[MOVIE REVIEW] Cinderella takes a twisted turn in 'The Ugly Stepsister'

“Tapeworms and nose jobs and hair loss oh my!”

There hasn’t been enough buzz or word of mouth for ‘The Ugly Stepsister’, and that’s criminal! Indie horror is important, especially for directors who have their directorial debut and are flowing with creative ideas that push the boundaries of filmmaking.

Emilie Kristine Blichfieldt has given us just that with ‘The Ugly Stepsister’ it follows, “Elvira dreams of the weak-kneed virgin, Prince Julian, and is willing to go to great lengths to conform to the kingdom's ideals of beauty. A surprising and raw twist on the fairy tale `Cinderella', seen from her stepsister's point of view.”

Right off the bat, I was enthralled by how gorgeous everything looked and where our story took place. In a fictional town, we follow Elvira, and she’s hopelessly lost in romance for someone who couldn’t give her the time of day. She puts her body through torture at the behest of her mother who has no option but to change Elvira since the younger sister is too young to be wed.

“Cinderella”, who goes by Agnes, is beautiful and kind. When Agnes’ father passes away, her evil stepmother forces her to cook, clean, and do chores so she can’t have an opportunity to romance the prince who is looking for a bride. There have been a few comparisons to ‘The Substance’ because they both shine a light on women’s bodies and how we are held to such high standards.

The pain Elvira endures throughout the film to only be left to rot is heartbreaking in more ways than one. Not only did she change her entire appearance but she nearly died doing it. There’s a horrific scene involving a tapeworm that had me audibly gasping in the theater. Visceral reactions are far and few between so I was pleasantly surprised by how awful it was!