Hey Cinderella!

Plot synopsis:
The story follows Cinderella (Belinda Montgomery): a beautiful girl who is forced to do all the chores by her wicked stepmother and two stepsisters with only her dog Rufus to help her.
At the palace, King Goshposh (performed by Jim Henson) is bored and wishes to throw a party so that he may be given presents. As an excuse, he decides that his son Prince Arthur Charming (Robin Ward), ought to wed and use the ball as a means to find a suitable princess bride. Arthur does not like this arrangement and while gardening explains to his friend Kermit the Frog (also performed by Jim Henson) that every girl who knows him is a snob. His only hope to find an unsnobbish girl is to find a girl who does not recognize him as the prince.
Shortly after, Cinderella meets Arthur in the gardens as she is fulfilling a task given to her by her stepmother (to muddy her shoes, dirty the kitchen floor, and then scrub the floor). Seeing that Cinderella does not recognize him as prince, he introduces himself as Arthur the gardener and secures an invitation for her by convincing his father to invite every person in the land to the ball rather than just the princesses (the king agrees, as it will get him more presents). Because the ball is a masquerade, Arthur and Cinderella decide to each wear a geranium as a means of recognizing the other.
The night of the ball, the stepfamily leave with a gift of old socks for the king. Cinderella is only allowed to attend if she finishes her chores, and finds a suitable dress, carriage, and coachman for the ball before the last minute (an impossible task, as she is told this at the last minute). When Cinderella dreams of attending the dance as well, her fairy godmother appears (who had been seen prior, attempting to turn a pumpkin into a coach as a magic trick). In a rare instance of her magic working, the fairy godmother provides Cinderella with a beautiful dress and glass slippers. She convinces Kermit to drive the carriage (though he refuses to turn human for it). It is pulled by his monster friend Splurge after he accidentally scares away all the horses. The fairy godmother warns Cinderella to be home by twelve and attends the ball as well, to make sure the deadline is met. Unfortunately, the King decided to give all guests a geranium to wear so Arthur and Cinderella are unable to recognize each other. When they dance, Cinderella knows Arthur only as "Prince Charming" and he knows her only as a mysterious maiden. At the stroke of midnight, the fairy godmother and Cinderella run from the palace leaving behind only one glass slipper which Arthur accidentally steps on and smashes.
Determined to force Arthur to marry the "mysterious maiden", the king first hires all his horses and men (a reference to Humpty Dumpty) to put the slipper back together and - when that is unsuccessful—look in all the unlikely places for the other one. Cinderella learns of this plan and though she realizes that she is the maiden they are searching for, she wishes to marry Arthur the gardener and not the prince. She convinces Rufus to bury the slipper, only for the prince to arrive and for Cinderella to realize that he and the gardener are the same person. She tries to explain that she's the mysterious princess, yet no one believes her. Finally, the fairy godmother appears, but in an attempt to turn Cinderella's rags back into the ball gown, Cinderella vanishes. In the meantime, Kermit and Splurge return the slipper. After a number of times, Cinderella appears in ball regalia, and she and the prince are finally married (with Kermit commenting that he could have solved the mystery much sooner, had he only been asked).
Afterwards, Kermit receives a personal invitation regarding the wedding of Arthur and his new bride. Sitting by a well and reading it, it includes he must bring a present for King Goshposh. After reading it, he remarks "How's that for a Happily ever after?" before jumping backwards into the well.

Tags: fantasy

Review:
A beautiful rendition of the classic fairy tale!. CINDERELLA is beautifully retold in this enchanting piece of entertainment: HEY CINDERELLA! I have no doubts this has to be one of Jim Henson's best specials ever. LABYRINTH (1986) was also a sensation. Belinda Montgomery is especially joyful as the youthful Cinderella. I really loved the fairy godmother. Kermit, Splurge and the rest of the cast were equally adorable. The Muppets are one of the key things in making a good rendition of a fairy tale e.g. THE FROG PRINCE starring Kermit the Frog.. unique idea. I saw this movie as a child and think it is probably the most unique version of Cinderella I've ever seen! It is absolutely magical and real. I wish I could come across it again, it's sad, romantic, funny- everything a little girl could want. The genius behind the writing is that it isn't your typical fairy tale story where everything comes together once the prince finds his princess but takes a more unique approach to the most beloved story of all time. The ideas behind Cinderella's rag to riches transformation was magic of its own. And the fanciful approach with the muppets made the movie great for families. Jim Henson did it right when he made this one!. Another winner for The Muppets.. Leave it to The Muppets to take a fairy tale classic, make it their own & come up with a winning TV movie. Belinda Montgomery & Robin Ward are perfectly cast as Cinderella & Prince Charming AKA Arthur. Their wide eyed expressions & fun performances give the muppets stiff competition. Of course everyone comes out on top, but like 'The Muppets Frog Prince' this TV film shows Kermit acting differently from his later day persona. This Kermit is less square (I hope I don't get in trouble for that comment) & more sarcastic, although anything works for Kermit, but he's hilarious here.Its a shame The Muppets didn't take on more fairy tale classics. With a winning combination like this, they couldn't lose. Great family fun.. Loved it growing up but production values spoil it badly.. When I was growing up I saw this movie every Christmas for a decade or more and loved it every time.I'm not 100% certain that I'd still enjoy it as an adult, but I did as a teen and my parents and uncles and aunts did so I'm guessing it can stand the test of growing up.The most amazing thing about this little movie is that, for all that it featured muppets in many of the key roles, and for all that the story was full of sarcasm and humor and misadventure, the whole thing has a much more human and realistic feel than any other version I've come across.******** Not a plot spoiler but could be considered a joke spoiler **************When Kermit gripes about Cinderella not wanting to kiss him because of species prejudice ... When Cinderella flees the ball and the prince steps on and crushes the glass slipper ... When Cinderella, in her grief, has the footman bury the 2nd shoe, the last vestige of her time at the ball, in the certain knowledge that he's too scatterbrained to find it again...They all seem so much more down to Earth and real than Disney's twinkly fairy story.I think I would very much enjoy seeing this again.****************** Aaaarggh **************************How could I have been so wrong! Yes, as written it's quite a good parody. Yes the muppets' parts are actually quite good.But NO! The human acting is terrible. The sets are cheap, flimsy, and badly painted. The production values make it look like it was filmed on a broken shoestring budget. My memory has this at a 9. My disappointment gives it a 3, one for the plot, 1 for the jokes, 1 for the muppets, Nothing for anything else. This is ONE film that could NOT be damaged by a remake.