"You Can't Have My Heart": A Review of Snow White and the Huntsman

SPOILER ALERT

Prepare for a dark twist on the classic fairy tale.

Rupert Sanders' updated version of the fair-skinned beauty with dark hair is entertaining, twisted, eerie, and an altogether interesting viewing.

The usual elements are there - we have a wicked queen, Ravenna, played to the hilt by Charlize Theron, who has tricked her way into the kingdom. Her dark power, shape-shifting, and penchant for sucking the youth out of the local women keeps the kingdom in a state of fear and starvation. We have the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth), a man who is grieving the death of his wife by drinking and getting in pub fights. Ravenna hires him to track Snow White into the Forbidden Forest. And with that, of course, we have Snow White, Ravenna's stepdaughter and rightful heir to the throne, played by a surprisingly-alert Kristen Stewart. This is one damsel-in-distress who is much more than we're led to believe, and as the film builds we find out more about her OWN supernatural power.

Visually, the film is a feast. Sanders grants viewers sweeping views of hillsides, castles, and forbidden forests only to zoom in and note three single drops of blood falling to the ground. Ravenna's dresses are stunning in their detailing. The special effects involving Ravenna's dialogue with her golden mirror are spectacular - pay special attention to the techniques used to "age" and "de-age" the Queen. The trek inside the Forbidden Forest might bother younger viewers, as there are a number of hallucinations, but these are pretty well-executed.

Charlize is perfectly cast as the wicked queen who will go to whatever lengths necessary - including bathing in milk and eating the hearts of birds - to preserve her beauty. The director gives us a tiny flashback to explain her desperation, and we start to understand the insecure girl behind the witch. It may have been more effective to keep Ravenna a cold beauty who seldom flies off the handle, as evil under control is sometimes more frightening than constant explosions, but it's done effectively.

Kristen Stewart's acting is on par - I was pleasantly surprised by her English accent. You won't find much Bella Swan here (although a certain scene involving Snow White and a rather nasty troll gave me New Moon flashbacks). The film sets her character up to be a shrinking violet but uses devices such as dwarves and fairies to show that she's much more powerful than we'd expect. Snow becomes more and more a Christ-figure of sorts, as she's persecuted by Ravenna for her beauty and purity of heart and people who remain in her presence find all their aches and maladies mysteriously vanish. As one dwarf puts it, "She is life itself. She will heal our land." The Christ-parallel is finally realized as Snow is killed by Ravenna (using a poisoned apple, of course) only to resurrect a short time later as a strong, courageous warrior who leads her people in a final revolt against Ravenna.

Overall the film is strong, but the pacing was the biggest concern. Between sword fights that are drawn out and dwarves who are fun, interesting supporting characters but are given far too much screen time, you're left wondering "what was the point?" There's also an odd encounter between Snow White and a white stag for which we're given no context. There's a massive swell in the music, slow-motion camera work, ... and suddenly it has the feeling of the Pevensie children meeting Aslan for the first time. We're not told who this stag is or why he's "blessing" Snow... it's a drive-by plot point. Those should be outlawed. Snow and the Huntsman develop some attraction to each other but it isn't quite flushed out, which I think was a smart choice. After all, it's not a love story.

The themes of the film speak largely about the definition and price of beauty, redemption, purity etc. The message of the film appears to be that true beauty comes from our character. When we offer our true God-given beauty, not just as women but as people, it's healing and freeing rather than manipulative and draining. I was also reminded of the ways that we as people feed off of each other to build up our own value. How often do we push others out of the way in order to build our own images? It's a chilling tale, but one that needs to be told. Because of some partial nudity (the Queen's naked back), scary hallucinations, and drinking, as well as other mature themes, I wouldn't recommend young children see it. But if you can stomach a fairy tale spin on our modern beauty-driven society, highly recommended.

-Grace Marita