Every now and then, I find myself flipping through the TV channels and stumbling upon, yet again, another adaptation of Cinderella. One would think that I would be happy to see another adaptation of one of my favorite kid movies once more. However, it seems that the adaptation is always far from the original story it is based on. Yes, there is the theme of an unfortunate girl who meets the love of her life, who is willing to save her from her wretched world. Yet, the adaptations seem to be directed towards making money and great reviews rather than staying true to the story it was based off of. It seems that with every added adaptation of Cinderella, I lose even more interest because it has lost all the originality of the original.
Furthermore, I believe that the original stories are more significant than the adaptations or mutations of the originals. I think the original stories in fact mark the beginning of a unique tale, and in being the beginning, they are a more honest and true story than their adaptations.
Looking back at the earliest versions of Cinderella, one could see some of the remaining originality of the first story of Cinderella. However, in recent years, the story of Cinderella seems to be aimed at merely making a profit rather than telling a story.
In 2004, Warner Bros released “A Cinderella Story” that did involve some of basic ideas of one version of Cinderella. However, the movie was more modern than traditional to the original versions of Cinderella. Instead of a glass slipper being left behind a cell phone is left behind and instead of a fairy godmother Hillary Duff (Cinderella) is aided by an old friend and coworker. Many believe it is necessary to transform stories from their original state to modern versions in order for people to better understand and relate to. Nonetheless, it remains to be evident that the adaptation is not the original, and in not being the original, the story loses its essence.
In 2008, Warner Bros released another version of Cinderella that centered more on the theme of dancing than the story.
Moreover, a newer version of Cinderella is also set to be released by the end of 2011that involves a young girl who has to do the bidding of an evil stepmother and her evil stepsister. However, this version centers on Cinderella being forced to use her vocal talent for her step-sister’s benefit.
It is true that many versions of Cinderella exist, and each in their own way is original. However,especially in light of the most recent Cinderella movies, the adaptations seem to be far fetched from the original story they are based on.
