# Ever After

Ever After (known in promotional material as Ever After: A Cinderella Story) is a 1998 American romantic period drama film inspired by the Charles Perrault fairy tale "Cinderella". It is directed by Andy Tennant and stars Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston, Dougray Scott and Jeanne Moreau. Tennant, Susannah Grant and Rick Parks wrote the screenplay while George Fenton composed the original music score.
The film removes the pantomime and supernatural elements commonly found in retellings of the Cinderella tale and instead treats the story as historical fiction, setting it in Renaissance-era France. It is considered to be a modern, post-feminist interpretation of the fairy tale.
Ever After was well received by critics and was a box-office success.

## Plot

The Brothers Grimm are invited to an audience with the Grande Dame, who expresses her disappointment in their version of Cinderella. She produces a glass slipper and recounts Cinderella's true story.
During the French Renaissance, ten years after Auguste de Barbarac dies, his daughter, Danielle, has been forced to become a servant to her stepmother, the Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent, and stepsisters, Marguerite and Jacqueline. One morning, Danielle has an unexpected confrontation with Prince Henry as he is attempting to flee to Genoa to avoid an arranged marriage to Princess Gabriella of Spain, at first mistaking him for a thief. Henry gives Danielle 20 gold francs to keep their interlude secret. He is eventually caught by the Royal Guard after stopping gypsies from robbing Leonardo da Vinci, whom King Francis has invited to the French court.
Danielle, disguised as a noblewoman, heads to the palace to use the coins to buy back a family servant, Maurice, who was sold by Rodmilla. Henry witnesses her arguing with the jailer and, impressed by Danielle's passion and intelligence, orders the jailer to release Maurice. When he asks for her name, Danielle gives her late mother's name, Countess Nicole de Lancret. King Francis strikes a deal with Henry later that night: in a few days he will hold a masquerade ball at which Henry will announce his engagement to the woman of his choosing at midnight, or else marry Gabriella. Hearing this news, Rodmilla accelerates her efforts at getting Henry to notice Marguerite, while being neglectful to Jacqueline. Meanwhile, Danielle begins secretly spending time with Henry. After visiting the library at a nearby Franciscan monastery, the gypsies ambush them. Impressed with Danielle's cleverness, the gypsy leader agrees to let them go and takes them to their camp, where Henry and Danielle share their first kiss.
Rodmilla and Marguerite plan to take the wedding gown and glass slippers that Danielle inherited from Nicole for Marguerite to wear at the ball. When Marguerite insults Nicole, Danielle punches her in the eye and chases her through the house. Marguerite retaliates by destroying the copy of the book Utopia, the last book Auguste gave Danielle before he died. Jacqueline expresses sympathy for Danielle and criticizes Marguerite for her cruelty.
Queen Marie holds a luncheon with Marguerite and Rodmilla and expresses curiosity about the mysterious girl who has taken Henry's fancy. Rodmilla, recognizing the name of Nicole as Danielle’s mother, deduces that the girl is Danielle. She lies to the Queen that Nicole is engaged and leaving the country that day.
Danielle cannot bring herself to tell Henry the truth; when he tells her she has changed him as a man, inspiring him to build a university, and that he intends to announce his desire to marry her at the ball, she is overcome with emotion and flees, though she admits that the previous night was the happiest of her life. Rodmilla confronts Danielle about her deception and the whereabouts of the dress and slippers. Unbeknownst to Rodmilla, they were hidden by the servants. Danielle strongly refuses to return them and Rodmilla locks her in the pantry. Maurice convinces an initially reluctant Gustave, Danielle's best friend since childhood, to recruit Leonardo to help Danielle escape. He, Gustave, and servants Paulette and Louise send Danielle to the ball wearing her mother's dress and shoes. Danielle arrives determined to tell Henry the truth, but Rodmilla exposes her first. Furious, Henry rejects Danielle and she tearfully runs away, leaving behind one of her shoes. Leonardo reproaches Henry for his callousness and leaves him Danielle's missing slipper.
Henry decides to marry Gabriella. During the ceremony, he realizes that she is miserable. She admits that she loves someone else as he does and Henry decides to call off the marriage. Maurice and Jacqueline tell him that Rodmilla sold Danielle to Pierre Le Pieu, a nasty, wealthy estate owner who has always pined for Danielle. Henry and Captain Laurent of the King's Guard set off to rescue Danielle, only to find that she has freed herself. Henry apologizes, professes his love for her, and proposes marriage by fitting the slipper onto her foot. Danielle happily accepts.
The royal court summons Rodmilla, Marguerite, and Jacqueline where Rodmilla is confronted with her lying to Marie about Danielle. She is stripped of her title and threatened with exile alongside Marguerite unless someone speaks for her. Danielle, now married to Henry, appears and instead asks that Rodmilla be shown the same "courtesy" she had shown her. Rodmilla and Marguerite are reduced to servants in the palace laundry with Danielle vowing that she will never think of either of them again. Leonardo gifts Danielle and Henry with a portrait of Danielle.
The Grande Dame reveals that Danielle's portrait hung in Henry's university until the French Revolution. She emphasizes that while her great-great grandparents did live happily ever after, the point is that they lived.

