Cinderfella (1960)

best movie i've ever seen.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

I used to love Jerry Lewis, and Cinderfella was a favourite.Dean Martin used to get in the way I always thought with a lot of soppy songs!(I must warn you I also like Police Academy (my partner cant believe this) so have a taste for slapstick.)But from memory, I used to think Jerry had fantastic timing to a lot of his routines so you were on the edge of your seat while laughing as well. This has made me think I must get the DVD and have another look at it to see if it is still as magical.

Neal Hefti wrote a piece called "Cute",Count Basie and his orchestra recorded it and Mr J.Lewis dances to it in the kitchen .That 3 minutes or so of screen time encapsulates the peak of his work in the cinema. It is touching,uplifting and very funny at the same time.In the unlikely event of my being asked to select a clip for a TV tribute I would look no further. The Cinderella story was a natural for Mr Lewis as it contains one of his favourite themes - the eventual triumph of naivety and decency over deceit and cruelty.His character has been compared to an early prototypical Jim Carrey but I would suggest Steve Martin is nearer the mark.There is a canniness about even the most stupid Carrey role that Martin lacks.He is,cinematically speaking,the idiot's idiot,and he is a direct descendant from Jerry Lewis. Right from his early days with Mr D.Martin, he has been hugely popular with the public,something that has counted against him with the critics because it meant they were unable to "discover" and fête him as their own creature.His was not "intellectual" comedy,esoteric,political or socio - satirical,he was just plain funny.It worked for me and millions of others who flocked to his pictures for 20 years.They made a lot of money and everybody was happy.With the rise of Mr W.Allen whose movies were deemed worthy of serious consideration by American critics but relatively few people paid money to see Mr Lewis's star began to descend apart from the occasional ripple like his appearance in what is virtually a show - stealing role in "King of Comedy". In the early 60s with "The Bellboy","Cinderfella" and "It's only money" under his belt he could have been forgiven for feeling just a little bit smug. "Cinderfella" may be low comedy but it is funny comedy.You don't sit there and rack your brains for some deep hidden meaning.You know the shoe is going to fit him,you know he'll end up with the girl in the end,you're just happy to go along for the ride. Miss J.Anderson,Mr H.Silva and Mr R.Hutton are deliciously rather than unpleasantly evil and Mr E.Wynn has a fine old time as the Fairy Godfather. The sound recording is outstanding,the great Count Basie orchestra blasts round the cinema in a very satisfactory manner. At 81,Mr Lewis should care less what the American critics say about him He pioneered the use of TV monitors on movie sets,ended the days of the dreaded boom mike by miking up the whole set at once,he survived the break - up of one of Hollywood's best ever movie partnerships and directed and acted in some of the funniest comedies on celluloid.I think that's enough to be going on with,don't you?

With so many versions of the quintessential fairy tale, we forget which is which. This one casts Jerry Lewis as an abused young man whose life changes when he meets his Fairy Godfather (Ed Wynn). Personally, my favorite rendition of the story was the time on "Gilligan's Island" when Mrs. Howell dreamed that she was Cinderella and Gilligan was her Fairy Godfather.Jerry Lewis does an OK job in "Cinderfella", but now that we know what a jerk he is in real life, it weakens the whole thing. And I don't know why they have to stock it with songs.Weird to think that Fairy Godfather is the father of "Dr. Strangelove"'s Gen. Bat Guano.

"Cinderfella" was Jerry Lewis' answer to the classic Cinderella story. And he intended it to be a masterpiece. To say that it fell somewhat short of it's goal is putting it mildly, but it's not bad. The plot is, of course the familiar story, with a few (expected) variations. When his father dies, poor Fella (Lewis) is left at the mercy of his snobbish stepmother (Judith Anderson) and her two no-good sons, Maximilian (Henry Silva) and Rupert (Robert Hutton). As he slaves away for his nasty step-family, Maximilian and Rupert attempt to find a treasure Fella's father has supposedly hidden on the estate. Meanwhile, hoping to restore her dwindling fortunes, the stepmother plans a fancy ball in honor of the visiting Princess Charmein (Anna Maria Alberghetti) whom she hopes will marry Rupert. Eventually, Fella's Fairy Godfather (Ed Wynn) shows up to convince him that he has a shot at winning the Princess himself. Lewis had big plans for the film's release. Although it was completed in January of 1960, he insisted it make it's debut that Christmas, complete with a holiday campaign and record album tie-in. In the meantime, he produced and starred in a low budget item called "The Bellboy" in order for Paramount to have a Jerry Lewis movie for summer release. "Cinderfella" was given a lavish production and a formidable supporting cast was recruited to co star with Lewis. He was indeed fortunate to obtain the services of Judith Anderson, who, while not a performer one would expect in a Jerry Lewis film, was nevertheless excellent as the stepmother, bringing just the right touch of arrogance to the part. Ed Wynn is reliably daffy as the Fairy Godfather,though, due to severe editing, he disappears before the climax, and is not seen again. Silva and Hutton do what they can as the stepbrothers, but the beautiful Alberghetti has nothing to do but fall hopelessly in love with the hapless Fella. The pace of the film is somewhat choppy, and several critics pointed out that the editing had left voids in the plot. The film originally ran 99 minutes, it ended up at 88. Sure enough, it was released at Christmastime, when it inspired some of the most scathing critical comment ever bestowed on a Lewis picture. Most of this was devoted to Lewis' own performance, and his frequent mugging, mixed with his pathetic attempts to play for sympathy. "Cinderfella" did just O.K. at the box office, and it ended up well behind the modest "Bellboy" which was a box-office smash. Thanks to handsome sets (with exteriors filmed at the "Beverly Hillbillies" estate in Bel Air, CA), costumes and a pleasant (if unmemorable) score, "Cinderfella" is entertaining enough to get by. But you'd better be prepared for a lot of "singing/mugging" from the Producer/Star, who fancied himself a brilliant vocalist. After all, though, this is SUPPOSED to be a fairy tale!