Cinderella (1965)

A young girl (Lesley Ann Warren) lives with an abusive stepmother (Jo Van Fleet) and spoiled and selfish stepsisters (Pat Carroll, Barbara Ruick). When the Prince (Stuart Damon) announces a ball will be held in order to find a wife, her fairy godmother (Celeste Holm) makes sure she will be able to attend. Directed by Charles S. Dubin, this was the second adaptation of the original 1957 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical (a third would follow in 1997). There were some minor changes from the original 1957 production but it's essentially the same piece, only in color and with a different cast. The script adheres closely to the Cinderella fairy tale, there's nothing revisionist or audacious about it. The Rodgers & Hammerstein songs are lovely but hardly their best work. Elaborate for its day, with its cardboard looking sets and its gaudy costumes, it looks rather low budget by today's production standards. The production's ace is a winsome Lesley Ann Warren in her breakthrough role. Sweet and charming, she embodies all the qualities one thinks of when one thinks of the Cinderella story. With Ginger Rogers, Walter Pidgeon and Trudi Ames.