Absolutely everyone knows the story of Cinderella. I can’t imagine there is anyone who doesn’t know it. It is perhaps the most known, and most remade classic story ever. There are many (many!) modern adaptations, but there has never been a recent remake of the classic and true story of Cinderella, at least not with much commercial status, until now.

If I had to sum up the entirety of this movie in one word? Magical. From start to finish, Cinderella is enchanting and beautiful and just pure magic.

Lily James, the actress who played Cinderella, did such a fantastic job. Her performance made me ache for her character, and she actually made me tear up at times (and when it’s a story that the audience is already familiar with, I would say that’s probably a hard thing to do). Alongside her was Cate Blanchett as the stepmother, and I honestly could not think of a better actress to play that part than her. She did marvelous. And don’t even get me started on Richard Madden, or should I say Prince Kit. He was perfect for the part (and perfect in my heart), and he and Lily both flawlessly captured the essence of what Cinderella and the Prince represent: true love. The beauty of this movie is carried on from the moment her fairy Godmother transforms her ragged dress for the ball, all the way to the joyous end when she is wearing her own (amazing) wedding dress. Throughout the film, Cinderella repeats advice that her mother gave her as she was dying, which was to “have courage and be kind,” and this ended up being a recurring theme in the movie. She teaches this to Kit when they first meet in the forest as she begs for him to spare a stags life, and Kit takes this advice and applies it to his own life, almost like a breath of fresh air. Cinderella reminds herself constantly, to have courage and be kind, and I think this is a wise lesson that we can all take with us and apply to our lives.

If you haven’t gone and seen this spectacular remake of this classic story, then I highly recommend that you do, because I think that no matter how old you get, or how well you may know the story, you are never too old for a little Disney magic.