Cruella De Vil Reviews

Movies: 101 Dalmatians

First Appearance: 101 Dalmatians, a 1956 novel by Dodie Smith

Voiced by: Betty Lou Gerson


About as subtle as a Simon Cowell critique, the clue to the true nature of Dodie Smith's great villainess can be found in her name, like Dr. Evil, or Truly Scrumptious, or former Celtic defender Rafael Scheidt. In other words, beware a woman named de Vil, who smokes liberally, cackles malevolently at the drop of a hat, swans around in a car that has a King Kong-sized carbon footprint, and wants to make a fur coat out of the skins of gorgeous little Dalmatian puppies. Oh, and she's called Devil. But it's the OTT nature of Cruella capitalism run rampant, greed gnarled into a snarling mask of hatred - that makes her so memorable, and has sustained the character through animated sequels, live action movies (where Glenn Close had an absolute blast) and even on Broadway. If she doesn't scare you, so the song goes, no evil thing will.

Stroke of genius

Her unique approach to keeping her two henchmen, Jasper and Horace, on her side, constantly slapping them, threatening them and berating them for (admittedly catastrophic) failures. Someone needs to give her a reality show, quick smart.

Fun fact

Forbes ranked Cruella as the thirteenth wealthiest fictional character in 2002, with a net fortune of $875 million. She could buy a Dalmatian farm at that rate.