In the 1996 101 Dalmatians, Cruella de Vil wants Anita and Roger’s Dalmatian puppies so she can skin them and sell their coats. Why puppies? Because their coats are softer, obviously. 2021’s prequel, Cruella, serves to give the villain an origin story that explains why Cruella is so, well, cruel. But are puppies involved? Does she hate them? Cruella may have a complicated relationship with dogs, but she doesn’t really hate them.
Cruella is an old school friend of Anita Radcliffe, and a glamor-obsessed heiress who claims that she cannot live without furs. She hires Horace and Jasper Badun, two incompetent crooks, to steal Pongo and Perdita’s 15 Dalmatian puppies, and buys 84 more through legitimate means.
Unlike previous Disney villainesses, such as the Evil Queen, Lady Tremaine, the Queen of Hearts, and Maleficent, Cruella is not a schemer nor does she have any powers. Instead, she acts purely on impulse and is thus prone to reckless behavior, particularly tearing through the snowy landscape in her car. Unlike future versions of the character, this version of Cruella was seemingly invincible in the eyes of the Dalmatians, who, though they could just about be able to keep Jasper and Horace Badun at bay, were unable to face “that devil woman”. Their only hope was therefore to flee; Cruella’s defeat in the film is brought about not through the deeds of the animals, but her own stubborn relentlessness (which, by the end of the film, has seemingly degenerated into a mad fury) and the incompetence of her henchmen.
Credit : Fandom
Picture Credit : Google
