Parents' Guide to

Fairytale

By Kat Halstead, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Surreal Italian satire has adult themes.

Movie NR 2020 87 minutes
Fairytale Poster Image

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Entering the world of this film is like walking into a Technicolor fantasy, albeit one that is slightly off center. The vibrant sets, with their brightly colored carpets and flamingo wallpaper, look like they've sprung from the catalog of a design museum, given a surreal edge with some jittery editing and claustrophobic framing. That feeling of being trapped is enhanced by the single location -- an element inherited from the movie's beginnings as a stage play -- written by Timi himself and first produced in 2011. The costumes by Prada's design director Fabio Zambernardi are equally flamboyant and a smart way to enhance the stereotypes and gender issues explored in the film.



The 1950s is the perfect era to examine what's behind the shiny, fashionable mask of middle America, and Fairytale does so with an absurdist, satirical edge that makes it both a bizarre and enjoyable experience. Dark in places, but full of humor and heart in others, the story sees Mrs. Fairytale give up the version of a fairytale imposed on her by society for her own fairytale -- one that's happy ending is grounded in joy, freedom, and personal truth.

Movie Details

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