Bryan Forbes (1926–2013)

"This is the story of Cinderella, done as a '60s style musical. I wasn't at all sure what to expect, but it was extremely well done. Gemma Craven stars as Cinderella; rather an angry one at first, but as she becomes more and more of a drudge after the death of her father, she becomes sweeter and move loving.

Richard Chamberlain is an excellent fed-up prince, determined to marry for love rather than to suit his father's political aims. I do find it slightly bizarre when a scene suddenly breaks into song and dance, then returns to normal as if nothing had happened, but it worked actually well, with some clever dance routines and songs which were almost reminiscent of Gilbert and Sullivan in places.

The real star, for me, however, was the Fairy Godmother, played by Annette Crosbie. She appears when needed, but is obviously very over-worked due to an extreme shortage of Fairy Godmothers. There was even a kind of logic to the whole idea of Cinderella's dress and carriage disappearing at midnight, although it was never explained how she managed the long journey home - nor why her glass slippers remained.

There's nothing deep in this film, and one or two of the songs were a bit dull towards the end, but it was an enjoyable and relaxing way to spend an evening.… (mehr)