Cate Blanchett talks about her exploration of the female superhero within Cinderella, ahead of the March 2015 release of Kenneth Branagh's vibrant re-telling of the Disney fairytale in which she stars as the title character's terribly wicked stepmother Lady Tremaine.

Cate Blanchett in Cinderella
Cate Blanchett is the wicked Lady Tremaine in Cinderella

Everyone loves a good fairytale; a timeless classic that will never cease to have meaning in a person's life no matter how old they get. Nowadays, they're providing much needed relief from male role models in cinema, with numerous feisty heroines that we already all know and love taken over the screen, from Kristen Stewart's vision of Snow White in 'Snow White And The Huntsman' to Angelina Jolie's misunderstood character in 'Maleficent' - not to mention the more original arrivals of Elsa and Anna in 'Frozen'.

'There's so many films out there at the moment that have male superheroes at the fore and this is really a story where kindness is a superpower', says 'Cinderella' star Cate Blanchett. 'That's something that [the director] Ken talked about really early on and I found that really, really exciting. And it's a female centric story and I was really excited to be part of the telling of that.'

Watch the trailer for 'Cinderella' here: 


As for who's taking on the role of Cinderella herself, Blanchett couldn't think of anyone more ideal than 'Downton Abbey''s Lily James. 'As soon as Lily came on, she was like a breath of fresh air', she recalls. 'There's a generosity of spirit to her as a performer which I think is really rare and an incredible discipline and focus and depth. But she's also such a blithe spirit so I think she's absolutely perfect for the role. She glows!'

More: Lily James opens up about her character in 'Cinderella'

It'll be interesting to see Blanchett in such a villainous role, with her having previously been known for portraying the formidable but benign Elven aristocrat Galadriel in 'Lord Of The Rings', a former English queen in 'Elizabeth', Maid Marion in 'Robin Hood' and a troubled New York socialite in 'Blue Jasmine'. In equal measure, Helena Bonham Carter drops her often villainous persona (Mrs. Lovett in 'Sweeney Todd', Madame Thénardier in 'Les Miserables' and Bellatrix Lestrange in 'Harry Potter') to take on Cinderella's Fairy Godmother in the movie. 'Game of Thrones' star Richard Madden will play Prince Charming.

More: Read our review of 'Blue Jasmine'

'Cinderella' will be released in US cinemas on March 13th 2015.