions these are examples that both don't have a good aesthetic and have visuals that don't enhance the story aesthetically there is very little to distinguish these remakes creatively they all have the same oversaturated colors during the day the same hard to see blues at night the same two clean costumes and the same play-like sets it's not bad to have a consistent style many directors create movies that look similar the issue here is that this style makes me feel like I'm watching actors on a set rather than characters in another world these costumes look like I'd see them in the Disney theme parks and these sets don't look like real locations it's cartoonish live action rather than believable real life fantasy you might argue that this aesthetic is more appealing to kids but the animations and Cinderella 2015 are also made for kids and they look great there are some visuals that look good the little mermaid looks a lot better on lands lawn has beautiful lighting and Beauty and the Beast has a nice Castle but overall they could look so much better and I'll touch on some specific examples throughout this video in comparison to Cinderella to me if you're going to remake these animated stories as live actions you should prioritize the uniqueness of live action and this is why Cinderella works the director prioritized the live action medium first his vision was to create a world that mixes historical realism with fantasy and the result is a movie that's beautiful fantastic and believable so much of the live action visuals are influenced by the 1950 animation so I have to highlight what makes it so iconic in the first place much of the 1950s Cinderella visual style was established by the artist Mary Blair you might not know her name but she was integral to creating the look for several Disney animated films and her use of shapes Whimsy and color became a signature of Disney Magic One distinguishing feature of Cinderella's style is the delicate swoops and swirls weaved into the backgrounds and architecture they're in the candlesticks and the staircases and the carriage they're elegant flowy and classy and match who Cinderella is she handles cruelty with Grace and she's more mature than Snow White so her movie looks more sophisticated this style is also heavily influenced by the French Rococo period since one of the most popular versions of Cinderella was written by the 17th century French author Charles Perrault and then there's the varied and emotional colors Cinderella begins in minimal color but Daydreams and a vibrant rainbow her sweet pink dress is transformed into a sophisticated and luxurious silver this transformation is so impactful because it's so visually drastic the evil stepmother has these envious green eyes and is often clouded in Sinister Darkness her stepsisters wear uncoordinated and Loud colors because they're greedy and obnoxious inside the castle is these warm Reds and gold which is much more inviting than the cold green Walls of her house during the waltz the scene shifts to a romantic purple and pink plus all the Sparkles that emphasize the magic the scenes that are high energy like the Chase and the stepsisters ripping her dress are tinged with an angry powerful red and we also see the sad blues and empty Grays of Cinderella's grief and isolation the last iconic element is character design Cinderella's design is a beautiful embodiment of her personality I just love the dainty way she runs down the stairs and how she holds her skirt so delicately at the palace despite the torment she's had to endure she moves through life with grace and elegance her hair and dress were also modeled after 1940s fashion at the time the stepmother has constricted and harsh lines the Fairy Godmother is around soft and inviting Cinderella's Story is about kindness and Karma you can see how visuals are so important to enhancing this story the live action references the delicate sets emotional colors and strategic costume design and elevates it the 2015 live actions visual style is historical realism mixed with Whimsical fantasy the time period is grounded in the 19th century but it's not wholly historically accurate because it's a fairy tale after all like I mentioned before it capitalizes on the live action medium so let's look at some of these elements in detail the first is romantic cinematography my goodness as soon as this movie opens I literally fell in love do you see this beautiful grainy texture over the image when you compare it to the other live actions they have this artificial plastic look to them I never knew what made this difference until researching this video and I finally have an answer which is that Cinderella is the only remake that was shot on film every single one after was shot on digital cameras there's nothing wrong with digital cameras but they do have very distinct differences in the way that the image looks film has a distinct grainy texture and the colors are warmer and the movement is softer film looks Timeless and romantic and Rich it's perfect for a fantasy movie that references different historical periods digital on the other hand is clean and very sharp I think digital looks beautiful for futuristic or sci-fi movies but not fantasy because fantasies especially ones that reference the past like Cinderella shouldn't look hyper modern film makes this feel like an old storybook fairy tale and even if these other remakes aren't exactly fairy tales they're still fantasy this too clean aesthetic is one of the reasons I see actors and not characters and while we're on the topic of cameras Cinderella has some of the most gorgeous camera angles like look at this overhead shot as she enters the palace you really get a sense of scale and wonder as she enters this whole new world that's so different from where she came from or this simple