The Mosley Review: Cruella

There was a genuine concern I had when sitting down in the theater to watch this film unfold. I was desperately hoping for the story of one Disney's most iconic villains to not go down the same abysmal road that Maleficent did. A huge sigh of relief washed over me once the outline of the film was revealed, but it wasn't all that exciting as it wanted to be. I liked that the titular character got a decent and sometimes fun origin story. The world she was living in was vibrant and fabulous in many ways, but I felt that this film was very heavy handed in so many aspects of tone and lacked that extra spark that would’ve elevated the story past its flat execution. The film does borrow alot from other great films like The Devil Wears Prada, Oceans 11 and any standard origin film about a character that comes from nothing. Its all fun to see heists while looking great in a Dolce and Gabbana dress, but after while you start seeing the same boring story beats play out in too many familiar ways. The film's story does have a few well placed surprises and introductions to a possible future, but the film wasn’t strong enough to stand on its own and just didn’t feel like a proper tone for the Cruella. The strongest part I felt was the amazing performances from the cast and truly kept this film a float as it started to sink.

Emma Stone is out of this world as Estella/Cruella. She is so fantastic at creating a sympathetic character that you can't keep your eyes off of. Throughout the film you see her go from the quiet genius designer dream to queen of fashion in the making. When she fully transforms from the softer Estella to the harder, brash and confident Cruella, it is fantastic and you start to see the shades of the villain we all know trickle in by the films' end. I just wish she took her version to the edge of where she is a bad person, but you want to follow her. It sucks she didn’t get that chance. Joel Fry and Paul Walter Hauser were fantastic as Jasper and Horace. Joel made Jasper a more fun and smarter character than ever before and he was very charismatic. Paul Walter Hauser was easily the most joyful as Horace and he was truly having so much fun in every scene. He wasn't the typical bumbling sidekick as expected and I loved that he was part of the brains when it came to all the heists. Emily Beecham was great and sweet as Estella's mother in the film and I liked that she kept her grounded throughout the story. Kirby Howell-Baptiste was fun as the new Anita Darling and I wouldn't mind seeing more of this version of the popular character in the future. John McCrea steals every moment he is on screen as Artie and I love the instant bond he forms with Cruella. Mark Strong is always good and as the right hand man to The Baroness he was cool. Emma Thompson is on the same level as Emma Stone in delivering an amazing performance as Baroness von Hellman. She was so self indulgent, uptight and just an awful human being and I loved every second of it. The real magic happens when both her and Cruella are face to face throughout the film and you see the chemistry between them become explosive. They both carry the film with their fun game of cat and mouse.

The score by Nicholas Britell was good when it was present. It really shines in the scene when Estella truly excepts that she is now Cruella. The soundtrack in the film featured many great hits and covers of great songs, but I felt drowned by it at times. You don't always need a song to illustrate what the character is feeling or how their life is about to change as they enter a new stage. The best song usage was when Jon McCrea's - I Wanna Be Your Dog was used during a awesome and gorgeous runway show. Now I didn't mind that they made Cruella more sympathetic, but she is a Disney villain and we need to see her become that. The edge of the knife is there, but right now it is still dull. Sharpen that edge and lets start cutting into the real meat of what makes Cruella so well known. There a moment or glint of what could’ve been, but it was quickly ripped away because you’re suppose to be rooting for her. NO! Go for that darkness and make your audience question why you love a villain or if you even should. Every story has a moral to it, but this one was very ambiguous. Don't become your competition, be better or even worse? Don't be vengeful, but get even by playing them at the same level of the game? In the end I thought it was an alright film that was held together by Emma Stone and Emma Thompson's outstanding performances and that's really all there is. There is a mid credits scene that could set up a sequel, but there is something pretty wrong if you look deeper into it. This film is currently in theaters and is on Disney+ with Premiere access. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!