Program Note
Cinderella, the most popular character in the marrying-up narrative, has captured the hearts of girls around the world through countless versions of her tale. Blessed with natural beauty and a kind heart, Cinderella wins the prince's love, while her stepmother and stepsisters are portrayed merely as ugly and cunning villains. Emilie Blichfeldt, who rose to instant fame in the genre film world with her debut The Ugly Stepsister, opens her film with an unforgettable image from the original Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale—the stepsister cutting off her toes to fit into the glass slipper. The film follows Elvira’s desperate attempts to catch the prince's eye through extreme body modification including plastic surgery and terrifying diets. Blending gory fairy tale fantasy and body horror, the film sharply critiques the social ideal of physical beauty, one of the most historically oppressive standards imposed on women. Powerless, petty, or as vulgar as the prince himself— the men stand in stark contrast to the women charging ahead in pursuit of their desires. Lea Myren(Elvira) uniquely stands out in the production design of the opulent period drama filled with grotesque imagery of a body relentlessly mutilated. (Jin PARK)