close-up of the prince's hand on her waist just before she gasps or the this tilted one as she's running away that conveys how frantic she is and I love this shot that introduces the evil stepmother it starts on the ground and then slowly pans up to reveal her the upwards angle is intimidating not to mention her outfit which don't you worry we will be discussing these outfits even the simplest shots are beautiful like the judgmental stepsisters framed in the distant doorway lady Tremaine hidden by her luxurious oversized hat Cinderella against the chandeliers you could probably pause this movie anywhere and it would look beautiful I genuinely cannot think of the same creativity in these other live actions this is the introduction to Gaston a Burly man who is obsessively Vain and we meet him in a bright boring fields at least surround him with some Lumberjack trees or something do you know how he's introduced in the animation by literally shooting a goose out of the sky obviously that would be very traumatizing to put in a live action for kids okay but this gets the point across this is intimidating this is boring Cinderella also does not rely on CGI for magic but is still magical it achieves this in three ways the first is focusing Less on personified animals instead time is spent on Cinderella's childhood adding complexity to Lady Tremaine and giving the prince a personality these are all useful changes that make a more compelling story and in a lot of ways better than the original the live action gives depth to the characters just like it gives visual depth to 2D animation the animals we do get don't speak but the mice still have personalities and charm in the way that they move the cats is a real cat with only slight CGI to enhance his facial expressions in other Disney remakes where the quote live action animals speak they can't emote and even though it wouldn't make sense to remove a character like Sebastian or to make him not talk I kind of prefer Cinderella's approach or at least make these animals have better facial expressions you may have also noticed the butterflies her Dad gives her a butterfly toy there's butterflies in her dress and the fairy Godmother's magic they're simple sweet and discreet they aren't in the original but I really love this added detail because butterflies symbolize transformation freedom and growth the second way that Cinderella uses less CGI but is still magical is that Cinderella uses practical effects and only uses CGI when necessary 5 000 candles were actually lit in this Ballroom the fairy Godmother's dress actually has hundreds of twinkling LED lights built into it and the goose and lizard men are wearing Prosthetics I love practical effects they feel very human and artistic and less uncanny valley I wish the Beast would have been a mix of practical and CGI rather than fully CGI and do we really need sentient witch sleeves or this character in general from Mulan there are tiny hints of magic throughout the movie like this butterfly that becomes part of the lights or the mice in the background but in general there's very little CGI until Cinderella's transformation which makes this sequence so much more breathtaking and what's even more important is that this scene is a very iconic scene in the original animation and they don't directly copy it they reinvent it and make it their own it's very different than the sudden appearance of the original dress the entire sequence takes 40 seconds rather than five and even though it's CGI this is one of my favorite Parts in the movie lastly on the topic of CGI Cinderella is not a musical so they weren't pressured to rival visually complicated scenes I love Disney music I don't think removing songs is always the right decision in fact I'm personally offended that Mulan is not a musical but it's so hard to top how Dynamic and creative the musical numbers are in animation they try with Under the Sea and friends like me and these don't look bad there's so much visually happening and I know that so much work went into these sequences it's just that these scenes remind me why these shouldn't be live actions in the first place this type of sequence is so much better suited to animation I actually think the best part about the live action friends like me is the dance number which is the only live action piece and is not in the original removing Bippity Boppity Boo Works in this case because we don't need it to know the Godmother is magical and again it gives us more time with the characters Cinderella's act of kindness is rewarded instead of the Godmother magically appearing now if you follow my Channel or my Instagram you know that I am obsessed with color color can make something pop on screen and really impact your emotions this movie has the perfect balance of saturated colors that still feel believable in a live action and a big reason is because it's on film it's vibrant like a kids movie should be but not to the point of cartoonishness the only time the bright colors overpower the screen is when they're supposed to like the over the top stepsisters Cinderella also has great contrast on one hand you have the Cheery optimistic colors that make up most of the movie The joyful beginning for example has Sunshine yellows as Ella plays with her mom when Ella meets the Prince it's in a lush green forest Ella herself stands out and her signature bright blue which is Serene and approachable but the movie doesn't shy away from darkness when her mother passes the colors become desaturated signifying grief when she learns of her father's death it's dark and stormy to reflect an intense moment of Sorrow which makes her empathy for his work partner so much more admirable then she cries alone in a shadow doorway this is so heartbreaking then there's lady tremaine's blackmail scene the dark colors and