The Ugly Stepsister is a Norwegian satirical black comedy body horror film that has emerged as one of 2025’s most critically acclaimed and provocative cinematic experiences. Written and directed by Emilie Blichfeldt in her directorial debut, this twisted reimagining of the Cinderella fairy tale has shocked audiences and critics alike with its unflinching exploration of beauty standards, body horror, and societal expectations.
| Aggregate Score | Rating | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Rotten Tomatoes (Critics) | ★★★★★ 96% | 127 professional critics |
| Rotten Tomatoes (Audience) | ★★★★☆ 87% | Verified audience score |
| Metacritic (Critics) | ★★★½☆ 70/100 | 22 critics – Generally favorable |
| IMDb | ★★★½☆ 7.0/10 | 27,000+ user ratings |
| Average Critical Score | ★★★★☆ 73.6/100 | Based on all sources |
Plot Synopsis
The film follows Elvira (Lea Myren), one of Cinderella’s infamous stepsisters, as she battles to compete with her stunningly beautiful stepsister Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Næss) in a fairy tale kingdom where beauty is paramount. When widow Rebekka (Ane Dahl Torp) marries a supposedly wealthy widower Otto, both families discover they are deeply in debt. After Otto dies suddenly during the wedding night, Rebekka becomes determined that Elvira must marry Prince Julian (Isac Calmroth) to save the family from financial ruin.
Unlike traditional Cinderella adaptations with magical fairy godmothers, Elvira undergoes brutal physical transformations to achieve beauty. With the help of a cocaine-using surgeon, she endures having her nose broken and reset, braces ripped off, fake eyelashes stitched to her eyelids, and swallows a tapeworm egg to maintain her weight. The film builds to the iconic slipper scene, where Elvira discovers her feet are too large and attempts to sever her toes with a butcher knife, a procedure her sedated mother completes. brutal physical transformations
Critical Reception & Ratings
The Ugly Stepsister has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics, earning a remarkable 96% on Rotten Tomatoes from 127 critics. The site’s consensus reads: “Taking a hammer and chisel to a quintessential fairy tale, The Ugly Stepsister‘s masterful application of gore and subversion are the stuff that nightmares are made of”. The film also earned an 87% audience score, demonstrating strong viewer engagement despite its extreme content.
On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 70 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating “generally favorable” reviews. The IMDb rating stands at 7.0/10 from over 27,000 user ratings, reflecting solid audience appreciation.
Individual critics have praised the film’s bold approach. Paste Magazine awarded it 86/100, with Jim Vorel calling it “feverishly funny, gruesomely gross and unrelenting in its satirical critique”. Collider gave it 80/100, with Therese Lacson noting that Blichfeldt “combines the classic grotesque horror often associated with Grimm fairytales and injects new life into it with her feminist message”. Vulture also scored it 80/100, with Bilge Ebiri describing it as “beautiful in its own way, like a Scandinavian fairy-tale riff on Italian giallo”.
The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw awarded the film 3/5 stars, praising it as “a movie hyper-aware of the sexual and patriarchal imagery of Cinderella” and calling it “an elegant debut”. The Times also gave it 3/5 stars, with Kevin Maher noting it was the first time in 30 years of film criticism he had to “turn away from the screen for fear of retching”.
Thematic Analysis
The film functions as a scathing critique of beauty standards and their destructive impact on women. Similar to 2024’s The Substance, The Ugly Stepsister compels viewers to confront the physical torment associated with societal beauty expectations in unflinching, grotesque detail. However, critics note that Blichfeldt’s film is “nastier, angrier, and grosser” than its predecessor.
The narrative cleverly subverts expectations by depicting Elvira not as a wicked villain but as a shy, insecure girl desperate for acceptance and love. Agnes, the Cinderella figure, is portrayed with moral complexity, she is neither purely virtuous nor entirely sympathetic, secretly engaging in premarital relations while presenting herself as a virgin to the prince.
The film’s post-feminist approach aligns with the literary tradition of Angela Carter, examining how fairy tales perpetuate harmful gender norms and impossible beauty ideals. By returning to the Brothers Grimm’s darker original tale, which included foot mutilation and the stepsisters having their eyes pecked out by birds, Blichfeldt exposes the violence that has always lurked beneath the sanitized Disney version.
Performance & Technical Achievements
Lea Myren’s performance as Elvira has been universally praised as the film’s emotional anchor. Critics highlight her “wild, unrestrained performance” as crucial to exploring the film’s absurdities. Her portrayal allows audiences to empathize with Elvira even as her actions become increasingly desperate and disturbing.
The film’s technical craftsmanship has been widely celebrated. Marcel Zyskind’s cinematography transitions effortlessly “from the repulsive to the exquisite and the bizarre to the enchanting,” with one memorable sequence showing maggots devouring a corpse before crafting a luxurious ball gown. The practical effects, sound design, and costume work by Manon Rasmussen bring Elvira’s horrific transformation to visceral life.
