CINDERELLA (2021)
Colorful, catchy, and thoroughly modern — for discerning adults.
Should You Watch It?
This Cinderella is a thoroughly modern retelling with real entertainment value. It is engaging, funny, and colorful, with strong singing and dancing. Camila Cabello makes an excellent Cinderella, Nicholas Galitzine sings well, and the movie includes several memorable musical moments.
The concern is not the filmmaking. It is what the film celebrates. Cinderella chooses her dream of becoming a famous dress designer instead of marriage, and she and Prince Robert travel the world together without marrying. The story repeatedly elevates personal feelings over duty and transcendent moral values. One song includes a prayer to God, and the movie includes light moral elements about kindness and true love, but those positives do not outweigh the worldview concerns for children.
Adults who can watch with discernment may find this a lively musical. For children and young teens, choose something else.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESElla lives under the thumb of her stepmother after her father’s death. Confined to the basement and assigned household chores, she dreams of designing and selling beautiful dresses from her own shop.
Prince Robert, meanwhile, faces pressure to marry and succeed his father as king. When a royal ball brings Ella and Robert together, their lives begin to change—but Ella must decide how far she will go to pursue her dream.
Is It Any Good?
Four stars means this is a highly entertaining film. Cinderella is engaging, funny, and colorful, with great singing and dancing throughout. Camila Cabello makes an excellent Cinderella, and Nicholas Galitzine does a great job singing “Somebody to Love.”
Several musical numbers stand out, including a duet version of Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” and Idina Menzel’s entertaining performance of Madonna’s “Material Girl.” The other songs do not have melodies quite as pretty as those three, but the movie remains lively and enjoyable overall.
The Worldview
This version of Cinderella strongly embraces a Romantic, non-Christian, feminist worldview. It attacks duty and old-fashioned traditions, presenting personal feelings and individual desire as more important than established responsibilities or transcendent moral values. Rather than reforming the kingdom’s laws so women can run businesses, the story ultimately sends Cinderella and the Prince away together to travel the world without marriage.
The movie also presents some positive elements. Cinderella dreams of owning a dressmaking shop, giving the story pro-capitalist themes. Prince Robert prays to the Lord in a song about finding somebody to love, and his prayer is answered when he sees Cinderella. The film also includes ideas about kindness, true love, wisdom, and the repeated statement, “Love will save the day.” A later comment about wind power over “filthy coal” adds an environmentalist element.
The film’s portrayal of gender and identity also reflects its modern perspective: the Fairy Godmother is an effeminate man called “Fabulous G,” and the story encourages characters to follow their feelings. Biblical wisdom instead calls us to test our desires and walk in what is right: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Proverbs 14:12).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements
Very strong Romantic, feminist worldview in a modern telling of the fairy tale “Cinderella,” attacks duty and “old-fashioned traditions” in a country where women can’t work and own a business, and the movie’s solution is to let people do whatever they want to do and let the daughter become ruler instead of the son, people sing “If you tell me I’m wrong, I don’t want to be right,” and Cinderella and the Prince go away together, but there is no marriage (which fits the movie’s non-Christian, Romantic, feminist, and antinomian or lawless worldview), but the movie has some strong pro-capitalist elements where Cinderella dreams about owning her own dressmaking shop, and there are some light Christian, moral elements in the first act where Prince prays to the “Lord” in a song about finding somebody to love, and the prayer is answered right away when he sees the beautiful Cinderella acting courageously, wittily and boldly, and there’s a song where Cinderella repeatedly sings, “Love will save the day,” and there are also some other light moral elements about kindness and finding true love and being wise, plus some light homosexual elements where effeminate man narrates the story and later shows up as Cinderella’s “Fairy Godmother” (the flamboyant coat he wears looks like a dress over some glittering pants) and an environmentalist comment when King’s daughter advocates using wind power instead of “filthy coal”
Foul Language
One “Holy Hell” obscenity and 10 light profanities (one of them is a borderline “What in God’s name?”)
Violence
Light violence and slapstick comedy such as stepmother throws ink onto beautiful new dress Cinderella made for the ball so that Cinderella can’t go to the ball, mouse false into an open drawer, mice change back into mice at midnight and fall down, carriage changes back to an object and Cinderella falls onto the road
Sex
No sex
Nudity
No nudity
Alcohol Use
No alcohol use
Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse
No smoking or drugs;
Miscellaneous Immorality
Stepmother mistreats Cinderella and her two daughters, and the King gets angry at his wife and son.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Cinderella wants to pursue her dream, but what responsibilities should guide the way we pursue our desires?
Luke 9:23 · Philippians 2:3–4The story places personal feelings above duty. How can you tell when a feeling is wise to follow—and when it needs to be tested?
Proverbs 3:5–6 · 1 John 4:1Prince Robert prays to God for someone to love. What does Scripture teach about love, and how is biblical love different from simply following feelings?
1 Corinthians 13:4–7 · 1 John 4:7–8Cinderella dreams of using her gifts to make beautiful dresses. How can your family use its gifts in ways that honor God and serve others?
1 Peter 4:10 · Colossians 3:23–24The Final Word
Cinderella is bright, funny, and musically engaging, with genuine craft and a few positive references to God. But its message about feelings, marriage, duty, and personal freedom is not suitable for children or young teens. For discerning adults, the answer is WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY. For other family movie-night options, see.
