Cinderella 2000 was produced during that brief period in the late
70s and early 80s when the drive-in market had shrunk, the VCR market had not
yet grown, and soft core was viable material for theatrical release. In
reaction to the success of the Alex de Renzy XXX version of Alice in
Wonderland, producer Sam Sherman decided that adult versions of Disney stories
set to music were a good idea, but he also felt that everyone else would be
making them as well, so he added a couple of twists to make his unique, namely
setting it in 2047 and on another planet. Director Al Adamson merged the
concept with an idea of his own about a planet where fornication was
forbidden, except when the "central computer" paired two people. The fairy
godfather was a space traveler trying to get the whole universe making love.
John Prince (Prince Charming) was the legal sex surrogate. The leader was a
hypocrite, who spent hours in a secret room with porn and other things he had
made illegal. The penalty for illegal fornication was to be shrunk for six
months to the size of Ken and Barbie, and an annoying robot was created to
enforce the fornication laws. Many people thought it was worth the risk.
Besides the frequent violations, many of those selected by computer for sex
just had lost interest, as sex without emotion did so little for them. From
there, the story plays itself out somewhat predictably, with soft-core sex and
naughty song-and-dance numbers.
Both the US version and the German version are included on the DVD, both
are full screen transfers remastered from early materials, but neither is the
best possible version, especially since the pan-and-scan technique resulted in
some awkward crops. The original widescreen prints do exist, but Sam Sherman
felt the cost of a complete restoration would be too great to be offset by the
limited market for this film. As a result, the strongest feature on the DVD is
not he film itself, but a 56 minute commentary in which Sherman talks
about the making of the film.
If you are not familiar with our grading system, you need to
read the
explanation, because the grading is not linear. For example, by
our definition, a
C is solid and a C+ is a VERY good movie. There are very few Bs
and As. Based on our descriptive system, this film is a:
C-
This is a hard one to
score. It is corny, the acting, for the most part, could have been much
better, and it isn't very explicit. On the other hand, it is a truly wacky
idea, and not something that would ever be made today, so let's call it a C-,
a film only of interest to lovers of curiosity items.
