Cruella de Vil: The New Fashion And Style Icon

Arriving fashionably late after twenty-years from the silver screen, and effortlessly in vogue with Disney’s perennial plot to revitalise their beloved animated characters into live-action renditions, Cruella defies the possibility of being trite in a rollicking origins for Dodie Smith’s fabulously foul fashionista.

Growing up as a 1960s wild-child who is encouraged to hide her strong sense of self and monochromatic hair, young Estella/Cruella’s life is transformed by tragedy after her mother’s dotty death by Dalmatians. From pick-pocket to toilet cleaner, she works her way up the ranks of the prestigious Liberty fashion house in a swanky 1970s London, until the aspiring designer becomes assistant to the narcissistic Baroness, where the truth about Estella’s identity unravels, leading to her summation of that supressed identity she has been endeavouring to hide her whole life: Cruella de Vil…

Emma Stone is delightfully devilish in the titular role, offering a fresh yet quintessential interpretation. Whilst honouring her predecessors with wicked stares reminiscent to the headlamp gaze of the classic animated character, voiced by Betty Lou Gerson, or the evil cackle of the hammy yet haunting Glenn Close, Stone attains has this je ne sais quoi in her trajection from budding designer to prospective skinner of spotted dogs. She constantly commands great pathos and likably through a dogged attitude, wily wit, and a dry sense of humour that becomes more sardonic throughout the film. By her own astute admission, she is ‘brilliant, mad and a little bit bad’. Little is the operative word here. This is very much a coming-of-age-tale, beautifully directed by Craig Gillespie. Swooping shots showcase opulent baroque ballrooms and cutting-edge catwalks. Each frame feels like flicking through the glossy pages of a vintage fashion magazine.

Costume designer Jenny Beavan offers a confectionary of colourful costumes, from sequined motocross trousers to leather military jackets that bring the edgy Punk scene of the 1970s to life. It is the perfect backdrop to set a rough-around-the-edges ‘grubby girl’ like Cruella against a vintage Dior inspired Baroness (Emma Thompson) – this is a woman who ‘to see her is to take a sudden chill’. Her icy narcissistic presence makes the harsh Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada look like a piddling puppy.

The film’s bold PG13 rating is a substantial part of its success as it embraces the gothic qualities that underlie all fairy-tales – from a windswept hellish mansion to the violent duality of the heroine herself. In some ways this is a Cinderella story, with its tropes sufficiently subverted – Cruella conquers evil by embracing it; and by the end she does find true love – not with Prince Charming, but with herself. She is not suited for the sunny romance of Anita and Roger Radcliffe, who are wonderfully teased throughout the film. And that’s fine. Cruella has the rebellious spirit of youth that charges her fun campy outrageous escapades.

As ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ rings out the film’s killer soundtrack, we ask: Are we sorry for Miss de Vil? Only when 101 Dalmatians are in town…