Starring: Rachel Zegler, Andrew Burnap, Gal Gadot
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Runtime: 109 mins. Reviewed in Mar 2025
Reviewer: Peter W Sheehan
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This is an American musical fantasy film which re-imagines the 1937 animated film, Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs.
The film is directed from a screenplay by Greta Gerwig and Erin Cressida Wilson. It reimagines the 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs which in turn was based famously on the 1812 fairy tale, ‘Snow White’ by the Brothers Grimm, published in the 1812 volume, Grimm’s Fairy Tales. Filming took place primarily in London, England. Rachel Zegler plays Snow White, and Gal Gadot plays the Evil Queen.
The film is a live-action adaptation of the Brothers Grimm classic, which is a beloved fairy tale. Originally, the seven dwarves didn’t have any names – they were first given names in a theatre play script that was performed on Broadway in 1912. The original tale centres around a princess (Snow White) who falls under the spell of her evil stepmother, who became jealous of her stepdaughter’s beauty and inherent goodness.
The Brothers Grimm story has been changed in the making of this film. Change can alter an original tale by respecting the spirit of its original tone, or not. The naming of the seven dwarves gave the original story warmth, which was consistent with the contagious spirit of the original tale. In this film, Snow White becomes a warrior who learns how to fight evil. In a dark way, she shows touches of fierceness, rather than behaving warmly at all times, and the seven dwarves are given some human features that are far from endearing. Also, in this movie the seven dwarves appear as animated persons in what is essentially a live-action-human movie, and they live in an environment which sacrifices their individuality. Snow White’s princess is played by a Latino actress, in a movie that celebrates the worth of cross-cultural togetherness.
Many things signal that this film is not really a live-action remake of a much-loved Disney classic. This is the first time music has been used to reinforce the movie’s plotline, including some very catchy songs. It is sumptuously costumed. The lasting entertainment value of the 1937 film has a fascinating history behind it, and this remake departs from the original by giving it an unexpectedly modern look and flavour.
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