ominous candlelights make this look Sinister and cinematic the other live actions have dark scenes too but they're hard to see and have this bizarre blue cast over them this was also one of my arguments in my Little Mermaid video it's okay over the ocean to be dark and overly blue because Ariel is sad but you can still have dark and sad scenes that look good Cinderella shows grief and suffering and evilness with Darkness but visually it still looks beautiful and you can shoot night scenes without all of this blue just look at a whole new world this is so unromantic I can barely see Aladdin and Jasmine now compare that to Cinderella strolling through the gardens with the print this is visible I can see their cute facial expressions Cinderella is literally glowing in the darkness this is so much better okay now let's talk about the sets because this is what I call craftsmanship first we have The Farmhouse this is so Charming it feels straight out of a fairy tale it's covered with winding Vines and wildflowers on the outside and on the inside all the walls are decorated with flower or tree paintings in the beginning you can see that the outside flowers are this vibrant pink and of course this is a time when the house is full of love but then when the Tremaine family arrives the flowers are drabber and the vines are Browning Cinderella's room is rustic and vintage before the stepsisters overtake it then the homey and comfortable Fabrics turn to sleek and expensive satins but you can see it still has her signature blue walls also look at this teddy bear okay I know this is really random but this really looks like a childhood toy that you can imagine Cinderella growing up with and playing with but if you look at something like Jasmine's bracelet which is a precious expensive family heirloom this does not look like the jewelry of a princess to me this looks like costume jewelry the attic is a drab colorless and open space with barely any furniture visually Cinderella stands out and instantly brightens the space this room would typically be so depressing but Cinderella is optimistic and says she's grateful because it's peaceful which emphasizes her good-natured spirits before we get to the castle I have to talk about this Carriage I do love the silver Carriage don't get me wrong in the original with its cute spiral Wheels but this is a whole other level of magic this reimagining is what I want to see in my live actions look at how detailed this is the carriage was designed to look like a jewel it's fully functioning and can actually be pulled by four horses you still have the pumpkin shape in line but it also encompasses glass elements of the greenhouse because it shattered it when it transformed to me this is what it means to bring fairy tales to life here I can actually see the points of remaking these animations to live action I don't want to see my princesses in anything less than this opulence if they can make a carriage look this amazing surely they could have done the same thing with Jasmine's bracelets the castle is the best castle out of all of these remakes the production designer Dante Ferretti referenced the Baroque Period and iconic French architecture from the Louvre and the Palace of Versailles it's Grand ornate and Majestic and it's not just the ballroom it's everything it's the massive hallway and the elaborate King's chamber The Secret Garden even the painters room is charming this Castle feels expansive and looks like it was actually made for royalty in the ballroom there are 17 chandeliers that were custom made in Venice Italy the ceilings are 30 feet high and I think in the post-production process they cgied it to look like 60 feet and if you look around the walls there are these heavy expensive looking curtains these massive flower arrangements and even detailed French paintings they had actual musicians playing on period instruments the floor is an authentic looking marble and there's this gorgeous staircase the way it winds down creates the perfect entrance for Cinderella when I look at the Sultan's Palace this gold just doesn't feel believably real I do love the lighting and the red tones in the throne room of Mulan but the scale and lands just isn't anywhere near Cinderella the beast's Ballroom is beautiful I do like that it's more intimate but just in comparison you can't even really compare the two finally we have the costumes hair and the makeup I've saved the best for last because these are my favorite things out of all of the Cinderella visuals the costume designer Sandy Powell said she wanted the costumes to be colorful like a picture book but be believable and I think that this is what every Disney princess movie deserves like the rest of the film The costumes follow a 19th century period look that include elements from other periods as well other than Cinderella the star of the show is 100 lady Tremaine her outfits are some of my favorite costumes in a movie ever do you see how this looks like a genuine outfit one might wear in this world it doesn't look like a costume when I see a Gaston or Jafar they have nowhere near the level of artistry or believability in their costume designs lady tremaine's costumes are completely different than the 1950s animation and I love it the decision to make her fashionable in a striking way I think makes her so much more intimidating very much like a Miranda Priestly especially with her bold red lips her costumes are modeled after a 1940s style which you can really see in the pointed bra and accentuated shoulders her Silhouettes are elegant narrow and refined Kate Blanchette has such Grace and Poise and I really think these outfits just enhance her performance like look at how she opens these doors phenomenal green is the main color she wears green is the color of greed and envy the death of her late