Snow White and the
Huntsman- (June 1st, 2012): PG-13
Overall
Recommendation: High
Distributor: Universal
Pictures
Opening Weekend Box Office:
#1 with $56,217,700
Domestic Box Office
Gross to-date: $71,403,845
Gross Revenue: $118,026,056
Production Budget:
$170 million
Director: Rupert Sanders
While comic book films have been
the prevalent cinematic trend of the past decade, one that doesn’t show any
signs of slowing down, after the runaway success of 2010’s Alice in Wonderland, fairytale updates have been gaining steam (both
Jack the Giant Killer and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters will
hit in 2013). Perhaps one of the biggest
stories in Hollywood as 2012 began involved the fact that two fairytale updates
focusing on the same character would be hitting theaters within months of each
other, and after the underwhelming impact of Mirror Mirror, Snow White and
the Huntsman certainly had something to prove. It was questionable to hand control over to
director Rupert Sanders, who would be tackling his first feature film, but from
what I could see from early trailers, he seemed to be more than up to the
challenge, as it looked like this fantasy adventure’s battle sequences and
mystical focus would be echoing both Braveheart
and The Lord of the Rings. I was excited to see skyrocketing star Chris
Hemsworth onscreen again so soon after the success of The Avengers, and I will see anything that Charlize Theron features
in, so those two names helped overshadow the apparent shortcoming that is
Kristen Stewart; even the marketing strategy seemed to play to this association,
as promotions offered little more than a passing glance of the Twilight alum. So, with a familiar story and a thoroughly
compelling villain, I found myself actually looking forward to Snow White and the Huntsman.
This updated fairytale opens in
exposition, with the Huntsman narrating how the recently-widowed King Magnus
(Noah Huntley) fell in love with the mysterious and beautiful Ravenna (Charlize
Theron), a powerful sorceress who murders the king on their wedding night and
proceeds to imprison the king’s daughter, Snow White. Fast forward several years and Queen Ravenna
allows the kingdom to fall into ruin as she uses her dark magic to remain young
and beautiful; while consulting her Magic Mirror, Ravenna discovers that she
will become immortal if she takes the heart of “the fairest of them all,” who
conveniently happens to be locked away in the castle dungeons. Once Snow White (Kristen Stewart) learns of
the Queen’s plans, she escapes imprisonment and flees to the Dark Forest;
because the enchanted forest drains her powers, Ravenna hires Eric, the
Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth); a drunkard with extensive knowledge of the
wilderness. Tasked with locating Snow White,
the Huntsman soon tracks her down, but once he discovers her true identity as
heir to the throne and learns of Ravenna’s deception concerning their deal, he
decides to help the young princess. With
the help of Snow White’s childhood friend, Prince William (Sam Claflin), and a
band of nomadic dwarves, Snow White and the Huntsman work to overthrow Ravenna
and restore peace to the troubled kingdom.
Offering a considerably darker take
on the fairytale than most audiences are used to, Snow White and the Huntsman reenergizes the familiar story with
stunning action, epic visuals, and thoroughly engrossing characters brought to
life by strong acting. Whether it is the
thoroughly unhinged Ravenna or the undeniably badass Huntsman, you will love
the characters within this film; even Snow White is subtly endearing and heroic…to
think, maybe Kristen Stewart wouldn’t be as hated outside of the Twilight fan-base if she had played Snow
White before that feminism set-back, Bella Swan. When it comes to the special effects and
makeup surrounding Ravenna’s magic, the work is nothing short of Oscar worthy,
especially when you consider the way that Charlize Theron is aged and then
restored as the effects of her spells begin to fade. Finally, thanks to the costuming, set design,
and choreographed action, you are fully engrossed in the cinematic world that
echoes some of the best fantasy blockbusters; if your jaw doesn’t drop during
the wedding scene or you aren’t amped as the Snow White and her army approach
the castle for the final battle, then I fear you might be dead inside. While all of these positive accolades cannot
mask some of the weaker elements present, they do help make those shortcomings
far easier to forgive.
As much as I would have loved to declare Snow White and the Huntsman a perfect
film, the narrative’s interaction with its source material severely weakens the
credibility of the overall story. When
the film is faithful to the original story, it fails to add anything truly
engaging, as the familiar plot plays out rather tediously while you are waiting
for the next action sequence or Ravenna freak-out; when the film tries to
branch out and add some twists, it goes a little too far…the hinted love
triangle between Snow White, the Huntsman, and Prince William is so reminiscent
of Twilight that it is actually
nauseating. So, it turns out that a
certain fondness for the original Snow White fairytale is required to fully
appreciate the story that is told by this new update, otherwise the princess’
interaction with wildlife and camaraderie with the dwarves will be completely
lost on you. I would also be remiss if I
didn’t point out that the pacing of the narrative is decidedly uneven, as some
of the segments, the introduction of the dwarves being a strong example, grind
the momentum and the energy of the film to a screeching halt. In the end, when you weigh the negatives
against the positives, there turn out to be far more reasons to see Snow White and the Huntsman than there
are to miss this newest fantasy adventure.
Though I previously predicted that Snow White and the Huntsman might not be
able to dethrone Men in Black 3, it
turns out that I underestimated the appeal of this stylish fantasy adventure,
which debuted with a beefy $56 million.
Unfortunately, even with a solid international presence, Universal’s
newest project cannot yet be declared a runaway hit, as there is still some
significant ground to cover in order to overcome the $170 million production
budget. As for lasting impact, week-to-week
drop-off will probably be significant, especially against the undoubtedly
massive competition that Madagascar 3
and Prometheus will provide. At the very least, Snow White and the Huntsman should make some waves in the makeup
category come Awards Season, and it proved to me that Kristin Stewart is
actually capable of smiling. Definitely
different from anything that has been seen at theaters in some time, this film
proves that it is well worth your time to revisit a childhood tale.
