The 12th animated Disney classic is a reasonable movie told through a simple story. Even though a little dated, it deserves a place in the list of Disney classics.

It's not among Disney's top works, but is satisfying. One of Disney's most "simple" works, yes, but keeps a certain magic and enchantment (which old Disney is well known for). This was an important movie because it saved Disney from a delicate situation. If this was a failure, there wouldn't be any more Disney animated classics.

"Cinderella" is somehow like a return to Disney's 1st animated classic ("Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs") because it brings back the fairy tale genre. It's not clear where the story takes place, but I suppose it's somewhere in France because this is based in a tale by Charles Perrault.

There are plenty of likable characters, such as Cinderella, the Prince, Bruno (the dog), Jaques and Gus (the two main mice), the Fairy Godmother (for a fairy she sure is funny), the birds, the King and the Grand Duke.

Jaques is very smart and amusing. I love his voice. Really has that mouse-like quality. Gus might not be that smart, but he's humorous.

The King is hilarious, but I think that what makes him so funny is his short temper. The Grand Duke is a very cool chap and funny too. They're two of my favorite characters in this film and responsible for many of the most amusing moments.

The Prince is certainly one of the most charming in Disney. No doubt that Prince Philip from "Sleeping Beauty" was inspired on this prince, because they are very similar-looking.

On the other hand, Lady Tremaine (the stepmother) isn't supposed to be likable because she's cold, jealous, bitter and cruel. Her daughters (Anastacia and Drizella) aren't much better than her. However, the stepmother isn't as annoying as her ugly and selfish daughters. Cinderella, the main character, has nothing to do with them. Cinderella is gentle, kind, pretty and lovable. By the way, I think her beautiful pink dress is much nicer than the one given by the Fairy Godmother.

Lucifer (the cat) is hilariously malicious. The way he walks, sticking up his nose in the air and those arrogant and snobbish facial expressions make him funny. Ironically he's very much like the stepmother when it comes to personality. He always agrees with the stepmother's attitudes towards Cinderella. Lucifer has the right name for him because he's such a devilish and mean cat. Yet, there's nothing annoying about him.

The soundtrack is simple but pleasant, although not among Disney's best. The best song in this movie is "Bibiddi Bobiddi Boo".

There are plenty of well known talented voice actors in this, such as James MacDonald, Marion Darlington, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton and Luis Van Rooten.

Despite being simple-looking, the movie has good artwork, as well as its nice details, although never something "out-of-this-world". However, the King's palace is a spectacular masterpiece, being truly majestic and colossal.

Ah, the Charming Prince … Charming because he's tall and handsome, and Prince as the son of an authoritarian figure, powerful and rich enough to guarantee a material comfort and young enough to have no responsibilities whatsoever and full time to have fun with his beloved one… well, there's a reason why this myth is still persistent in many girls' minds.

But let's not get too cynical, I guess there is another reason why "Cinderella" is one of the most famous and universally appealing stories, beyond the originality of the plot with the famous midnight strokes and the fancy ball dress, there is a simple and inspirational message. On the surface, it's about a young beautiful girl who'll get the Charming Prince thanks to something that makes her completely unique, but we all know it's the fairy tale definition of the wags to riches concept that paved the way to many underdog stories, providing hope for both women and men. Capra owes a lot to "Cinderella", "Rocky" is a 'Cinderella' story and it's not surprising that such a feel-good tale ended up being adapted into the (how fitting) twelfth animated Disney film, in 1950.

Now, is it accidental or logical that Walt Disney's "Cinderella" got itself the ninth place in the American Film Institute's Top 10 Animated films? I'm inclined to say both, not to diminish the merit of the film, but just to remind that there were many other Disney animated features that deserved this place, "The Jungle Book", "Sleeping Beauty" to say the least, or how about "The Little Mermaid" or even a forgotten classic non-Disney film titled "Gulliver's Travels"? Yes, there is an interesting divergence between the film's recognition and cultural status and its content, which is relatively banal considering the glorious collection of animated masterpieces the Disney Studios provided. I'm not saying I'm not a fan of "Cinderella", but I might be biased because my favorite version will forever be from Tex Avery, I'm talking of the legendary "Swing Shift Cinderella", which always made me howl of laughter.