husband has made her grow bitter and now she's prone to jealousy she's jealous of Cinderella's late mother that she will never replace her in the eyes of Ella's father and she's jealous of Cinderella's youth Beauty and goodness she nor her daughters exhibit the same Grace she's also greedy only wanting her daughters to marry the prince so they can secure wealth for the family even though green is her main color she all also always has an element of black which makes her so much more evil and Sinister and you can really see the contrast when she's next to Ella Cinderella's stepsisters do reference the animation and wear their signature bright yellow and pink these colors are loud and outrageous because that's exactly how the girls are Anastasia and drizella are vain materialistic and are disgusted by Simplicity when they go to the ball their dresses have so many embellishments they really believe that more is better but really it's ridiculous I know these dresses are supposed to be very insane but I honestly kind of love how creative they are I especially love these quirky hoop skirts since the stepsisters are younger than their mom obviously their styles are reminiscent of the 1950s my favorite distinction between the Tremaine family and Cinderella is the hair the stepsisters always have tightly wound curled hair and Lady Tremaine has stiff Smooth hair whereas Cinderella's is Frizzy fluffy and natural it shows with the Tremaine prioritize and also the luxuries they have Ella is working so hard that she doesn't have time to do her hair and she's also nowhere near as vain the Fairy Godmother has another one of my favorite costumes I've already mentioned the Practical lights in the dress which I think is just such a unique detail but she's also a great example of transitional coloring she starts in dark Browns that blend into the environment it's dirty and nothing special then she transforms into Heavenly sparkling whites once Cinderella offers her kindness everything about this dress is gorgeous I love how it's over the top and quirky to match how frazzled the Godmother is I love the reference of the fairy wings in the back and this oversized skirt and all of the glittering rhinestones again this is a great way to reinvent a classic character with something new and just as exciting okay now we're at the ball this is insane there were 500 extras in this ball and every single one of them is dressed in a gorgeous dress or suits I love how there are guests of varying nationalities and a lot of them are inspired by different time periods like princess chelina of Zaragoza her look is Spanish inspired and I am obsessed with the way that this looks I want this outfit all of the extras even wore archival Swarovski jewelry these are extras most of the extras have similar Silhouettes with their dress and the Fabrics are all quite solid and heavy then Cinderella comes in with this beautiful flowy iridescent ball gown and I think that that's one way she stands out obviously aside from the massive skirts the Prince kids has a defined personality in this version he's seen War so his outfit is a military inspired the costume designer also added blue to a lot of his outfits to complement Richard Madden's eyes which was an excellent decision his first outfit is green with a touch of blue and although green can be envious and greedy in the right context it can also be down to earth and humble he wears it hunting and when he first meets Cinderella the blue in his outfit at the ball happens to match Cinderella's dress of course since they are both destined to be together I also really love the concept of his wedding outfit it's also blue and it's still military style and it references the animated version Sandy Powell said they chose fewer masculine colors here which I think was a really great choice because this is a romantic and soft moment and more importantly kit is influenced by Cinderella through her kind-heartedness he quotes her several times in the movie and is inspired by how she approaches life differently than him so I think it's really cute how her style merges with his by the end and then there's Cinderella herself everything about her costumes even her farm girl dress is perfect as a child she matches her mother with flowies undresses and Wildflower prints Ella is heavily impacted by her mother before she passes who tells her of fairy godmothers the importance of believing and to have courage and be kind it makes sense that she would reflect her so much visually she wears actual slippers and her signature blue and continues to wear this style as she ages as an adult she only wears one dress really it starts out beautiful there's a lovely intricate flower design near the Hem of the skirt it's corseted and overall simple and sweet as the step family begins to abuse her her dress slowly becomes faded and dirty with work they don't even bother to buy her new clothes a similar transformation happens with her hair in the beginning her hair matches her mother's with loose waves flowers and braids it's carefree and innocent and playful as an adult she keeps her braids but adds ribbons and Butterfly Clips then a black ribbon when she's grieving by the time she's overworked by the tremains and meets the Prince there are literal knots in her hair with only a ragged cloth to hold it back again this is something new the live action offers us with a visual decline of Cinderella referencing the increasing abuse that she goes through but I do love how her pink dress is reminiscent of the animated version it's simple and young looking she doesn't wear any jewelry or heels because she doesn't have any in fact she's still wearing her blue stuffers here but they've faded to Brown you can see how sweet and delicate the light pink looks in comparison to Anastasia's hot attention demanding pink