After the Ball

After the Ball is an entertaining little comedy that takes a few elements of Cinderella and uses them to tell the story of a young fashion designer who manages to get a job at her father's design company, only to be ousted by her stepmother and stepsisters. With the encouragement of her aunt and her actor friend, she disguises herself as a young male designer and manages to get hired back at the company where she battles the evil forces out to get her/him, but with newly found self-confidence.

I was expecting nothing from this movie, but my daughter wanted to watch it and it had a rating higher than one star on Netflix, so I figured why not. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. While it's predictable in the extreme, it's genuinely funny and moves along at a good pace, with a solid screenplay and likable characters. I had never heard of Portia Doubleday before watching this movie, but her performance is terrific. She's funny, sympathetic and simply a pleasure to watch.

Don't expect a profound or earth-shattering experience, but if you are in the mood for some lighthearted fun, you could do much worse than After the Ball.

Newly graduated Kate Kassell (Portia Doubleday) is trying to be a fashion designer but her father Lee (Chris Noth)'s cheap knockoff reputation stymies her. She joins her fathers company which was started with her deceased mother. Her stepmother Elise (Lauren Holly) schemes to kick her out of the company. Elise with her simpleton daughters are undermining the company. After they successfully get Kate fired, her friends suggest returning as a male designer.

This is sorta Cinderella with a dash of Twelfth Night. I like Portia Doubleday and really the only reason to watch this. Her weird-looking male character is off-putting at first but he does grow on me. The father is infuriating as if he is suffering dementia. It might be helpful to see the roots of the dysfunctional father daughter relationship. The evil stepmother is fine. The fashion business is nothing insightful or real. At the end of the day, none of that is the big problem. It is simply too cheap and too cheesy to be effective. It is not more than a TV movie that cannot elevate. Doubleday does an admirable job but it is not enough.

After the Ball is purely light entertainment with lots of make believe and succeeds in keeping it that way throughout the story.

A very simple tale of a girl fresh out of designer school and discovering the job market is a tough place for her profession. Her father gives her a chance in his clothing manufacturing business and Kate/Nate ends up saving the business from sinister doings!!

Yes its a silly story with a little bit of Cinderella and The Devil Wears Prada thrown in but the director Sean Garrity keeps it simple and fun and doesn't get too invested into the 'feelings' of the characters. Portia Doubleday is better at being the character Nate than she is at being Kate. And the two 'sisters' are perfect at being the buffoons of the story.

If you get a chance check this one out!

Just like its name, After The Ball is a modern twist on the Cinderella story with a bit more substance thrown in.

The supporting cast (especially Maurice!) and a well paced storyline makes this a delight to watch.

Though the story is predictable, there was enough heart in it to make you want to follow Kate's journey. There is more to the plot than just romantic attraction but has elements of father/daughter relstionships, greed/deceit and mateship.

You'll detect elements of Devil Wears Prada and She's The Man so if that's your kind of movie give this a go.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It was cute, funny, and appropriately over-the-top acting for a modern comedy retelling of the Cinderella story. One of the reviews mentions that they don't like the portrayal of stepmothers and stepsisters and the inaccuracy of the fashion industry etc, etc. Well this being comedy, and a parallel of Cinderella I don't think it should receive less stars because it focused on the story and the simple characters versus trying to be accurate. It is a very enjoyable, lighthearted movie. And if one is looking for a deep plot, accurate portrayals of the fashion industry and design, with multi-dimensional characters, you should look elsewhere. This movie is not for you and you will agree with the other reviewer instead of enjoying a truly good movie.