Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale (2010)

Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale (2010). Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale: Directed by John Dunson, Sean Dunson. With Ashlee Hewitt, Sterling Knight, Kiely Williams, Thomas Calabro. Elle wants to be a singer/songwriter, but her dreams are cut short by the sudden death of her parents. She moves in with her adoptive uncle, who runs a small independent record label whose biggest act, Sensation, is also Elle's biggest pain. The pop music environment at the label, very different than the country roots she is used to, adds to Elle's feelings of loss and frustration, and her misplaced guilt, which is caused by the fact that her parents had been en route to her performance at the time of her death. But when she meets Ty Parker, a famous pop singer with a passion for "real" music, her repressed ambition is released through a revitalized interest in singing and songwriting.

“Elle (Ashlee Hewitt) has undergone a life-change of great sadness. An aspiring country singer, her parents died in a plane crash on the way to hear perform at a school concert. Thus, Elle has moved in with her uncle Alan in Los Angeles and works as a u0026quot;gopheru0026quot; for his small recording label. This means fetching coffee and arranging schedules for the studiou0026#39;s main act, a three gal pop group called Sensation. Naturally, this trio of young ladies are budding prima donnas and they put Elle down at every opportunity, as well as making constant demands. Unhappily, Elle finds it difficult to talk to her uncle, both from her shyness and his work schedule. No one realizes that spectacle-wearing Elle may have musical dreams. One day, a Bieber-type singer, Ty Parker (Sterling Knight) comes to the office to talk with Alan. He is tired of recording the same old pop tunes and wants to sign with a label that will give him more creative freedom. Alan, having a shoestring budget, wants to sign the very popular Ty but he asks that he make a record with a British pop teen, Candy Cane, FIRST, and then they will discuss his future venture. Ty says he must think about it. In the meantime, Elle goes into the studio late one night, to record one of her compositions, on the sly. What she doesnu0026#39;t know is that Ty has had to come back to the office to retrieve his cell phone. When he sees and hears Elleu0026#39;s performance, he guesses that she is Miss Kane and wants to talk to her about their future duet. Stunned, Elle plays along but then vanishes after a night of coffee and conversation. Soon the real Candy arrives, confusing everyone. How will this tangle of webs get undone? Is there a future for Elle and Ty? This is quite a sweet little film, at times, one that its target audience of tween girls will like. Hewitt and Knight are quite gifted, musically, and also sport very natural acting abilities. The rest of the cast, mostly unknowns, do a fine job as well. Costumes are also very fetching, while sets, script and direction are above average. However, it would still behoove parents to watch with their gals and discuss issues presented. For example, not all young singers are arrogant folks like Sensation but, more importantly, the musical business is quite competitive and singers donu0026#39;t usually take off their glasses, put on cute outfits and make it easily. It would have been nice if the film had actually shown Sensation practicing and receiving advice from teachers and those with industry knowledge, too. In short, this modern fairy tale is enjoyable but parents will want to bring any daughters with singing ambitions back to reality at the finish.”