Cruella

Disney’s latest foray into the world of retellings and backstory for their most-loved films takes a closer look at 101 Dalmatians’ Cruella de Vil. At least judging by this trailer, however, Cruella (Emma Stone) challenges us to embrace the flaws of her character instead of giving us a reason to understand her as a tragically flawed or misunderstood hero (as Maleficent did for Sleeping Beauty’s villain or _Joker _did for The Joker). That unapologetic spirit partly fits the film’s new setting, in 1970s London and the context of the burgeoning punk rock scene.

The cover song that runs throughout the trailer, however, is decidedly more dream-like. It’s a cover of “Who’s Sorry Now?”, a 1923 song with music by Ted Snyder and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. It was used in A Night in Casablanca (1946) and is perhaps best known in the form of Connie Francis’ popular cover version from 1958. It’s not the first time the song was brought back for film or television, either; it featured in the HBO period crime drama Boardwalk Empire about a decade ago.

In this case, the arrangement clearly takes after the Connie Francis version, albeit not without a variety of accoutrements in the arrangement to signify something a bit grander, to reflect Cruella’s apparent ambition.

In the beginning—with Cruella as Estella, before having adopted her persona as we know it just yet—we hear ticking percussion and reverberant pitched percussion over the song’s harmony. It comes off as hopeful, even. However, that is quickly dashed with imagery of alcohol, the “devil” license plate, and stormy weather (the actual weather, not the song).

By 0:22 the music cuts out in sync with a blacked-out screen—a somewhat common editing trope in modern trailers to signify a shift in style, genre or mood—focusing on the dialogue that remains (“a psycho”), and then the iconic Cruella laugh in tandem with the studio title card (notice how it’s rendered in black, white, and red).

The full version of the song is brought in after this, which offers an emotional turn that befits this segment of Cruella’s monologue. “A new day brings new opportunities,” she offers, as the lyrics (“who’s sorry now?”) provide an emotional undercurrent. At 0:36 we hear the addition of epic percussion to accent the beats, again following the gist of the monologue (“I was ready to make a statement”)—the percussive hits certainly do so, synched with the on-screen action at moments, such as with the camera flash.

At 0:49 we get another blacked-out screen, an effective enough end marker for the music as well as an easy way to emphasize attention on a key line: “I am woman. Hear me roar.” Some will recognize this as a contemporaneous reference to Helen Reddy’s 1971 song of the same name. Notice in the final section how the singer’s voice is drowned in reverb, losing the melody at 1:10, and the harmony and bass are stuck on the supertonic note, leaving a very ominous impression and shifting it to a minor sound. Again, this seems to fit the monologue at this point, as Cruella notes that she is maybe “a little bit mad.” It does, however, pick up and finish as the song might be expected to by the end.

One may yet understand Cruella or even empathize with her on some level, but the trailer certainly isn’t asking for it just yet—no one’s sorry here. Throughout this three-part trailer, the Connie Francis version of the song provides the master plan, but it’s also carefully arranged, edited, and enhanced at key points to frame it around Cruella’s (Stone’s) narrative voice, adding some depth to the intentions and process behind her words.

Cruella is due out May 28th.

— Curtis Perry