The Ugly Stepsister Trailer: Cinderella Gets a Sinister Twist in Sundance and Berlinale Selection

If you are looking for a bit more bite in your fairy tale adaptations, a few weeks after Disney’s Snow White sputters to theaters, the Sundance and Berlinale selection The Ugly Stepsister is here to provide quite a jolt. Emilie Blichfeldt’s bloody, twisted new take on Cinderella will arrive in theaters on April 18 and now the first trailer has arrived from IFC Films and Shudder.

Here’s the synopsis: “A sinister twist on the classic Cinderella story, THE UGLY STEPSISTER follows Elvira (Lea Myren) as she prepares to earn the prince’s affection at any cost. In a kingdom where beauty is a brutal business, Elvira will compete with the beautiful and enchanting Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Næss) to become the belle of the ball.”

I said in my Sundance review, “If the disheartening lack of creativity in Disney’s live-action remakes leaves one thinking these timeless stories have, in fact, run their course, leave it to Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt to find new life (and blood) with the Cinderella tale. Her impressively mounted, darkly macabre first feature follows Elvira (Lea Myren, in a fantastic feature-debut performance) living in the shadow of her stepsister Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Naess) as they vie for the attention of the Prince (Isac Calmroth). A twisted body horror take on the classic tale for how it explores the costs of beauty, The Ugly Stepsister is not afraid to dive into the unflinchingly gruesome while packing an impressive sense of empathy. “

See the trailer below.