Check It Out: Introducing ‘The Ugly Stepsister’s Dr. Esthétique, the Beauty Expert for Future Princesses

Ready for a gnarly fairytale, full of body horror, dark humor, and sibling rivalry? The Ugly Stepsister will give you all that and more. And the video above provides a bone-crunching preview. Written and directed by Emilie Blichfeldt, this critically acclaimed horror movie takes the Cinderella story you thought you knew and gives it a bloody fresh spin by focusing on the maligned ugly stepsister. Sure, Elvira (Lea Myren) dreams of being swept up in the arms of the kingdom’s handsome prince. But to catch the eye of this eligible bachelor, her ruthless mother (Ane Dahl Torp) believes she needs the help of Dr. Esthétique (Adam Lundgren), a medieval cosmetic surgeon whose methods are, well, the stuff of nightmares.

The clip above offers some of the horrid lengths poor Elvira will go to achieve her happily-ever-after. But the cheeky tone of this faux commercial for Dr. Esthétique hints at the wicked sense of humor at play in The Ugly Stepsister. As I noted in my review following the film’s Sundance premiere, “The Ugly Stepsister is a deranged and dizzying achievement, folding in a classic story with a bitingly modern satire and bold body horror. Blichfeldt weaves these elements together to create a film that feels both of this moment and aesthetically nostalgic.” Experience it for yourself when The Ugly Stepsister makes its theatrical debut on April 18.