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Movie Review: Cruella

Mike Tyrkus

Cruella, a new live-action feature about the formation of one of the more notorious villains in cinema history, tells the story of how the title character became as wicked and obsessed with Dalmatians as she ultimately did.

Set in 1970s London, amidst the heyday of punk rock, Cruella follows the path of a young orphan named Estella (Emma Stone) who is determined to carve out a name for herself in the world of fashion. After befriending a pair of thieves, she builds a life as a grifter on the streets of London. However, she still yearns to make a name for herself in the world of fashion as well as exact a modicum of revenge on the person she feels has been root of all of the pain in her life, the Baroness von Hellmann (Emma Thompson).

While one may be tempted to look at Cruella as a kid-centric picture given its obvious association with the “101 Dalmatians” films, it may prove to be a bit darker than most will expect. But, that’s not a bad thing, as the film successfully breathes new life and humanity into a character once portrayed as the epitome of evil but now shows signs of a type of redemption usually only afforded more sympathetic heroines. Emma Stone is outstanding as Cruella and effortlessly imbues her performance with a dry cool that proves simultaneously cold and refreshing.

Emma Stone in “Cruella.” Photo by Laurie Sparham – © 2021 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Working with a script by Dana Fox and Tony McNamara, director Craig Gillespie tells a raucously entertaining adventure story about a family of misfits carving out their own little corner of the world. In this way, it’s a bit like an updated version of Oliver. The production design courtesy of Fiona Crombie proves able to recreate the iconic look of the time period in such a way as to not overpower the characters or their stories, but instead allows them room to simply exist within the exquisite cinematography of Nicola Karakatsanis. A similarly inspired soundtrack serves as a soundscape behind the veil of the film that firmly cements the setting.

Although the origin story of the infamous Cruella de Vil may seem like an odd way to redeem such a character, Cruella somehow manages to make its title character both sympathetic and relatable at the same time. Hopefully there’s nothing too dark in her immediate future that turns her into a monster that wants to turn a perfectly innocent pack of dogs into a coat.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com
An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

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