If you’re looking for a villain origin story mixed with beautiful 1970s fashion, then “Cruella” on Disney+ is the perfect movie for you!

As someone who loved Disney’s “101 Dalmations” as a child, I always wondered how Cruella actually became the villain we all know and love. I was very excited to hear that they were finally making a movie about her. Thankfully this movie did not disappoint.

Cruella, formally known as Estella, is somewhat of a delinquent growing up. After getting expelled from her school and then becoming an orphan shortly after, she decides to run away and work in the fashion industry. This is where she becomes the assistant of Baroness Von Hellman, an admired fashion designer in London.

When I first learned that this movie was two hours long, I was worried that I would get disinterested halfway through. However, there’s a plot twist every 20 minutes which can make the movie hard to follow at times.

Senior Alli Wank was shocked that they were able to continue making plot twists throughout the entire movie. She said, “It still found a way to keep you intrigued with everything getting flipped on its head.”

This movie acts as a prequel to Disney’s “101 Dalmatians” and it does a great job of it. Many things that were shown in “101 Dalmatians” were explained more in-depth in “Cruella.” For example, we learn that Cruella is such a bad driver because she never actually learned how to drive.

Wank thinks that “Cruella” shows her in a nicer light, especially as we learn how and why she became the recognizable villain we all know. Wank said, “It made her more of a three-dimensional character than what was shown in the past movies.”

Senior Alena Murdakhaev agrees that this movie portrayed Cruella’s past well. She said, “I liked the fact that Cruella has a nice backstory. [For example], she’s trying to avenge her mother’s death and not just trying to kill the dogs.”

Another aspect that I loved about this movie was the costumes and settings. “Cruella” takes place in London in the 1970s and everything about the movie depicts that well.

Since this movie revolves heavily around the fashion industry, you won’t be disappointed if you hope to see outfits you’ve never seen before. In the middle of the movie, Cruella anonymously shows up to the Baroness’ events in outfits and gowns that’ll leave you mesmerized.

The acting in this movie was also very well done. Emma Stone, who plays Cruella, captured all the correct aspects of this role from her wittiness to her slightly eccentric personality.

Senior Olga Murdakhaev was hesitant to watch “Cruella” when she first heard about its release. She said, “I was really excited when they announced ‘Maleficent’ a while back and was pretty disappointed with it. But with the casting of Emma Stone as Cruella, I thought it might work because I love her as an actress.”

One critique that I have about this movie is the colors. The entire movie seemed to be dull which might be a play on the time period, but it was still disappointing.

Another criticism that I have is the amount of music that was played throughout the movie. In total, there were pieces of 33 songs played, which I found to be extreme and a bit annoying. Songs would play at very odd times and most of the time, it wouldn’t fit into what was happening in the movie.

Overall, I’d rate this movie 4.5 out of 5 fake fur coats. I think that this movie was a great origin story of Cruella and I would definitely recommend it for anyone with a Disney+ subscription.