Texas Actress/Singer Sparkles In the #1 Movie “Cinderella”

I got a chance to watch the new Cinderella this weekend with the family.  Apparently, we weren't the only ones.  The new Camilla Cabello 2021 version of the classic tale dominated the Labor Day weekend. It was the #1 Streaming Movie in America, the #1 movie on Prime Video, it had 5.6 Billion views on TikTok and 1.1 Million households watched the movie in a span of 4 days.  Not only that, the soundtrack did well on iTunes and other streaming sites.

While watching the movie, I focused in on the step sister with the amazing voice...she looked familiar.  I was so impressed I had to grab my phone and check my IMDb.  It was none other than Maddie Baillio, who impressed me before in NBC's "Hairspray Live" in 2016.

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Maddie was born in Lake Jackson and was the pride of H-town when she killed in "Hairspray Live!" In 2018, she also shined in the Jennifer Aniston Netflix movie "Dumplin."  So, this new musical version Cinderella is a logical next step.  Maddie plays Malvolia (as I mention above- one of the wicked stepsisters) and she gets a chance to showcase her strong voice.  She sings by herself and joins in with Elsa herself, Idina Menzel who plays her mother.  In previous versions, the wicked stepsisters are despised. In 2021, they are likable and are a "find a man and marry" contradiction to Cinderella's dreams of being a dress maker.  So, congrats to Maddie Baillio on another musical success!  I'm sure this Texan has more great stuff on the way.

So how's the movie?

Listen they aren't remaking "The Godfather" here. So, I was a little taken back by the bad reviews by cranky critics.  Currently, the movie holds a 42% rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes. 72% of regular folks liked Cinderella that's according to RT audience score (down from 92% this weekend).  I thought it was a nice little family film that included original music and some somewhat modern songs like Janet Jackson' "Rhythm Nation," J-Lo's "Let's Get Loud," and The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army" (to name a few). I also think the different ending and "girl-power" message may just inspire a lot of young women out there.  So, as a family film- I recommend it. As a serious piece of cinema- no comment (LOL).