Walt Disney Productions
Starring: Ilene Woods, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton
Directed by: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this film!
Synopsis: Cinderella (voiced by Ilene Woods) remains optimistic despite abuse from her wicked stepmother and self-centered stepsisters. Her dreams of happiness may come true when she aspires to attend a fancy dress ball thrown by the Prince, but her jealous extended family relish in dashing her dreams.
Bad Kitty: While Lady Tremaine (the wicked stepmother voiced by Eleanor Audley) is the most remembered villain in this film one mustn’t forget her pet cat Lucifer (uncredited voice by June Foray) who is every bit as evil and nasty as she is. According to one source, Lucifer’s design was based on animator Ward Kimball’s cat (although his cat was a calico.)
Lucifer spends much of the film causing trouble for Cinderella and anyone and anything that supports her. This includes Cinderella’s beloved older dog Bruno.
Most of Lucifer’s scenes are with the two main mouse characters Jacques and Gus (both voiced by James MacDonald). Lucifer is constantly trying to catch and eat the mice, making him a dangerous adversary.
Kitty Carnage Warning! In the end Jacques and Gus are delivering a key to unlock the door of Cinderella’s room when Lucifer catches Gus (with the key) under a cup. Cinderella sends the birds to fetch Bruno, who races up the stairs despite his age and chases Lucifer. Lucifer jumps to a windowsill and then ends up falling out the window and down from the tall tower. Does he survive? It is never addressed in the film but apparently he was shown afterwards in various stories and sequels and so it is assumed that he did, in fact, survive. (Note: the video on YouTube showing him dying is simply a clever bit of fakery.)
Final Mewsings: Do bad cats always land on their feet?
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