Are we still looking for that fairy tale love today? The majority of people know how riding off in the sunset makes us feel a sense of happiness and contentment. As we look at two versions of Cinderella, one is the Grimm Brothers short story "Cinderella" and the other, the movie Ever After. We can see that there are both differences and similarities in the characterization, theme and mood. It's amazing how in our society today we still revert back to what we as a society wanted centuries ago.
Characterization is an important aspect of any story or film, because it sets what the entire film will be about, and how the audience will absorb it. In the short story version, the characters include Ashputtle which is Cinderella, the Stepmother, the stepdaughters, the prince, the father and the spirit of Ashputtle's mother. The character of Cinderella is portrayed as a good little angel that always does what she is told. She is also very weak, because she doesn't stand up to her family. The characters of the stepfamily are portrayed as evil and vindictive. They treat her rotten, and they make her sleep in the ashes. But in the end all of the parties get their just desert. The stepfamily gets what they deserve. The mother was sent away, and the stepsisters who on her wedding day tried to integrate themselves with her, ended up being punished with blindness. The interesting thing about the character of the father was that in the story he remains alive whereas in the film he dies, but in this one even though he is alive he still is very mean to Ashputtle, and treats her as a servant after her mother dies. .
In the film Ever After, the characters include, Danielle Debbarberack who plays Cinderella, the stepmother, the stepsisters (both good and bad), the prince, the king and queen, the evil servant who betrays the king and queen, and the father. The character of Danielle was portrayed as a "modern" woman of the 16th century, who is as independent as she was beautiful.
