Cruella
Disney While The Walt Disney Company had remade some of their classic animated films throughout the 1990s, the true plague of Disney remakes did not come about until 2014’s Maleficent. Since then, Disney has treated the public to an unnecessary reimagining of their classic animated films almost every year. Some have been well received, but most have been heavily criticised for adding nothing interesting to the original story and accused of purely being a cash grab. With 2021 in full force, Disney is of course offering yet another of these retellings with Cruella.
Cruella is the second remake of Disney’s 1961 animated film One Hundred and One Dalmatians, though it has been most compared to 1996’s live-action 101 Dalmatians due to its iconic performance of Cruella De Vil by Glenn Close. 2021’s version of Cruella is a villain origin story in the same vein as Maleficent but seems to be more of an alternate reality rather than depicting the events leading up to the 1961 and 1996 films in which – spoiler alert – Cruella De Vil wants to skin dalmatian puppies and turn them into a fur coat because she just loves spots, darling.
This version of Cruella, played by the wonderful Emma Stone, isn’t maniacally out to murder dogs for the sake of fashion but instead tells the story of Cruella De Vil morphing into an up-and-coming fashion designer. Like all origin stories, we are taking back to Cruella’s childhood, then known as Estella, where we humanise the villain and understand how she became so evil. The young Estella meets her partners in crime Buddy, her newfound street dog, Jasper (Joel Fry), Horace (an impeccable Paul Walter Hauser) and Wink, a chihuahua with an eye patch. While the team commits petty crimes for survival, Estella’s true passion is fashion and, eventually, the film leads to a rivalry between Estella’s alter ego Cruella and the narcissistic leader of an elite London fashion label, Baroness von Hellman (Emma Thompson).
The main thing that makes Cruella stand out from the myriad of other Disney remakes is it incorporates enough of the original One Hundred and One Dalmatians story to be familiar but changes plenty of it to suit this version of Cruella. While the human characters of Roger and Anita are present in the film, neither owns a dalmatian and they never seem to meet each other, hence why Cruella doesn’t seem to directly move into the original story. Instead, Cruella is the hero and the villain is Emma Thompson’s Baroness, who happens to have a brood of three vicious dalmatians. The only other memorable aspects of the original film being Cruella’s henchmen, Jasper and Horace, as well as Cruella’s undying love for fashion.
There are quite a few significant plot points to explain Cruella’s origin and character that are rather silly, but given that Disney movies are rooted in fairytales and parents dying tragically it’s no surprise that Disney would go down this root. The story itself of Cruella’s rise in the fashion world and her descent into rage is actually very amusing to watch unfold, especially as the film is set during the 1970s and has an immense punk rock influence. Cruella is truly a visual and audible feast with countless stunning outfits by costume designer Jenny Beavan, and an incredible soundtrack adding to its spectacular.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that Cruella is this fun given the team behind it. Director Craig Gillespie, who previously worked on I, Tonya brings a lot of edge to the film, while screenwriters Tony McNamara, who previously worked on The Favourite, and Dana Fox bring that same energy. Finally, the performances definitely are the best part of Cruella. Jasper and Horace have more time to become developed characters, with Joel Fry giving Jasper a more empathetic side, while Paul Walter Hauser’s Horace is still incredibly dopey but brings so much comedic relief, especially from his relationship with his beloved chihuahua Wink. Emma Stone obviously steals the show and stays true to the original Cruella De Vil character, but she’s so enigmatic and talented that you just want her to win. Emma Thompson’s Baroness von Hellman is very reminiscent of The Devil Wears Prada which always works in a fashion movie, but it’s the chemistry between the two Emmas that brings the story together.
All in all, yes: Cruella is yet another remake from Disney, and with at least 10 more in preproduction, it’s no sign of this trend stopping anytime soon. But luckily Cruella is unique enough to have a justified existence. It is a film littered with 1970s fashion, music, and culture, with the unhinged behaviour one would expect from an iconic Disney villain. The film is truly dazzling and is guaranteed to stick out amongst the Disney remakes.