It’s not often that I like and dislike a movie. Here we are with Cruella. A movie that gets so many parts right and then doesn’t figure out how to best use those parts as a whole. Let’s dive right into this.
First, it should be stated that I don’t hate this movie. In fact, I’m really pulling for a sequel to be made, as the parts that the film got right come in the form of actors, actresses, and moments. The bridges that connect said items of happy are what fails this movie. Connecting moments that actors and actresses create to the next moment can be tricky if a writer(s) isn’t careful. Having a healthy three-act narrative bridged and bolted between each act can be tough when an idea isn’t fully realized. And the bolts of this film are a bit shaky at times.
The first act of Cruella is brilliant. It’s the setup of our main character and her gang. We get to meet a barely-making-it Cruella (not quite Cruella, rather Estella — the older played by Emma Stone, the younger by Tipper Seifert-Cleveland) slowly forming into the figure she would become later on in her journey. Be it because of bullying or through her own overly stimulated self-confidence (which I don’t consider a bad thing — but whatever), she is spiraling towards this larger-than-life figure that is destined for greatness. But as we are told through Joseph Campbell’s The Hero of a Thousand Faces and/or Homer’s Odyssey, the hero must come from nothing and emerge into something great through trial and tribulation. And this is essentially the first act for Estella, who loses her mother, her way of living, and shacks up (not in that way) with two criminals, Jasper (Joel Fry) and Horace (Paul Walter Hauser), to survive and become better than they are by the end of Estella’s beginning. You can feel this journey taking place through moments that happen to Estella, which include her desire to become a great designer, and Jasper’s push to get her there recognizing it as well. The first act is a helluva act, which ends with the introduction of the Baroness (Emma Thompson), a precursor and blueprint to what will become Estella’s Cruella. The Baroness is as ruthless as they come, and she takes Estella under her wing in order to prep her for a life of luxury, leadership, and cruelty.
A healthy first act happens, but a steep hill in the movie’s journey awaits in the second act, as the story has to make up a lot of ground to get Estella to Cruella. It does it for the most part, but…well…let’s continue the discussion.
The second act swings into full gear, as Estella starts growing and growing underneath the Baroness. Estella slowly builds herself into this efficient and semi-ruthless designer that is constantly impressing the Baroness. Of course, shedding her skin of thievery with Jasper and Horace is necessary as it is playful to create full and proper separation from her former life. The separation, as does the story, turns dark when the Baroness’ background is revealed and how Estella is involved with it paid in full. Estella turns cruel because of this reveal, taking out unnecessary aggression on Jasper and Horace, which is unwarranted and not well-written and then sets her sights on the Baroness. The problem with this reveal is that it is cheap, unearned, and somewhat lazy, if not immediately obvious. The connection is as unsurprising as they come, and the need for revenge is in full force and also unbelievably over-the-top. Regardless, the reveal relapses Estella back to her cruel days as a child and makes way for Cruella to emerge. The emergence of Cruella comes in steps, as she works to undermine the Baroness from the inside and out. When the Baroness puts on a show, Cruella upstages it. When the Baroness gets close to solving who Cruella might be, Cruella gets away. While the tension between the two rises, Jasper and Horace stand on the sidelines supporting Cruella, even when she absolutely obliterates them on multiple occasions. It’s a weird back and forth and while it works for Cruella and the Baroness, the story doesn’t give much explanation of why Jasper and Horace are sticking around. And it isn’t fear that is driving their loyalty, it’s like they’re simply waiting for the story to use them again.
And that is where things get kind of iffy.
The story pushes the meanness of Cruella to the point where Jasper and Horace put their foot down, specifically Jasper. This paints the movie into a corner, as it wouldn’t make sense for Cruella to go back to Estella. But she now runs the risk of losing her two best friends, which would make the audience sad. In any other story, I think that pulling back from being mean works, but this is the story of Cruella. She is one of the evilest villains in the Disney universe and one that can’t regress, rather only progress towards complete darkness. For goodness sakes, it’s presumed in the animated classic that she likes killing and wearing dogs. That’s pretty darn dark. Sadly, the story can’t deal with that darkness just yet and regresses, which also stops Cruella’s journey towards completion and believability. She has to be cruel, it’s in her freaking name and in a movie that was released decades ago. Yet, here we are at a crossroads that shouldn’t be there. As act three begins, Cruella pulls back to Estella for her friends, wearing Cruella like a favorite t-shirt she got at a badass concert. Thankfully, she still targets the Baroness, which keeps that dark side present. Act two’s conclusion is disappointing, as is the befuddling act three, which shows the first concerns of a bridge simply not working between acts.
Act three has the Baroness finding out about Estella. The big reveal happens (which I won’t get into due to spoilers) and the payoff is creative as it is cheap. It’s a slow-moving iceberg of sorts, which crashes into this titanic amount of superb performances put on by every single player. Thompson’s cruelty is pure and unrelenting, as it is believable. Stone’s Cruella is the perfect poisonous flower that strikes when it needs to strike and is potent. Fry and Hauser’s supporting roles are charming, delightful, and good support when the darkness needs humor. All of these actors/actresses brought their ‘A’ game to this movie, but the story simply let them down in the end. It needed more reason to end as it did, it needed more venom at its highest point, and it needed to end with a moment that would forever encapsulate Estella’s permanent transformation into Cruella. But it didn’t. I’m disappointed in the payoff, but not entirely devastated by the efforts. I think retooling the third act, getting Cruella to her point of awakening without regressing, and finding a way to keep Jasper and Horace in her gang without being a sane/human would have made the ending a lot more worthwhile.
Anyway, with all the above pieces in place, a sequel should be a no-brainer. I want to see more of Stone as Cruella. I want to laugh and cringe a bit with Jasper and Horace. I want more of the lead character and early story than what we received. I definitely want a better follow-up with smoother bridges connecting glorious moments. The amount of love and effort that went into putting this together and making it work (for the most part) deserves a bit more refinement and execution for the sequel. Now, get it done, Disney. You have something good brewing here.