Box Office Performance
Despite its critical acclaim, The Ugly Stepsister had a limited theatrical release, earning $308,555 domestically and $5.3 million internationally for a worldwide total of approximately $5.6 million. The film was produced on a budget of approximately $4.25 million. Opening in just 501 theaters in the United States, it earned $174,930 in its opening weekend.
The limited release strategy, typical for foreign-language horror films, meant many audiences discovered the film when it became available for streaming on Shudder, AMC+, Disney+, and Hulu beginning May 9, 2025. Critics noted that its box office performance was “mightily impressive” given its status as a Norwegian-language film with minimal marketing.
Awards & Recognition
The Ugly Stepsister has garnered significant recognition on the festival circuit and awards season:
Major Awards Won:
- Best of Bucheon Award at Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN), with the jury praising how it “boldly satirizes human nature by fusing grotesque body horror into the framework of the classic Cinderella narrative”.
- Audience Award at BIFAN.
- Best Feature Film at Sitges Film Festival 2025.
- Director’s Award – Best Feature at Boston Underground Film Festival.
Nominations:
- 6 Amanda Award nominations (Norway’s equivalent of the Oscars), including Best Screenplay (Emilie Blichfeldt), Newcomer of the Year (Lea Myren), Best Supporting Actor (Ane Dahl Torp), Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Visual Effects.
- 4 Fangoria Chainsaw Award nominations, including Best Wide-Release Film, Best Lead Performance (Lea Myren), Best Costume Design, and Best International Movie.
- Panorama Audience Award nomination at Berlin International Film Festival.
- Official Fantàstic Competition – Best Motion Picture nomination at Sitges Film Festival.
Audience Response
Audience reactions have been intensely divided yet passionate. Horror enthusiasts on platforms like Reddit and Letterboxd have embraced the film as a masterpiece of body horror, with many calling it their favorite film of 2025. One Reddit user described it as “quickly becoming my favorite film of 2025, standing out as one of the finest examples of body horror I’ve ever encountered”.
The film has sparked extensive discussion about its complex characterization. Viewers appreciate that all characters, including Agnes, are presented with moral ambiguity rather than as simple archetypes. The ending has been particularly praised as “unexpectedly heartwarming” yet refusing easy resolution, with Elvira’s younger sister Alma emerging as an empathetic counterpoint to the madness around her.
Horror fans have praised specific sequences, particularly the tapeworm scene, which one viewer called “the tapeworm scene I had hoped for from My Best Friend’s Exorcism”. The film’s dark humor has been highlighted as a strength, balancing the grotesque imagery with satirical wit.
Comparisons & Context
Critics and audiences have positioned The Ugly Stepsister within a lineage of European female-directed body horror films alongside The Substance (2024), Raw (2016), and Titane (2021). However, many argue Blichfeldt’s film surpasses recent entries in the genre through its specific focus on beauty standards within a fairy tale framework.
The film has been called “a grotesque spectacle” that succeeds “better as a stylish, graphic fairytale riff than as a thoughtful exploration of the rigid definitions of female beauty”. Some critics note that while the film’s themes about beauty obsession are not groundbreaking, the execution and commitment to extremity set it apart.
Streaming & Availability
Following its limited theatrical run from April 18, 2025, The Ugly Stepsister became available for streaming on May 9, 2025 across multiple platforms including Shudder, AMC+, Disney+, and Hulu. It is also available for rental or purchase on Fandango at Home and other digital platforms.
Final Verdict
The Ugly Stepsister stands as one of 2025’s most audacious and technically accomplished horror films. Its 96% Rotten Tomatoes score reflects a critical consensus that Emilie Blichfeldt has crafted a stunning directorial debut that uses extreme body horror to expose the violence inherent in beauty culture and fairy tale narratives. While not for the faint of heart, featuring graphic sequences involving surgical mutilation, tapeworms, and severed body parts, the film offers a potent feminist critique wrapped in gorgeous cinematography and committed performances.
The film forces audiences to reckon with an uncomfortable question. Is the true horror the physical mutilation pursued in service of an impossible ideal, or the societal pressure that convinces women to chase it in the first place. For those with strong stomachs and an appetite for transgressive cinema, The Ugly Stepsister delivers a “grimmer than Grimm” experience that lingers long after the credits roll.
Refrences
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ugly_Stepsister
- https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a63569115/the-ugly-stepsister-rotten-tomatoes/
- https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-ugly-stepsister-horror-movie-review-2025
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52C0rqyZKhg
- https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/movies/the-ugly-stepsister-review.html
- https://www.cbr.com/the-ugly-stepsister-greatest-body-horror-movie-2025/
