Snow White and the Huntsman is a rather bland and linear
update on the classic fairy tale. In this version, the evil queen
(Charlize Theron) killed the king years ago and has held his young
daughter (Snow White - played by Kristen Stewart) captive for years.
The queen is obsessed with being the prettiest in the kingdom
(queendom?) and maintains her beauty by consuming the souls of those
younger than her. Until Snow White's coming of age she was the
prettiest - according to the "mirror mirror on the wall" anyway - but
now she's dropped to second place. It is at this point that the queen suddenly
decides she'll be better off with Snow White dead. But a botched
attempt to kill her results in her escaping and fleeing to the
hinterlands where a rebellion against the queen is just waiting for
someone to lead it.
Which is sort of it really. The film is very linear, with hardly a subplot to speak of. The queen is evil and she has toadies following her. Snow white is pure and at one with nature. There is a rebellion, then a battle, then the end. Chris Hemsworth is the Huntsman sent to recapture Snow White but who decides he would rather rescue her and join the rebellion. He does a lot of standing around growling at things and swinging an axe. The film is punctuated by some good special effects, most notable of which are the 7 dwarves played here by several very well-known British actors like Bob Hoskins and Ray Winstone. The special effects that allow them to become dwarves are quite convincing. In addition to that there's the effects that are used when the evil queen turns into a flock of crows, which is good but I wonder if someone in the SFX team had been holding on to that one for ages and was looking for an opportunity to put it up on a big screen.
The best thing in the film by some way is Charlize Theron, who with her epic over-performance as the evil queen looks like she's having a brilliant time. I understand that performances of this nature are generally categorised as 'chewing up the scenery'. Other than that though it's a very flat film that isn't helped by Kristen Stewart's blank inability to emote. It's a real shame that she's been type cast now as a sort of ashen-faced blank slate female archetype, because she was good in The Runaways and can clearly act. I just think she needs to take charge of her own career and get involved in some roles that'll challenge her.
Which is sort of it really. The film is very linear, with hardly a subplot to speak of. The queen is evil and she has toadies following her. Snow white is pure and at one with nature. There is a rebellion, then a battle, then the end. Chris Hemsworth is the Huntsman sent to recapture Snow White but who decides he would rather rescue her and join the rebellion. He does a lot of standing around growling at things and swinging an axe. The film is punctuated by some good special effects, most notable of which are the 7 dwarves played here by several very well-known British actors like Bob Hoskins and Ray Winstone. The special effects that allow them to become dwarves are quite convincing. In addition to that there's the effects that are used when the evil queen turns into a flock of crows, which is good but I wonder if someone in the SFX team had been holding on to that one for ages and was looking for an opportunity to put it up on a big screen.
The best thing in the film by some way is Charlize Theron, who with her epic over-performance as the evil queen looks like she's having a brilliant time. I understand that performances of this nature are generally categorised as 'chewing up the scenery'. Other than that though it's a very flat film that isn't helped by Kristen Stewart's blank inability to emote. It's a real shame that she's been type cast now as a sort of ashen-faced blank slate female archetype, because she was good in The Runaways and can clearly act. I just think she needs to take charge of her own career and get involved in some roles that'll challenge her.
In conclusion, Snow White and the Huntsman isn't that good. But then you weren't really expecting it to be were you?
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