Once Upon a Time

When I think back on memorable stories, I automatically think of a movie from my early teenage years: A Cinderella Story starring Hilary Duff and teen heartthrob Chad Michael Murray.
A modernized retelling of a classic fairy tale, A Cinderella Story stole my heart in a way no other story had. I can vividly remember popping this movie into my pink DVD player every single night for months on end until I had it memorized line for line. To this day I can still quote the movie with ease. The story stuck with me because of how universal it is. Everyone knows the story of Cinderella. It is your basic fairy tale love story. A Cinderella Story takes this one step further and elevates the story with its use of humor, fascinating characters, memorable quotes, and feel-good moments.

** Spoilers ahead **

The story follows your typical Story Spine.

I mean, the movie literally starts with
“Once Upon a time…”

• Once upon a time there was a girl named Samantha Montgomery. She lived happily with her widowed father in the San Fernando Valley. Sam and her dad were the best of friends.

• Until one day her father gets remarried to a greedy woman named Fiona who brings along her evil twin daughters.

• Then an earthquake hits and her father dies. Sam now has to grow up under the reigns of Fiona. When she isn’t at school, she’s forced to cook and clean for her step family and work at Fiona’s diner.

• Then Sam meets a boy who goes by the Alias “Nomad” in a Princeton University chatroom. They talk and talk until they finally decide to meet at the Homecoming Halloween dance. She finds out that he is Austin Ames, the most popular guy in high school. Sam however is wearing a mask and Austin does not recognize her. They dance the night away but by midnight, Sam has to return to the diner. Austin never finds out Sam’s true identity.

• Then Sam’s evil stepsisters find out about her online friend. They out her identity to the entire school and embarrass both Sam and Austin. Not much later, Fiona finds and opens Sam’s acceptance letter from Princeton University. Since she is evil and never wants Sam to leave the diner, she decides to forge a new letter advising Sam that she has not been accepted. Sam is obviously distraught.  

• Until finally Sam decides to take a stand for herself. She stands up to Fiona and quits her job. She moves out of the house and finally confronts Austin. When packing up her belongings she finds her dads hidden will tucked away inside a fairy-tale book. She is the true owner of the house, the diner, and everything else her dad left behind. Sam takes everything away from her stepfamily and is provided with her real University acceptance letter.

• And every day after that Sam and Austin, or Cinderella and Prince Charming, move away to Princeton and live happily ever after.

The story gives you someone to root for…

Sam Montgomery was best friends with her father. You see her lose everything she ever loved. She is forced to work at home and in the diner by her stepmother, she’s not popular in school, and she’s given the name “Diner Girl” by the cool kids. It’s truly a young girl’s nightmare. When you see she might have found true love; you want everything to work out for her. You want Sam to win and get the man of her dreams.

The story also gives you a character to hate. The hilarious Jennifer Coolidge stars as the evil step mom, Fiona, who in between her love of Botox and Salmon (flown in straight from “Norwegia”) makes it her mission to ruin her step daughter’s life. You can’t wait to see her get what’s coming to her. These amazing characters are part of what makes the movie so memorable!

The story has an underlying theme of not being afraid to go for your dreams.

A significant quote from the movie is:

“Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.”

This is clear when Sam finally isn’t ashamed to show her true identity. When she stops being manipulated by her stepmother and stands up for herself, her fairy-tale dreams come true. The story is empowering and teaches you to have courage even when you’re afraid.

In between writing, I was compelled to go back and watch the movie from beginning to end.

The movie really doesn’t skip a beat. It includes a killer early 2000’s soundtrack that has you feeling just the right emotions. As a young adult, I still get goosebumps when “Hear you Me” by Jimmy Eat World starts playing and a drop of rain falls from the sky, indicating the end of the movie-long drought. Sam and Austin finally kiss and suddenly everything is right in the world. The scene is pure magic.

Between the hilarious characters, and the heartfelt moments, the story is beyond engaging. If you haven’t watched it for yourself, I suggest you do! A Cinderella Story is a story for all.