and if you notice it's light and flowy when the Fairy Godmother transforms her dress she keeps some of these elements like the soft flowiness I don't even think I need to argue why this ball gown is stunning or why it's the best live-action princess dress the excessive skirt the over the shoulder sleeves the iridescent layers and just look at the way it moves like she looks like she's floating the dress alone adds so much to this scene and it looks so pretty even when she's running away this dress took 500 hours to make they had eight different versions for the different scenes that she was doing her hair and makeup are also so pretty I love that they Place crystals throughout her hair and on her chest to make it look like she's glowing and sprinkles in fairy does they also weaved her hair to make it look like a tiara without her actually wearing one everyone else has these massive Jewels yet she stands out with her Simplicity and it reflects her character so well this whole look is just so magical and so worthy of being made into a live action also Sandy mentioned in an interview that she was aware that this dress would be scaled down to doll size and for little girls to wear but that wasn't the driving force of her design and I really feel like that's how you have to approach the costumes in these movies make something Fantastical and unbelievable and then when you Mass Market it then you can reduce the details for toys and for kids because you're probably going to do that anyway now there is one thing wrong with this dress okay I know how dare I even say that but just hear me out for a second the only thing that's wrong with it is that this dress was digitally recolored for the final version of the movie now it does make a lot of practical sense it makes her stand out better again the gold of the palace the only thing is I wish they kept the multi-color effect of her skirt because in the original dress there are all these shades of lavender and blue and Periwinkle I just wish they Amplified the saturation of the existing colors instead rather than a complete wash of the blue you let me know what you think I don't know if that's a controversial opinion there's also her glass slippers I mean they're gorgeous that they sparkle I love how they're made out of Crystal this was actually designed by Swarovski as well and the design is based on I believe an 1800s shoe it's five inches with no platform and fun facts Lily Collins never actually wore these shoes she had stunt shoes I think they were leather and they had to CGI it in when they put her shoe on in the movie lastly there's her wedding dress another stunning outfit all the flowers that you see on the train and on the dress are hands painted and I love how this is a callback to the beginning with her Wildflower sundresses the silhouette of the dress is sophisticated but still simple I really love how the costume designer said that since Cinderella wins the prince's heart through her goodness she wanted to show that through her clothes so even though she's royalty now and she has all these ridges she's still quite modest and simple in her wedding dress again there's so much thought into the decisions Behind These costumes I'm still stunned that we didn't get an aerial Sparkle dress I mean think of the cultural impact that that Sparkle dress could have had on the world and even though Cinderella only wears like one dress before her ball gown it makes sense for the story the fact that Ariel only wears one dress over three days is such a missed opportunity I think and don't even get me started on Belle's dress I mean this is a travesty first of all where are her gloves why is this fabric not golden not to mention they had to CGI this dress because it wasn't full enough and I just don't know how they didn't think of that when creating this costume I would say that Jasmine's outfits are the least worst offender because at least she has a closet of options they gave us a lot of costumes with Jasmine and I do appreciate that the thing is though I don't think that these costumes look like royalty now I'm personally no expert on South Asian Fabrics or outfits but I have seen South Asian wedding dresses and those to me are so princess worthy there is so much detail and beating and embroidery like this is so inspiring to me and I would have loved to have seen the same level of craftsmanship on Jasmine and since we're talking about Disney I'll also say that great visuals are a good business decision we are drawn to things that look better and the thing is is you don't need a big budget Cinderella did you know has the smallest budget out of all of these remakes I mean don't get me wrong it's not a small budget in general but in comparison it is I also just did a video on do Revenge which has fantastic costumes for a teen movie and they were on a budget the costume designer was thrifting designer pieces off of eBay so I really think I can hold Disney to this high standard the last thing I'll say is they recently announced a tangled remake I don't think you understand the sorrow I felt in my heart when I saw that news I love this movie this movie is so important to me I really don't want a live action but I think Disney's probably gonna make it anyway so it better look like Cinderella 2015. all right please I'm begging you I would literally fly out to wherever this production is happening and ensure it looks like this anyway subscribe for the next video I do I don't know what it's gonna be so subscribe for a surprise and I hope you have a lovely night thank you so much for watching foreign

Channel: art at midnight

Views: 297,631

Keywords: art at midnight, cinderella, disney, cinderella 2015, lily james, costume design

Id: zqR8hKYAb9M

Length: 30min 53sec (1853 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 02 2023