The Ugly Stepsister
After Otto (Ralph Carlsson, "The Girl Who Played with Fire") dies during his own wedding dinner to the widowed Rebekka (Ane Dahl Torp, "The Wave"), her eldest, Elvira (Lea Myren), is horrified to learn from her beautiful, blond stepsister Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Næss) that the family doesn't have the money they thought they'd married into. Yet Rebekka will leave her unburied husband to rot while she spends plenty to remake her daughter's appearance so that Elvira may compete to become Prince Julian's (Isac Calmroth) bride instead of attending the ball as "The Ugly Stepsister."
Laura's Review: B
Writer/director Emilie Blichfeldt's feature debut explores the same themes as the Oscar nominated "Substance," but through the lens of the Europudding fairy tale movies I used to see in my local second run cinema as a kid in the 60's. The Grimm Brothers' original Cinderella story had the stepsisters mutilate their feet to fit into her slipper, the prince recognizing the dishonesty by the blood running down their stockings, but Blichfeldt goes much further here, Elvira undergoing ghastly procedures you might be horrified to learn are based in historical fact. The biggest change the filmmaker has made to the tale is to turn Agnes, made charwoman Cinderella after she's found sleeping with stableman Isak (Malte Gårdinger), into an entitled bitch, turning our sympathies towards Elvira, whose eagerness to please charms and whose bullying casts her as underdog.
The film opens with Elvira's fantasy about Prince Julian, inspired by his book of poetry and her idealized view of herself, one which she will eventually replicate at a certain ball looking for eligible virgins. But the awkward girl we meet has a round face surrounded by a canopy of banana curls and a mouthful of metal braces. While she's tried to embrace Agnes as her new sister, she's stunned when the newly orphaned beauty snaps 'If it wasn't for the money, papa would never have let people like you into his life.'
Elvira will be subjected to Dr. Esthétique (Adam Lundgren), who will brandish giant pliers to remove her metal braces and wield a chisel to reshape her nose, something which elicits shrieks of pain from the young girl who must cover the resultant swelling and bruising with a covering tied to her head. A later process involving the application of longer lashes is not for the squeamish. At finishing school, ballet instructor Madame Vanja (Katarzyna Herman, "The Lure") will order her to the back row despite her obvious talent, Agnes given the coveted slot in a performance meant for the Prince, but the stunning Sophie von Kronenberg (Cecilia Forss) recognizes something in her and slips her something special - a tapeworm egg within a locket.
Elvira will happen upon the Prince and his constant companions, The Feinschmecker (Isac Aspberg) and The Omnivorous (Albin Weidenbladh), as the Prince relieves himself in the forest, offering her a view of his sculpted buttocks and bro-y behavior, including a crude insult hurled directly at her, which Elvira appears not to notice, but she will be shocked when, entering the stable, she finds Agnes copulating with Isak. Rebekka fires the stablehand and reduces her deflowered stepdaughter to servant. But Agnes will not be deterred and even when Elvira receives a 'godmother' in the form of a hired dressmaker, a dress shredded by Rebekka will be restored for Cinderella in one of the film's most inspired - and revolting - reimaginings in the film.
The Norwegian film is mired in Gothic gloom, Poland's Gołuchow Castle's dark but elaborate interiors providing the perfect environment for Otto's outward opulence. Blichfeldt and costume designer Manon Rasmussen ("A Royal Affair") combined research from the 1800's with looks from Disney's 1950 animation for an exaggerated effect. John Erik Kaada's ("O'Horten") synth heavy score adds to the film's retro Europudding aesthetic.
Lea Myren is so perfect in the lead, tempering the more ambitious aspects of Elvira's character with her open-hearted naivete, one hopes this role leads to more. The performance becomes quite physical during the film's climax, her fate both cringe-worthy and funny, Blichfeldt and her star making us feel guilty for laughing. The only character who comes of out "The Ugly Stepsister" morally upright is Elvira's younger sister Alma (Flo Fagerli), who ironically proves to be her sister's knight in shining armor.
Robin's Review: B+
Elvira (Lea Myren) suffers her ambitious mother’s (Ane Dahl Torp) misguided thirst for wealth. The young woman’s only salvation is her dream to wed the handsome Prince Julian (Isac Calmroth), but that desire is fraught with pain and suffering for “The Ugly Stepsister.”
First time feature director-writer Emilie Blichfeldt takes the well-known and iconic story of Cinderella and flips it around and throws it back at you. In this clever and remarkably modern story is a scathing indictment of our culture of body shaming of women, Elvira is a normal young woman, a bit plain and a bit chubby. She is also enamored with Prince Julian’s book of romantic poems – which call out to her, personally.
Her mother’s attempt to marry for money went horribly wrong when her new rich husband dies – broke and with nothing except his beautiful daughter, Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Naess). So, her alternate plan is to prepare her eldest daughter, Elvira, to attend the prince’s prestigious virgins' ball and be selected his future wife. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
But, it will be a bit more difficult for Elvira to achieve her mother’s concept of beauty. For one, she needs straight teeth so cumbersome braces are installed. Then, her nose is too crooked and must be fixed – in the most painful and barbaric way possible. She also needs to have her eyes enhanced so brand new lashes are sewn in place. Finally, to help her lose her pudginess, mom insists that she swallow a tapeworm egg. All this in the name of beauty and perfection.
As one can guess, this is not a remake of the original Walt Disney story, not by a long shot. There is no fairy godmother, no pumpkin coach or mice turned into horses. A variation of the glass slipper is there but does not go in any way you could possibly guess. Elvira’s quest (actually, her mother’s) for physical perfection highlights what woman deal with now, with male body shaming and the need to please a man to be accepted.
Helmer-scribe Blichfeldt and her star, Lea Myren, take this variation of a classic fairytale and turn it into their own unique horror story. I think this version will stick with me a lot longer than Disney’s.
IFC Films releases "The Ugly Stepsister" in theaters on 4/18/2025.
