Republished from the show notes of my other site, Fuds on Film.
I don’t know if the world was really crying out for a 101 Dalmations prequel, but I suppose the necessity train departed this franchise’s station around the time of 102 Dalmations, so why not give us a Wicked style look at Cruella de Vil?
The young Estella Miller, ultimately played by Emma Stone, is heavily encouraged by her mother, Emily Beecham’s Catherine Miller to bury her cruel streak, and embrace being nice, and maybe embrace her talent for fashion design. Due to the provocations of the situation this doesn’t exactly work, being turfed out of school for some broadly justified acts of rebellion, and Catherine resolves to move the two of them to London. Just one quick stop to make first, at Emma Thompson’s Baroness von Hellman’s gaff to ask for financial assistance, which results in Catherine’s Dalmatian assisted plunge off a cliff, although at this point Estella isn’t aware of the Baroness’ guilt.
The now orphaned Estella makes her way to London, soon forming a loose family with streetkids Jasper and Horace, who will grow up to be Joel Fry and Paul Walter Hauser as the narrative moves along to the 70’s, where they’re still surviving on their wits and petty thievery until Jasper and Horace give her a birthday gift – a fraudulently obtained cleaner’s job at the Liberty department store, a bastion of fashion where she’s always wanted to work her way up to designing for the store’s legendary owner, Baroness von Hellman.
I’m sure you see where this is going. Before long Estella has impressed the domineering Baroness with her skills and, well, basic competence, and is acting as her personal assistant when the truth of her mother’s death is unwittingly revealed and Estella plots revenge, embracing the Cruella de Vil personality to continually upstage and sabotage the Baroness’ fashion shows and get to the bottom of the story of her true parentage.
Now, I don’t know what “essential” filmmaking is in this day and age, or indeed any day and age. I am not a smart boy. However, while it’s pretty clear that this ain’t it, chief, the past year and a bit has given me a renewed affection for distracting baubles like Cruella, which is a solidly enjoyable chunk of entertainment. Stone and particularly Thompson leaving no piece of scenery unchewed, and with a sense of bombast that’s reflected in the scope of the fashionista stunts of the later acts. The two play off each other well, and it’s an entertaining pairing that I suppose naturally invites comparison with The Devil Wears Prada, as noted by every reviewer who’s reviewed this. I never claimed to be a thought-leader.
For much of this film, Mark Strong does not wear an amusing wig, so I was going to write this off as 21’s most disappointing movie, but thankfully some later reel flashbacks provide an opportunity for some characteristically awful hairpieces, thus making this the finest 2K21 has yet offered, at least in the vaunted “Mark Strong Wig” category.
Enjoyable enough, if not something that’s likely to be bothering any film of the year lists, but at the very least it’s the only film we’ll speak of today that picks an appropriate tone and sticks to it, and is certainly the most full of life. Still not enough to get me subscribing to Disney Plus, of course. Yarr.