A Cinderella Story is a 2004 American
romantic comedy filmRomantic comedy films are films with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as that true love is able to surmount most obstacles. One dictionary definition is "a funny movie, play, or television program about a love story that ends happily"...
. The film stars
Hilary DuffHilary Erhard Duff is an American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. After working in local theater plays and television commercials in her childhood, she achieved fame playing the title role in the Disney Channel television series Lizzie McGuire. She also reprised her role in...
,
Jennifer CoolidgeJennifer Coolidge is an American actress best known for playing "Stifler's mom," the older woman in the film American Pie ; Hilary Duff's stepmother in A Cinderella Story ; Paulette, the manicurist in Legally Blonde and its sequel; the voice of Aunt Fanny in the animated feature Robots ; for her...
,
Chad Michael MurrayChad Michael Murray is an American actor, former fashion model and spokesperson. Murray is well known for portraying Lucas Scott in The CW young adult drama series One Tree Hill, in addition to the commercially successful films A Cinderella Story, Freaky Friday and House of Wax...
and
Regina KingRegina King is an American film and television actress. She is well known for her role as Mary Jenkins's studious daughter, Brenda Jenkins, on the 1980s sitcom, 227, and for her critically acclaimed supporting role in the feature film Jerry Maguire...
and was directed by
Mark RosmanMark Rosman is an American film director, television director and screenwriter.- Background :Rosman is the son of a Beverly Hills dermatologist. He has a brother, a lawyer, and a sister. After graduating from Beverly Hills High School, Rosman went to UCLA but left after two years when he wasn't...
. The film's plot revolves around two Internet
pen palPen pals are people who regularly write to each other, particularly via postal mail.-Purposes:A penpal relationship is often used to practice reading and writing in a foreign language, to improve literacy, to learn more about other countries and life-styles, and to make friendships...
s (Duff and Murray) who meet at a school dance and fall in love but two different worlds keep them apart. It received negative reviews from critics, but was a commercial success.
Plot
A 9 year old girl name Samantha "Sam" Montgomery (
Hannah RobinsonHannah Robinson is a British songwriter. Her best known compositions include the "Some Girls", a UK #2 for British pop star Rachel Stevens and Ladyhawke's "My Delirium". She also a vocalist and in 2006 achieved a #1 on the U.S...
) lives in the San Fernando Valley, California, with her widowed father Hal (
Whip HubleyWhip Hubley is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Mischa in the 1987 film Russkies, and Hollywood in the 1986 film Top Gun. He later played Brian Hawkins in the Showtime miniseries More Tales of the City and its follow-up Further Tales of the City...
), who runs a popular sports-themed
dinerA diner, also spelled dinor in western Pennsylvania is a prefabricated restaurant building characteristic of North America, especially in the Midwest, in New York City, in Pennsylvania and in New Jersey, and in other areas of the Northeastern United States, although examples can be found throughout...
. Hal soon marries a vain, self-absorbed woman named Fiona (
Jennifer CoolidgeJennifer Coolidge is an American actress best known for playing "Stifler's mom," the older woman in the film American Pie ; Hilary Duff's stepmother in A Cinderella Story ; Paulette, the manicurist in Legally Blonde and its sequel; the voice of Aunt Fanny in the animated feature Robots ; for her...
). When an earthquake strikes, Hal is killed. Supposedly leaving no will, Fiona receives all of his belongings, including the diner.
Eight years later, 17-year old Sam (
Hilary DuffHilary Erhard Duff is an American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. After working in local theater plays and television commercials in her childhood, she achieved fame playing the title role in the Disney Channel television series Lizzie McGuire. She also reprised her role in...
) is employed as a worker at the diner and tormented by Fiona and her two dim-witted daughters, Brianna
Madeline ZimaMadeline Rose Zima is an American actress. She is mostly known for her six years as Grace Sheffield on the TV series The Nanny or more recently as Mia Lewis on the Showtime dramedy Californication and as Gretchen Berg on Heroes.-Early life:Zima was born in New Haven, Connecticut, to Marie and...
and Gabriella Andrea Avery. Fiona is self-absorbed, and uses unnecessary amounts of water during a
droughtA drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
. A
running gagA running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
throughout the film demonstrates Sam's stepsisters participating in
synchronized swimmingSynchronized swImming is a hybrid form of swimming, dance and gymnastics, consisting of swimmers performing a synchronized routine of elaborate moves in the water, accompanied by music....
