"Ever After: A Cinderella Story" (1998) stars Drew Barrymore as Danielle, the daughter of a wealthy commoner in 16th century France. When her father unexpectedly dies, Danielle becomes the servant girl of her arrogant stepmother (Angelica Huston). When she runs into the prince of the kingdom (Dougray Scott),he becomes captivated by her honesty, humility, wisdom and beauty. Meanwhile, her stepmother schemes to have her shallow daughter (Megan Dodds) marry the prince. Melanie Lynskey plays the younger stepsister while Patrick Godfrey plays Leonardo Da Vinci and Lee Ingleby plays Danielle's guy-friend from her youth.

This is a quality costume dramedy/romance. Shot entirely in France at no less than four châteaus (castles),as well as some sweet wilderness areas, the film is awe-inspiring just to look at. The story is a little convoluted, so you have to pay attention to keep track of what's going on. Drew shines as the protagonist and Scott is great as the prince. The movie proves that you don't have to have overt sex scenes and nudity for a film like this to be effective or successful (which it was at the box office). I also like the message concerning the idiocy of societal classes and how one of the stepsisters is actually a quality soul.

The film runs 121 minutes.

GRADE: B+

This movie is beautiful, and I am not just saying that. The cinematography and costumes(especially Danielle's swan dress) was gorgeous, especially in the ballroom scene. I loved the fact that they made it 16th century, that was really clever. The music was so beautiful, that at times I was reduced to tears. Now for the characters. Drew Barrymore, with an excellent English accent, has never been more beautiful as feisty servant Danielle, and the twists Andy Tennant put in allowed the romance of her and Dougray Scott(also excellent) to shine even brighter. Angelica Huston was deliciously evil as Rodmilla the evil stepmother, and Patrick Godfrey was surprisingly good as Leonardo Da Vinci. The stepsisters were also a delight to watch. The witty dialogue had some truly funny bits, like the scene in the woods, and some tearjerkers, the death of Danielle's father. The introduction of the Grimm Brothers was also great. All in all, I highly recommend this movie to all those who love romance. 10/10. Bethany Cox

The well known familiar fairy tale is bought into Renaissance Italy. Her evil stepmother Rodmilla (Anjelica Huston) has reduced Danielle (Drew Barrymore) to little more than a maid after the death of her father. Marguerite (Megan Dodds) is the horrible stepsister, and Jacqueline (Melanie Lynskey) is nice one. Prince Henry (Dougray Scott) can't stand his home, and runs into Danielle one day as well as Leonardo da Vinci (Patrick Godfrey) rescuing his Mona Lisa painting. Leonardo would be the fairy godmother.

Drew Barrymore is doing a weird British accent in a costume drama taking place in 16th century Italy. There are castles and horses but little grandeur. Although it's a nice idea, it doesn't have any tension or magic. It's not gritty enough to be real nor beautiful enough to be fanciful. The story itself is good triumphing over evil just like the fairy tale.