Cinderella

### Written By

Ken Anderson, Perce Pearce, Homer Brightman, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Joe Rinaldi and Ted Sears

### Directed By

Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske and Wilfred Jackson

### Followed By

Cinderella II: Dreams Come True

**Cinderella** is an American film that was released on March 4, 1950. It is the first instalment in the Cinderella Franchise. The main character of the film is one of the Disney Princesses.

The film was written Ken Anderson, Perce Pearce, Homer Brightman, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Joe Rinaldi and Ted Sears, and directed by Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske and Wilfred Jackson.

## Plot

Cinderella is living a dissatisfying life, having lost both parents at a young age and being forced to work as a scullery maid in her own château. Her stepmother, Lady Tremaine, is cruel to her and she is jealous of Cinderella's charm and beauty. Additionally her two stepsisters, Drizella and Anastasia, cruelly take advantage of her. In spite of this, Cinderella is a kind and gentle young woman. She is friends with mice and kind to birds that live in and around the château. Meanwhile, at the royal palace, the King is frustrated that his son, the Prince, still is not married. He and the Grand Duke organise a ball in an effort to find a suitable wife for the bored and picky Prince, requesting every eligible maiden attend. Upon receiving notice of the ball, Lady Tremaine agrees to let Cinderella go if she finishes her chores and can find a suitable dress to wear.

Cinderella finds a gown that belonged to her mother and decides to refashion it for the ball, but her step-family impedes this by giving her extra chores. Cinderella's animal friends, including Jaq and Gus, refashion it for her, completing the design with a necklace and sash discarded by Drizella and Anastasia, respectively. When Cinderella comes downstairs wearing the dress, the stepsisters are upset when they realise Cinderella is wearing their accessories and tear the dress to shreds before leaving for the ball with their mother. Heartbroken, Cinderella storms out into the garden in tears, where her Fairy Godmother appears before her. Insisting that Cinderella will go to the ball, the Fairy Godmother magically transforms a pumpkin into a carriage, the mice into horses, Cinderella's horse, Major, into a coachman and dog, Bruno, into a footman, before turning Cinderella's ruined dress into a shimmering pale blue ballgown and her shoes into glass slippers. As Cinderella leaves for the ball, the Fairy Godmother warns her the spell will break at the stroke of midnight.

The Prince rejects every girl at the ball until he sees Cinderella, who agrees to dance with him, unaware of who he is. The two fall in love and go out for a stroll together in the castle gardens. As they are about to kiss, Cinderella hears the clock start to chime midnight and flees. As she leaves the castle, one of her slippers falls off. The palace guards give chase as Cinderella flees in the coach before the spell breaks on the last stroke of midnight. Cinderella, her pets and the mice hide in a wooded area as the guards pass. The only remaining piece Cinderella has of her costume is the one glass slipper on her foot.

The Grand Duke informs the King that Cinderella, who remains anonymous, has escaped, and that the Prince wishes to marry her. The lost glass slipper is the only piece of evidence. The King issues a royal proclamation ordering every maiden in the kingdom to try on the slipper for size in an effort to find the girl. After this news reaches Cinderella's household, Lady Tremaine overhears Cinderella humming the waltz played at the ball. Realising that Cinderella is the mysterious girl, Lady Tremaine locks her in her attic bedroom. Later, the Duke arrives at the château, and Jaq and Gus steal the key from Lady Tremaine's dress pocket and take it up to the attic as Anastasia and Drizella unsuccessfully try on the slipper. Lady Tremaine's cat, Lucifer, ambushes the mice, but Bruno chases him out of the house, allowing the mice to free Cinderella. As the Duke is about to leave, Cinderella appears and asks to try on the slipper. Knowing it will fit, Lady Tremaine trips the footman as he brings the Duke the slipper, causing it to shatter on the floor. Much to her horror, and the Grand Duke's profound relief, Cinderella presents the Duke with the other slipper, which fits perfectly. The film ends with a now-married Prince and Cinderella at their wedding, sharing a kiss as they leave.

## Cast and Characters

* Ilene Woods as Cinderella
* Eleanor Audley as Lady Tremaine
* Verna Felton as Fairy Godmother
* William Phipps as Prince Charming
* Lucille Bliss as Anastasia Tremaine
* Rhoda Williams as Drizella Tremaine
* Jimmy MacDonald as Jaq and Gus / Bruno
* Luis van Rooten as King / Grand Duke
* Don Barclay as Doorman
* June Foray as Lucifer
* Betty Lou Gerson as Narrator

## Sequels

The film had two sequels:

* Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (released February 26, 2002)
* Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (released February 6, 2007)