I also was never a big fan of Disney princess-themed films, which I thought were too formulaic and never contributed to something new since "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". Anyway, I had the recent opportunity to watch both "Sleeping Beauty" and "Cinderella" and somewhere while viewing the second, I had to reconsider my opinion because something was strangely appealing to me I couldn't point my finger in. Was it Jacques and Gus, the funny little mice? Maybe. Was it the scene-stealing sequence featuring the Fairy Godmother, the pumpkin carriage and the unforgettable Boobiddy-boos? Probably. Or was it the intimidating Stepmother, Lady Tremaine and her shadowy bitchy look? Yes, I guess so. But still, we can find the same elements in other Disney classics. So I finally realized that the secret in "Cinderella" simply depended on the appeal of its titular character.

In many aspects, Cinderella embodies the same condition than Snow White, but there is something fresh and modern in her personality that appears right in the first scene, she's not overly romantic and she doesn't take her work as a servant without detachment, even humor… where am I going with that? Simply that we never feel sorry for "Cinderella", as she's not portrayed like a victim, something intelligently hinted in the early scenes. Take the first confrontation with the stepmother, when she's unfairly punished: Cinderella's eyes betray a feeling of true anger, anything but a desire to cry. When she learns that she might be the bride, she's so hypnotized by love that a beautiful smile enlightens her face, and she looks incredibly sensual. "Cinderella" is modern by today's standards without the archetypal free- spiritedness disguising a real spoiled personality a la Ariel or Jasmine. Cinderella is modern because she is practical.

This is important because the obligatory supporting characters fulfill their roles, the stepmother and her ugly daughters are the perfect contrast for Cinderella but the movie mostly works because it didn't forget to have a central character, realistic enough to inspire our empathy and needful enough to give the characters a moment to shine, whether it's from the precious help from the cute chipmunk-like talking mice or the providential help of Bruno, the brave dog. And another interesting thing about Cinderella is that for once, it doesn't need dragons, or killings to be entertaining, and although the last act is set in a house, it's an efficiently suspenseful climax, carried by the memorable character of the Grand Duke who's charged to try the shoes on every eligible girl.

The Grand Duke is an important character not just for his comical pairing with the King, but also for the way he inspires the most evil action from the stepmother, when she makes him fall and break the shoe, her look says a lot about how she doesn't give a damn about one's life as one of the most truly despicable villains from a Disney film (who'd call a cat Lucifer anyway?) and coincidentally It also allows the heroine to own her by giving the other shoe, which was already proving that she was the one. The close-up on the stepmother's face at that very moment is the highlight of the film as it finally puts an end to Cinderella's torment. The film doesn't forget to be a fairy tale, yes it's all about the myth of the Charming Prince, but the key that forges Cinderella's appeal is that she's not a passive character.

And they lived happily after … despite the predictable conclusion, "Cinderella" remains a timeless classic that gets in fact, better after each viewing, so there's no use to ask what the secret of Cinderella's charm is, the answer is in the question. It's precisely the unique charm of a universally, timelessly and (might I add) physically appealing character.

In a small kingdom, the happily child Cinderella loses her beloved mother and his father marries with the cruel Lady Tremaine, who has the mean daughters Drizella and Anastasia. When her father dies, Cinderella becomes a servant in her own house and her stepmother and sisters feels only hatred for her. Cinderella's only friends are four mice, a dog and a horse that live in the house.

When the King decides that his son, the Prince, should get married, he invites every maiden in his kingdom to a ball in order that the Prince could choose his bride. However, Cinderella's cruel stepmother does not allow her to attend the ball. When Cinderella is hopeless of going to the Royal Ball, her Fairy Godmother appears and uses magic to help her to make her dream come true. But she must leave the ball before midnight since the magic effect will end.

"Cinderella" is one of the classics produced by Disney that belongs not only to my childhood, but also to my daughter and my son's childhoods. This adorable fairytale is wonderful and should be mandatory to every child in the world. I do not have much to say, since I believe that most of the readers certainly know the story of "Cinderella". I feel sorry for those that have written stupid things about this lovely fantasy – what a poor childhood they had. My vote is ten.

Title (Brazil): "Cinderela" ("Cinderella")