As such, she’s a superb female role model, a smart working-class heroine who’s more than capable of looking after herself and scoring points over her social superiors. Popelka’s goodness is apparent ...

Director Václav Vorlíček and blacklisted screenwriter František Pavlíček (credited under a pseudonym) tone down the story’s supernatural elements and accentuate the realism; this Popelka (brilliantly ...