, for which they are found to have absolutely no talent. Sam struggles to cope socially at Pope County High School, where a cheerleader, Shelby Cummings (
Julie GonzaloJulie Gonzalo is an Argentine-American actress. She is known for her roles as Parker Lee in Veronica Mars, Shelby in A Cinderella Story and Maggie Dekker in Eli Stone. She has been in two movies with Chad Michael Murray: Freaky Friday and A Cinderella Story...
), torments her.
Sam confides in her online pen pal Nomad about her dream to attend
Princeton UniversityPrinceton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, a dream which he also shares. However, "Nomad"'s true identity is Austin Ames (
Chad Michael MurrayChad Michael Murray is an American actor, former fashion model and spokesperson. Murray is well known for portraying Lucas Scott in The CW young adult drama series One Tree Hill, in addition to the commercially successful films A Cinderella Story, Freaky Friday and House of Wax...
), the popular - yet unhappy - quarterback of the school's football team, and Shelby's boyfriend. "Nomad" proposes that they meet in person at the school's
HalloweenHallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
dance. Initially reluctant, Samantha is convinced by her aspiring-actor friend, Carter Ferrell (
Dan ByrdDaniel "Dan" Byrd is an American actor. His most prominent roles include the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, the CW original comedy series Aliens in America, A Cinderella Story alongside Hillary Duff, ABC's Cougar Town, and the 2010 movie Easy A.-Life and career:Byrd was born in Marietta,...
), to go to the dance and meet her mysterious online friend.
On the night of the dance, Fiona orders Sam to work the night shift at the diner, then leaves to drive Brianne and Gabriella to the dance. Carter and Rhonda (
Regina KingRegina King is an American film and television actress. She is well known for her role as Mary Jenkins's studious daughter, Brenda Jenkins, on the 1980s sitcom, 227, and for her critically acclaimed supporting role in the feature film Jerry Maguire...
), Sam's amiable co-worker at the diner, take Sam to find a costume for the dance. Sam, wearing a mask and a beautiful white dress, meets "Nomad" at the dance, and is surprised and shocked to learn that he is Austin. The two decide to leave the party to walk alone and get to know each other. After sharing a romantic dance together, Sam and Austin begin to fall in love. But just as Austin is about to kiss her, Sam's cell phone alarm goes off, warning her to return to the diner before Fiona comes back at midnight. She leaves without revealing her identity to Austin, and drops her phone on her way out.
Austin picks it up and begins a desperate search to figure out who his "Cinderella" really is, the result being that every girl in school claims to be the mysterious owner of the phone. Carter, dressed as
ZorroZorro is a fictional character created in 1919 by New York-based pulp writer Johnston McCulley. The character has been featured in numerous books, films, television series, and other media....
, rescues Shelby from the unwanted amorous advances of Austin's friend, David (
Brad BufandaBrad Bufanda is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Larry Wilcox in the TV series Co-Ed Confidential.-Personal life:...
). Shelby falls for "Zorro" not knowing who he is and Carter resolves to tell her who he really is the next day.
Later, Brianne and Gabriella discover Sam's Mail Letter to Austin and realize that Sam is Cinderella. They later present them to Shelby and convince her that Sam persuaded him to leave Shelby to be with her. To retaliate, Shelby, Brianne and Gabriella perform a mean-spirited skit at a school pep rally where the Mail Letter are read aloud and Sam's identity is revealed to Austin. Carter even experiences some humiliation when he sees Shelby and her friends lounging by the pool. He reveals that it was he who was dressed as "Zorro" and Shelby, showing her true colors, denies that anything ever happened between them at the dance.
Sam, who (like Austin) had been accepted to Princeton University, was then duped by Fiona into believing she was rejected. Shortly after, fed up with Fiona's persistent emotional abuse and her schoolwide humiliation. Sam confronts Fiona about the mistreatment she's given her, quits her job at the diner and moves out to live with Rhonda. Simultaneously, Rhonda and the rest of the diner's staff quit along with Sam, having put up with Fiona's abuse for Sam's sake all those years. The customers, who watched the entire scene, leave the diner as well.
Before a school football game, Sam confronts Austin about his cowardice and lies. Before the final play of the game, he sees Sam making her way out of the stands, and finally faces up to his father that he wants to attend Princeton rather than simply play football all his life. He hands his helmet to Ryan, then chases after Sam and apologizes. She accepts his apology and they share their first kiss as rain falls over the drought-plagued valley.
Soon after, Sam finds her father's will hidden in her childhood fairytale book, which stated that all of his belongings would go to her. Sam sells her step-family's fancy cars so that she can pay for college, and Fiona, who signed the will as a witness, is arrested after being chased through the front yard of what is now Sam's house by the deputy sheriffs.
Fiona and her daughters, Brianne and Gabriella are made to work off the money they stole from Sam at the diner, which is restored to the way it was before Hal's death by its new owners, Sam and Rhonda. Sam then finds out that she was, in fact, accepted by Princeton after her acceptance letter was found in the garbage by Gabriella.
Things also work out in the end for Carter as he makes a commercial for acne medication. After being dumped by Austin, Shelby then makes a play for Carter only to be spurned in favor of Astrid, the school's DJ.
Cast
- Hilary Duff
Hilary Erhard Duff is an American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. After working in local theater plays and television commercials in her childhood, she achieved fame playing the title role in the Disney Channel television series Lizzie McGuire. She also reprised her role in...
as Samantha "Sam" Montgomery
- Chad Michael Murray
Chad Michael Murray is an American actor, former fashion model and spokesperson. Murray is well known for portraying Lucas Scott in The CW young adult drama series One Tree Hill, in addition to the commercially successful films A Cinderella Story, Freaky Friday and House of Wax...
as Austin Ames
- Jennifer Coolidge
Jennifer Coolidge is an American actress best known for playing "Stifler's mom," the older woman in the film American Pie ; Hilary Duff's stepmother in A Cinderella Story ; Paulette, the manicurist in Legally Blonde and its sequel; the voice of Aunt Fanny in the animated feature Robots ; for her...
as Fiona Montgomery
- Regina King
Regina King is an American film and television actress. She is well known for her role as Mary Jenkins's studious daughter, Brenda Jenkins, on the 1980s sitcom, 227, and for her critically acclaimed supporting role in the feature film Jerry Maguire...
as Rhonda
- Madeline Zima
Madeline Rose Zima is an American actress. She is mostly known for her six years as Grace Sheffield on the TV series The Nanny or more recently as Mia Lewis on the Showtime dramedy Californication and as Gretchen Berg on Heroes.-Early life:Zima was born in New Haven, Connecticut, to Marie and...
as Brianne Montgomery
- Andrea Avery as Gabriella Montgomery
- Dan Byrd
Daniel "Dan" Byrd is an American actor. His most prominent roles include the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, the CW original comedy series Aliens in America, A Cinderella Story alongside Hillary Duff, ABC's Cougar Town, and the 2010 movie Easy A.-Life and career:Byrd was born in Marietta,...
as Carter Ferrell
- Julie Gonzalo
Julie Gonzalo is an Argentine-American actress. She is known for her roles as Parker Lee in Veronica Mars, Shelby in A Cinderella Story and Maggie Dekker in Eli Stone. She has been in two movies with Chad Michael Murray: Freaky Friday and A Cinderella Story...
as Shelby Cummings
- Aimee-Lynn Chadwick
Aimee-Lynn Chadwick is an American actress from Sandwich, Massachusetts.-Acting career:Chadwick attended the Capachione School of Performing Arts...
as Astrid
- Brad Bufanda
Brad Bufanda is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Larry Wilcox in the TV series Co-Ed Confidential.-Personal life:...
as David
- J.D. Pardo
Juan Diego "J.D." Pardo is an American actor born in Panorama City, California, best known for his role as Edward Araujo, Jr./Gwen Amber Rose Araujo in the Lifetime Network Movie called A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story....
as Ryan Henson
- Simon Helberg
Simon Maxwell Helberg is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Howard Wolowitz in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory. In its fourth season, he also appeared on the sketch comedy series MADtv for five episodes...
as Terrence
- Erica Hubbard
Erica Hubbard is an American film and television actress and model.Born and raised on the Southside of Chicago, Erica knew at the early age of nine that she wanted to be an actress after she performed in her first stage play...
as Madison
- Kady Cole as Caitlyn
- Mary Pat Gleason
Mary Pat Gleason is an American film and television actress. From 1983-85 she appeared on The Guiding Light as Jane Hogan.Since the early 1980s she has appeared on such television series as Full House, Murphy Brown, Empty Nest, L.A...