## Cast

* Drew Barrymore as Danielle de Barbarac, the only child of Auguste de Barbarac and Nicole de Lancret
** Anna Maguire as Young Danielle
* Anjelica Huston as Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent, Danielle's wicked stepmother and Auguste's second wife
* Dougray Scott as Henry, Prince of France, Danielle's love interest and son of Francis and Marie
* Patrick Godfrey as Leonardo da Vinci, an artist, inventor and a member of the royal court
* Megan Dodds as Marguerite de Ghent, Danielle's "evil" stepsister
** Elizabeth Earl as Young Marguerite
* Melanie Lynskey as Jacqueline de Ghent, Danielle's "nice" stepsister
** Alex Pooley as Young Jacqueline
* Timothy West as Francis, King of France and Henry's father
* Judy Parfitt as Marie, Queen of France and Henry's mother
* Jeroen Krabbé as Auguste de Barbarac, Danielle's father
* Lee Ingleby as Gustave, Danielle's best friend and an apprentice painter
** Ricki Cuttell as Young Gustave
* Kate Lansbury as Paulette, a servant to the de Barbaracs
* Matyelok Gibbs as Louise, Maurice's wife and a servant to the de Barbaracs
* Walter Sparrow as Maurice, Louise's husband and a servant to the de Barbaracs
* Jeanne Moreau as Grande Dame, Danielle and Henry's great-great granddaughter
* Richard O'Brien as Monsieur Pierre Le Pieu, a lecherous merchant
* Peter Gunn as Laurent, Royal Guard captain
* Joerg Stadler as Wilhelm Grimm, author and Jacob's brother
* Andrew Henderson as Jacob Grimm, author and Wilhem's brother
* Toby Jones as a Royal Page
Patrick Godfrey's wife Amanda Walker appears an old noblewoman.

## Historical context

While the story is fictional, it involves several historical figures, places and events. The film is set in the 16th and 19th centuries and features Francis I, Prince Henry (later Henry II of France), Leonardo da Vinci, The Brothers Grimm, as well as allusions to the explorer Jacques Cartier, the fairy tale collector Charles Perrault, the French colonies in the New World, and the French Revolution.
Though the main portion of the film takes place in early 1500s France, the royals shown are most likely not meant to be the historical figures for which they are named. King Francis I summoned Leonardo da Vinci to his court around 1516, three years before King Henry II was born; neither of King Francis I's wives was named Marie (the first was named Claude and the second Eleanor). King Henry II was married to Catherine de' Medici at the age of 14.

## Production

Ever After was filmed in Super 35.

### Locations and sets

The castle shown in the film is the Château de Hautefort in the Dordogne region of France. Other featured châteaux are de Fénelon, de Losse, de Lanquais, de Beynac and the Château de la Roussie, that served as the house of the de Barbaracs, as well as the city of Sarlat-la-Canéda. The painting of Danielle is based on Leonardo da Vinci's Head of a Woman (La Scapigliata).

## Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 66 reviews were positive, with an average score of 7.60/10. The critical consensus states: "Ever After is a sweet, frothy twist on the ancient fable, led by a solid turn from star Barrymore". On Metacritic it has a score of 66 out of 100 based on 22 reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "A" on scale of A to F.
Lisa Schwarzbaum from Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B−, saying: "Against many odds, Ever After comes up with a good one. This novel variation is still set in the once-upon-a-time 16th century, but it features an active, 1990s-style heroine—she argues about economic theory and civil rights with her royal suitor—rather than a passive, exploited hearth sweeper who warbles "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes"". She also praised Anjelica Huston's performance as a cruel stepmother: "Huston does a lot of eye narrowing and eyebrow raising while toddling around in an extraordinary selection of extreme headgear, accompanied by her two less-than-self-actualized daughters—the snooty, social-climbing, nasty Marguerite, and the dim, lumpy, secretly nice Jacqueline. "Nothing is final until you're dead", Mama instructs her girls at the dinner table, "and even then I'm sure God negotiates"".
Chicago Sun-Times film critic, Roger Ebert, praises the film with three out of four stars and writes, "The movie [...] is one of surprises, not least that the old tale still has life and passion in it. I went to the screening expecting some sort of soppy children's picture and found myself in a costume romance with some of the same energy and zest as The Mask of Zorro. And I was reminded again that Drew Barrymore can hold the screen and involve us in her characters. [...] Here, as the little cinder girl, she is able to at last put aside her bedraggled losers and flower as a fresh young beauty, and she brings poignancy and fire to the role".

## Home media

On March 2, 1999, the film was released on VHS & DVD.
On April 11, 2003, the film was released on DVD with the movie Never Been Kissed—another film starring Drew Barrymore—in a combo pack. On May 26, 2006, the film was released in The Drew Barrymore Collection Celebrity Pack, which also contained DVDs of Never Been Kissed and Fever Pitch. On March 2, 2010, the film was released in a DVD combo pack with the movie An Affair to Remember—a double feature celebrating 20th Century Fox's 75th anniversary; two months later, the film was then released in a DVD combo pack on May 4, 2010 with the movies Anna and the King and Australia—a triple feature celebrating the same thing.
On January 4, 2011, the film was released on Blu-ray. On September 4, 2012, it was released with the movie Never Been Kissed in a combo pack on Blu-ray. On October 7, 2014, the film was released in a 4 Drew Barrymore Favorites DVD set with Never Been Kissed, Fever Pitch, and Whip It.
On January 6, 2015, the film was released in a Blu-ray / Digital HD combo pack, region-free. The film was also released on Blu-ray in the UK on August 6, 2018. Then, on January 1, 2019, the film was again released in a Blu-ray / Digital HD combo pack but for Region A.

## Musical adaptation

A report in 2012 indicated that a musical theatre production was in the works, with the book and lyrics by Marcy Heisler and music by Zina Goldrich. The musical was originally scheduled for its world premiere in April 2009 at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco, but the pre-Broadway run was postponed. In May 2012, the project was back on track with Kathleen Marshall signing on to direct a Broadway run.
A workshop of the musical was held from April 25, 2013 – May 15, 2013 with Sierra Boggess as Danielle, Jeremy Jordan as Prince Henry, and Ashley Spencer as Marguerite. The musical made its world premiere at the Paper Mill Playhouse from May 21, 2015 – June 21, 2015. Christine Ebersole played the role of Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent. Alongside Ebersole, Margo Seibert starred as Danielle, James Snyder as Henry, Charles Shaughnessy as King Francis, and Tony Sheldon as Leonardo da Vinci. Another production of the musical played at Atlanta's Alliance Theatre from January 15, 2019 to February 19. The production was directed by Susan V. Booth and starred Sierra Boggess as Danielle de Barbarac, Terry Burrell as Queen Marie, Todd Buonopane as Captain Laurent, David Garrison as Leonardo da Vinci, Chris Kayser as King Francis, Jeff McCarthy as Pierre Malette, Tim Rogan as Prince Henry and Rachel York as Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent.