The Ugly Stepsister

While stories of this nature often carry a myriad of meanings and impacts dictated by audience interpretations, I like to perceive it primarily as a critique of the beauty and fashion industry.

That very industry driven by self-interest, promotes unrealistic beauty standards among impressionable young women, particularly teenagers, and encourages gullible women to purchase costly products to be "attractive" so to speak or, more alarmingly, drive them to resort to unhealthy and dangerous methods for altering their faces and bodily structure.

The narrative also serves as a commentary on those parents who exploit their children's fame and financial success, steering them toward a path of self-destruction in pursuit of their own unattained and selfish interests.

A twisted take on Cinderella, The Ugly Stepsister is a Norwegian body horror flick that will creep you out through it's take on beauty standards and the level of extremity one can go to fit well.

The director, Emilie Blichfeldt did the same with 'The Ugly Stepsister' this year, with what was done in 2024 by Coralie Fargeat with 'The Substance', by showcasing the lengths one go to stay relevant. While it is far from perfect and the characters don't stand out much, apart from the lead; The Ugly Stepsister has abundant gore, amazing BGM and splendid performance by Lea Myren as Elvira that elevates the movie.

The director doesn't even hold back on frontal nudity of the characters in couple of scenes, and the third act of this body horror is equally disgusting to watch as well as emotionally draining; but for the advanced horror fans, this might be a treat.

My Rating : 3.5/5.

From the earliest retellings of the Cinderella myth-beginning with Charles Perrault's Cendrillon and the Brothers Grimm's Aschenputtel, and later immortalized by Disney's 1950 animated classic this timeless tale has undergone countless adaptations on both the page and the screen. More recent live-action versions, such as Ever After (1998) and Kenneth Branagh's Cinderella (2015), have further cemented the story's place in popular culture. In parallel with these traditional approaches, a new trend has emerged: alternative reinterpretations of classical works. Notable among these is Percival Everett's James, a daring reimagining of Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which challenges our expectations and invites fresh perspectives on well-worn narratives. The Ugly Stepsister follows this innovative path, reimagining the Cinderella story from a grotesque and an entirely subversive angle. In this twisted retelling, that recalls the visceral atmosphere of films like Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, rather than presenting a pristine, innocent Cinderella, director Emilie Blichfeldt introduces us to Elvira (Lea Myren), the so called "ugly" stepsister who despite the title is neither conventionally beautiful nor utterly hideous. This ambiguity makes the excruciating process of her transformation, aimed at impressing the ever elusive Prince Julian (Isac Calmroth), feel both ambiguous and absurd. We learn early on that financial desperation haunts her family: her stepfather's colossal debts, covered only temporarily by her mother's illfated financial gambles, have left the family on the brink of ruin, crippled and hungry for change. This bleak economic reality fuels the ruthless ambitions of her mercantile stepmother Rebekka (Ane Dahl Torp), whose single-minded drive is to turn Elvira into a paragon of beauty and a ticket to social ascendance.

From the very beginning, the film sets a tone of moral ambiguity. Unlike traditional Cinderella adaptations-where the fairy godmother and the magical pumpkin carriage provide effortless routes to transformation-The Ugly Stepsister opts for a far more disturbing and visceral approach. The film is replete with scenes that verge on full-blown body horror: grotesque surgical procedures and physiologically unsettling imagery underscore the brutal lengths to which Elvira must go in her quest in a fairy-tale kingdom where beauty is a brutal, cutthroat business, to impress Prince Julian (Isac Calmroth), being led by desperate desire for approval and success, presented in whitewashed dreams, so fake and unnatural, as the electronic accompaniment to them. Her transformation is not an innate gift but an arduous, painful process that calls into question the very nature of beauty and success. We see her diligently practicing her dancing and perfecting her embroidery, suggesting that her newfound allure is hard-won and paid for with her own pain, suffering and deteriorating health. This contrast not only deepens her character but also casts the traditional Cinderella figure in a more problematic light, who is not the dutiful, spotless heroine we've come to expect-she harbors resentment toward her stepmother, haughty, arrogant and contemptuous with Elvira. Her beauty is a mere privilege she was born in, as is her nobility. The film even introduces a slightly provocative side story involving a stable boy, which further muddies the moral waters and challenges our preconceived notions of the Cinderella myth. The final touch to her viciousness is being added by the sole macabric remnant of original story ball dressing magic. Well, it's probably natural for the fairies to have early development stages.

The younger stepsister Alma, portrayed by Flo Fagerli, is a breath of fresh air in this twisted tale. Adorable and unpretentious, she stands out as the only truly grounded character amid the film's chaotic transformations. With genuine empathy for her older sister and a healthy dose of rational skepticism, she offers a much-needed counterbalance to the story's surreal excesses.

The film's visual style is striking, with Marcel Zyskind's cinematography capturing the surreal, almost carnivalesque staging of these transformation sequences. The soundtrack, however, is a notable letdown. While it (intentionally or not) attempts to echo the pioneering spirit of electronic remakes of classical music-a realm in which Wendy Carlos famously set the benchmark decades ago-the repeated theme quickly becomes stale. Instead of adding depth or evolving with the narrative, the overuse of this motif undermines the film's atmosphere, leaving a sense of musical monotony that detracts from the overall experience.

Overall, The Ugly Stepsister is an audacious, if imperfect, cinematic experience. Its intriguing premise and subversive take on a wellworn fairy tale are commendable, even as its execution occasionally falters between highconcept ambition and uneven production quality. Despite these shortcomings the film manages to spark thought and discussion, leaving viewers to wonder whether its flaws stem from a conceptual deficit or simply from the challenging task of realizing such lofty aspirations on screen. Final point down, those who are fainthearted could safely limit themselves to reading the script.

I have deep respect for ideas and concepts like the ones featuring in "The Ugly Stepsister". The totally bonkers reimagining of a classic fairytale like "Cinderella", told mainly from the perspective of the hateful stepsister, is pure genius and utmost creative. In fact, I'm even slightly frustrated that I can never come up with simple but brilliant ideas like that! Who thought it up, then? Well, the Norwegian writer/director Emilie Blichfeldt did, and she created a lot more than just an entertaining slice of trash cinema... Blichfeldt made a harsh but socially relevant statement, a brutal upgrade of body-horror, and a hilarious black comedy. All in one.

It may not seem obvious, but "The Ugly Stepsister" has quite a lot in common with Coralie Fargeat's "The Substance"; which is hands down THE best horror movie of the 2020s. Both films were made by strong and professional women, and they both star anti-heroines doing everything - literally everything - to answer to the highest possible beauty standards. Both of the heroines also desire to look young/beautiful not for themselves, but to still matter in the society they are part of. And, of course, their desperate obsession with beauty has terrible consequences for both of them.

Let's not over-analyze, though, as "the Ugly Stepsister" is first and foremost a tremendously entertaining combo of genres. Blichfeld fluently blends period costume piece, comedy, horror, and even a little bit of drama. The carefree life of Rebekka and her daughters Elvira and Alma rudely comes to an end when her rich second husband literally drops dead on the diner table. Their only hope for wealth and luxury would be that Prince Charming chooses the oldest daughter Elvira as his bride, but there's one little problem. With her giant braces, crooked nose, excessively natural curves, and ring-curling hair, Elvira does not immediately meet the beauty standards. Will Rebekka succeed to make her own daughter prettier in time for the Royal Ball, AND to keep the amazingly beautiful daughter Agnes - a.k.a. Cinderella - locked away in the stables?

I truly loved how old-fashioned narratives and outdated clichés from the old Disney story have faded, and even disappeared. The stepsister is no longer an arrogant and evil wench but a very insecure and introverted girl. Cinderella, on the other hand, is not such an innocent angel anymore. She is quite rude to Elvira, and she likes premarital sex with the stable boy while she introduces herself as a virgin to the Prince a little while later. Fortunately, some fixed values from the (original) story are also retained. You won't see it in the Disney version, but here as well the stepdaughter cuts off her toes to fit the shoe. The film is of course far from perfect. Many parts of the script seem underdeveloped, which creates loose ends as well as a very large number of illogical situations and inexplicable plot twists. However, these are only details, because Blichfeldt has created a refreshing and solid long-feature debut film, and I hope to see more of her soon.

The Ugly Stepsister is A dark, twisted re telling of the Cinderella story..... with A LOT of added gore.

The film tells the story of Elvira, who is essentailly, the Ugly Stepsister of the classic fairytale, the movie ios from her point of view.

The movie opens with Elvira her mum and younger sister moving in with another family (just the dad and the 'pretty daughter')

Some stuff happens, there's financial worries and.... news comes that the Prince will be having a ball and there he will chose his bride... so every young girl in the area sets off on a mission to... be the lucky lady.

So it is the classic fairytale ...to an extent.

Both Elvira and her Stepsister are after the Princes 'love' (in fact the movie opens with Elvira reading the princes published poems, and she has regular daydream fanatasies about being swept of her feet by him)

But the movie is really about the lengths that Elvira (and her mum) will go to, in order to become 'beautiful' and therefore worthy of the Prince

Thats more or less the plot

The early hype around this has been focusing on the gore element... And while it is VERY gorey at times... I think focusing on that does the film a bit of a disservice....

Yes... Its gorey, but it's much more internal and more of a psychological horror....(in a good way)

(Actress) in the lead role is BRILLIANT. You can see the struggles shes goin through internally on her face.... Its s brilliant, genre topping performance.

The supporting cast, specifically the mum, are also top tier.

I'm going to assume it was a low budget... But it didn't look or FEEL low budget.

The period costumes look great, the makeup snd physical effects dont look cheap....

The Cinematography (especially the fantasy sequences) and more specifically the sound design, it doesn't look OR sound lime a cheap movie.

So it seems they've spent their money wisely.

Score has stranger things vibes, interesting juxtaposition to the period drama setting

Then there's almost a spaghetti western vibe to the score... so, when it works, it works really well, but it did feel a little disjointed at times

It's written and directed by a woman, and I think that's partly what gives this such a unique feel at times. There's elements to the movie about the female gaze, that, lets face it, would probably have been handled differently if directed by a man

The pressure, young women in particular are put under to look a certain way...

The methods used in the movie might be more barbaric than today's.... But the underlying societal issue is the same.

The moral, the theme... while at times can feel a little on the nose (pun intended) is still, sadly relevant in today's society.

There's a line in the movie that stuck out to me "you're changing the outside to fit what you know is on the inside... Its what's inside that counts"

In an effort to make herself beautiful on the outside she becomes ugly on the inside.... (then ugly on the outside)

Now, even though I've kinda down played the goriness.... Its definitely an 18 rated movie

But none of the sex, nudity or violence feels gratuitous.... It all serves the story and the characters, it's not gore for the sake of gore (lookin at you Terrifier!)

Oh, and there is a an ed credits scene so stick around for that

7/10 for the ugly step sister.

I was very pleasenlty surprised by this. I went in expecting a fairly mindless gore fest, what i got was a well thought out, well paced psychological body horror (with a fair amount of gore) that Cronenberg fans would be proud of.

Would make a good double bill with THE SUBSTANCE

Thanks to shudder and strike media for giving me an early look at this, it's in select uk cinemas as of April 25th and I believe it's already in US cinemas.

Thats us folks, I'll catch you ijnthe next video

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