Cinderella (1914)
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Cinderella Movie Review
Cinderella is a 1914 silent fantasy film directed by James Kirkwood Sr. and starring Mary Pickford and Owen Moore. It’s a rather messy adaptation.
This was one of the first full-length movie adaptations of this often adapted fairy tale and it’s not among the better ones sadly. My issues here are numerous, but the prime one is its uneven and messy structure and pacing. The movie doesn’t flow well for a fifty-minute feature and that was its biggest hurdle. It was rarely engaging to me.
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The filmmakers also made an odd decision to add certain scenes that make no sense within the context of this story. For instance, there is a nightmare sequence with gnomes that was visually appealing, but totally unnecessary for this particular fairy tale. None of the dream sequences felt important, though they were easily the visual highlights.
Apparently, Owen Moore and Mary Pickford were married in real life back when they filmed this picture, but you don’t really see their chemistry on the screen. Their energy felt muted and even Pickford wasn’t as fun as she usually was during this period. She was okay in the main role, but far from great. Moore himself was even more forgettable.
I also did not like what they did with the step mother and step sisters. They simply weren’t as cruel as they are in most other adaptations. The scenes with them were only serviceable. The villain issue in this movie is a pretty big one as the film lacked conflict, a menacing nature and drama.
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With that being said, this Cinderella looks pretty good. The directing from James Kirkwood Sr. is solid, though far from impressive. The cinematography is quite good. The movie isn’t fully cinematic at all times, but it’s mostly well filmed and I liked the tint that they used for certain fantastical sequences. The costumes are all over the place for the historical period that they should represent, but they are at least lavish and memorable. The movie is rushed in its third act, but the first act appealed to me as this is where the movie was at its most charming and best crafted.
The 1914 Cinderella feature adaptation is a mixed bag. It is visually appealing with solid cinematography, sets and costumes. It also has solid fantastical sequences. But it wasn’t edited or structured well at all. Mary Pickford is fine in the main role, but lacking the spark that was present in her other movies from this period. This is an overly strange and messy adaptation that should have been better directed and scripted overall.
My Rating – 3
This is the first film in my 4our series where I will cover one film per decade that is having an anniversary this year, from 1914 to 2014. Next up is the year 1924 where I chose Michael. Keep an eye on that one as well.
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