as Ellenore
- Lin Shaye
Linda "Lin" Shaye is an American film, theatre and television actress.-Early life:Born in Detroit, Michigan, Shaye is the daughter of Dorothy , a homemaker, and Max Mendle Shaye, a painter and supermarket owner. Her brother is film executive Robert Shaye...
as Mrs. Wells
- Whip Hubley
Whip Hubley is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Mischa in the 1987 film Russkies, and Hollywood in the 1986 film Top Gun. He later played Brian Hawkins in the Showtime miniseries More Tales of the City and its follow-up Further Tales of the City...
as Mr. Hal Montgomery
- Kevin Kilner
Kevin Kilner is an American television and film actor.Kilner was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Dorothea, a kindergarten teacher, and Edward Kilner, who worked in advertising sales and insurance. He made his first television appearance on an episode of The Cosby Show in 1989...
as Mr. Ames
- James Eckhouse
James Hays Eckhouse is an American actor known for playing Jim Walsh on Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1995. He also directed three episodes of the show...
as Mr. Ferrell
- Hannah Robinson
Hannah Robinson is a British songwriter. Her best known compositions include the "Some Girls", a UK #2 for British pop star Rachel Stevens and Ladyhawke's "My Delirium". She also a vocalist and in 2006 achieved a #1 on the U.S...
as Young Sam
- Rory Thost
Rory Thost is an American actor who played the recurring role of Bradley Benjamin Farmer in The Disney Channel's television series Phil of the Future....
as Young Carter
- Carly Westerman as Young Brianne
- Lilly Babb as Young Gabriella
Box office
In its opening weekend, the film grossed $13,623,350 million in 2,625 theaters in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, ranking #4 at the box office, behind
I, RobotI, Robot is a collection of nine science fiction short stories by Isaac Asimov, first published by Gnome Press in 1950 in an edition of 5,000 copies. The stories originally appeared in the American magazines Super Science Stories and Astounding Science Fiction between 1940 and 1950. The stories are...
,
Spider-Man 2Spider-Man 2 is a 2004 American superhero film directed by Sam Raimi, written by Alvin Sargent and developed by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, and Michael Chabon. It is the second film in the Spider-Man film franchise based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man...
and
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron BurgundyAnchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, or simply Anchorman, is a 2004 American comedy film, directed by Adam McKay and starring Will Ferrell. The film, which was also written by Ferrell and McKay, is a tongue-in-cheek take on the culture of the 1970s, particularly the then-new Action News format...
, was the best debut for an Teen film that week. By the end of its run,
A Cinderella Story grossed $51,438,175 domestically and $18,629,734 internationally, totaling $70,067,909 worldwide.
Location
1272 E Calaveras St. Altadena, California, USA
George's 50's Diner - 4390 Atlantic Avenue, Long Beach, California, USA
Monrovia, California, USA
San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, USA
Critical reception
Although critics did praise Duff's performance, reviews were mostly negative. On
Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
the film has a "Rotten" rating of 11% and calling it an "An uninspired, generic updating of the classic fairy tale."
Sequels
The first sequel, entitled
Another Cinderella StoryAnother Cinderella Story is a 2008 romantic comedy directed by Damon Santostefano and starring Selena Gomez and Drew Seeley. The film was released direct-to-DVD by Warner Premiere on September 16, 2008. It was released on DVD in the UK on October 27, 2008...
and starring
Selena GomezSelena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place...
and Drew Seeley, was released in 2008.
Another sequel,
A Cinderella Story: Once Upon A SongA Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song is a 2011 romantic comedy directed by Damon Santostefano and starring Lucy Hale and Freddie Stroma. The film was released direct-to-DVD by Warner Premiere on September 6 2011...
, is currently in production and stars
Lucy HaleKaren Lucille "Lucy" Hale is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Becca Sommers in Bionic Woman, Rose Baker in Privileged, Sherrie in the horror film Scream 4, and as Aria Montgomery on the hit ABC Family series Pretty Little Liars...
and
Freddie StromaFreddie Stroma is an English actor and model, best known for playing Cormac McLaggen in the Harry Potter film series.-Early life and education:Freddie Stroma was born, Frederick Sjostrom, in London, England on 8 January 1987...
.
External links