A Cinderella Story: If the Shoe Fits

The past few movies in this franchise have had good acting, story lines, (and music in the last two). This story follows none of what made the other Cinderella movies like able. As much as I want to love Sofia Carson I can't do it because of this movie. Her character is supposed to exude emotions other than smiling and she doesn't deliver as well as her predecessors have. From the moment it begins, the movie's story doesn't go in a cohesive order that allows for a fluid telling. The upside though, is that the step sisters make up for the lack of solid story line with their laughable antics. I was saddened to go into this movie with high hopes and be given something that makes the franchise fall apart. I will watch the past three movies with a newfound love for Disney stars that were able to truly act. I hope the next ones work out better than this.

Half of the movie is great: the singing, dancing, Georgie and the 2 leads.

The other half is... Yes, they had to be evil but this is just too much.

Like somebody said: fastforward the parts with the stepmother and sisters and enjoy half the movie.

Too bad.

There's something so eternal about Cinderella that it never loses its appeal no matter how many Gazillion versions of the story are made. Even if you just count all the ones that come from the Magic Kingdom.

Sofia Carson the latest of a long line of fresh girl pop singers from the Disney Studios is a sweet and charming Cinderella, in her case a girl named Tessa. She may not have a fairy godmother here, but she knows an opportunity when she sees it. Now if she can only avoid that evil stepmother who of course favors her own children.

The opportunity to be in a music video with British pop star Thomas Law as a modern day motorcycle riding Prince Charming. Better than a white charger. He's quite the hunk himself and might be destined for Disney bubblegum stardom.

Stepmother is Jennifer Tilly who literally smothers the screen with her off the wall performance with the name of Divine. I think if the late drag performer Divine from Lust In The Dust would probably chuckle a bit.

And I'm sure there are still more variations of the story of the girl from the cinders coming. At least from the Magic Kingdom. This one will most definitely do.

I'm a sucker for ALL Cinderella adaptations. The Hillary Duff, Selena Gomez, and Lucy Hale versions are adorable, but all have step families that are so over dramatic. Well, If The Shoe Fits is actually WORSE than the others! Jennifer Tilley plays the stepmom and she honestly made me want to stop watching! From seeing this performance, she'd be better off doing comedic burlesque routines instead. Luckily, Tessa, aka Cinderella, and her prince, Reed, were so great in their roles that I kept going. I like how Reed falls for who Tessa really is and not the stage version. Watch the movie and you'll see what I mean. I also enjoyed the music, even though there was quite a bit of auto tune. The girl who plays Tessa sounds a little like Demi Lovato when she sings. Her voice isn't quite as raspy and she hits higher notes though. I tend to compare all Cinderella stories to Drew Barrymore's Ever After. So far, none have come close to being as good. But as a fluffy adaptation, If the Shoe Fits is worth a watch, solely for Tessa and Reed. Just turn down the volume when the step family is on the screen.

This is mostly a star vehicle for the two young lead performers, particularly the female lead. They are quite good musical performers and that is the only thing worth watching in this low budget musical. The boilerplate around them is cartoonish or worse. Just skip it.

Finger on the fast forward. Enjoy the music and dancing.