johnke.meThe Ugly Stepsister
Cinderella told from the point of view of the ugly stepsister. The Substance is the obvious touchpoint here, with both films showing the lengths people will go to achieve beauty. But while that film was bright and hypersaturated and the magical element felt like a safe buffer, the story of The Ugly Stepsister is told with grim Scandi indifference. This isn’t a girl who was once beautiful and is feeling the effects of age. This is a girl who was born unattractive and the cruelty of the world’s treatment of her, along with the astonishing body horror makes this an impressive though incredibly tough watch.