Snow White and the Huntsman re-imagines the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale as a Medieval fantasy epic, which starts off on a familiar note: A noble queen sees three drops of blood fall on fresh snow and wishes for a daughter who is just as fair. That daughter is born, but when the mother dies, the King, in his grief, takes on a new wife who proves to be his undoing. In this version, that evil queen is a man-hating sorceress named Ravenna (Charlize Theron), whose dark magic plunges the entire kingdom into despair and horror.
Ravenna is bonded to the fate of her captive stepdaughter, Snow White (Kristen Stewart), and when the vanity-feeding magic mirror informs her that Snow will either be her destruction or ticket to immortality, Ravenna opts for the “consume her beating heart” option. However, the 2012 Snow White is no mere damsel in distress and stages a brazen jailbreak, only to hop out of the frying pan and into the proverbial fire of the dark forest. Ravenna recruits the widowed drunkard of a Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) to bring Snow back, but it slowly becomes apparent to the broken warrior that this girl is part of a larger destiny – one she will need his (and others’) help to fulfill.
Kristen Stewart and Chris Hemsworth as Snow White and the Huntsman
It is a tricky thing to tell such a familiar story (“remake” and “reboot” have become dirty words, these days), and there is nothing more familiar than a fairy tale that has been spun and re-spun countless times over the span of two centuries. It’s also daunting when the man in the director’s chair (Rupert Sanders) is taking on a whale of a blockbuster epic as his first feature film.
Against all odds, however, Sanders takes the tale of Snow White and crafts it into something visually gorgeous that is at once familiar and refreshingly imaginative. From the stunning costumes of multi-Oscar-winning designer Colleen Atwood, to the set design and cinematography, Snow White and the Huntsman (known by its acronym-of-the-year nickname, SWATH) is simply an impressive piece of visual storytelling. Some of the action sequences could’ve been cleaner and clearer (too much ‘quick-cut’ editing) – but on the whole, Sanders’ scene composition and choices in photography and angling create a distinctly original style. You will know that you are watching his movie.
While the visual component is excellent, the screenplay by writers Evan Daugherty (another first-timer), Hossein Amini (Wings of the Dove, Drive), and writer/director John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side, The Alamo) is less impressive. On the one hand, the classic Snow White fairy tale is cleverly spun into a modern adventure epic, with all the familiar elements – the dwarves, the handsome prince, the evil queen, the mirror, the apple, etc. – being given useful functions within the narrative. On the other hand, the story is rushed, the characters are (for the most part) thin and underdeveloped, while story beats meant to convey character personality and/or development don’t hit with the impact they are meant to, or are simply ill-conceived.
A great example of these narrative miscues can be seen in the character of Ravenna, who is all screaming evil three-quarters of the time (the role must’ve been hell on Theron’s vocal chords), but is given awkward and cumbersome “humanizing moments” that never really hit the mark, and come off as random rather than insightful. It leaves Theron’s performance stranded in the realm of an over-the-top caricature – one who seems bi-polar (instead of sympathetic or complex) in the moments where she suddenly gets all tragic and weepy.
Ravenna (Charlize Theron) and her magic mirror
Hemsworth and Stewart both do fine in their leading roles – but again, a lot of the moments that are meant to endear us to their respective characters, or allure us with a “Will they, won’t they?” romantic undercurrent, simply fall flat or are missed entirely. The Huntsman (think Thor with a Scottish brogue) has a character arc that, while conveyed effectively by Hemsworth, feels muted and distant in face of the larger narrative. Snow’s arc is never really clear, or engaging, as Stewart is pretty much tasked with running from place to place looking wild-eyed and panic-stricken, until an unearned third-act turnaround sees her fitted in a suit of armor, running through flames waving a sword (all of which she handles well enough). By the end, we don’t get much resolution to the main character arcs, and some big plot threads are left dangling in favor of an inevitable sequel. In fact, SWATH pretty much feels like a first chapter rather than a complete story, which is a slightly frustrating approach to a fairy tale.
The supporting characters are rendered well – especially the troupe of talented character actors who are flawlessly transformed into the famous band of dwarves that aid Snow White. Here The Dwarves are re-imagined as the last of a once-noble people, now reduced to crass-talking, violent bandits and comedic relief. The chemistry between the dwarf ensemble - Ian McShane (Deadwood), Toby Jones (Captain America), Bob Hoskins (Roger Rabbit), Ray Winstone (The Departed), Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz), Johnny Harris (Black Death), and Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes) – is a high point of the film, and some of the best lines and scenes are wholly owned by them. Rounding out the crew are Ravenna’s brother, Finn (portrayed with creepy menace by Sam Spruell) and William, the young boy from Snow’s past who grows into a rapid-firing warrior archer (and a third-wheel suitor for Snow’s hand).
The Dwarves in 'Snow White and the Huntsman'
All of the understated romantic drama is ultimately wasted (one of those ‘dangling threads’ I mentioned), and there will inevitably be some people who insist that Stewart is a failure, thanks to the cursed mark (fair or not) of her Twilight persona. (There will also be those who crack wise about how there is no question of ‘who is fairest’ when comparing Stewart to Theron.) For my part, I don’t think Stewart’s presence detracts that much from the movie; overall, the entire cast is strong – though the script they are working from often is not.
In the end, SWATH is an impressive debut for Sanders; another great performance from Theron; yet another breakout action role for Hemsworth; a better heroine for Stewart to be playing, and an entertaining, visually stimulating (but ultimately hollow) summer movie experience.
For an in-depth discussion of the film by the Screen Rant team check out our Snow White and the Huntsman episode of the SR Underground podcast.
Snow White and the Huntsman is now playing in theaters everywhere. It is Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, action, and brief sensuality.
Loading ...Our Rating:
3 out of 5
![Fall TV 2013: 10 Best New Shows [Trailers]](http://static.srcdn.com/slir/w87-h65-c1.33:1/http://screenrant.com/wp-content/uploads/abc-fall-previews-shield.jpg)
‘Dexter’ Season 8 Trailer: The Hunt Begins – How Will it End? 
‘Game of Thrones’ to End in Season 7? 
‘Pacific Rim’ Featurette Explores ‘Drift Space’; First TV Spot Offers More Action 
‘Halo’ Live-Action TV Series From Steven Spielberg Announced 
what no sparkly “vampires”?
sorry i had to say it
I agree… I see Kristin Stewart and all I can think is “sparkly friggin’ vampires”…
Never seen the Twilight movies so I suppose I WON’T be thinking sparkly vampires.
Very disappointed. I realize that 3.5 stars isn’t that bad but it looks like the general consensus is that the film did not live up to the hype and I really hoped it would have.
Nevertheless, I will still likely give this movie a shot and see it in theaters.
Absolutely go see this movie, if only for the visual aspect of it. I can understand criticisms that the movie is slow in places or lacks compelling dialogue, but in the end any dialogue would be overshadowed by the visual beauty of the film. From the physical set, to the ethereal special effects, to the multitude of facial expressions- everything is breathtakingly beautiful. Just enjoy the movie for what it is and don’t spend so much time looking for flaws.
I remember reading they planned to make this a trilogy so this movie was being set up as the first chapter. In that case it makes sense the movie feels like that.
Yeah, I don’t know anyone who wants to see this. It’s just one fairy tale movie too many. However, here is a hilarious review of Snow White and the Huntsman by the great Finnish film reviewer Kimmo Mustonenen.
http://mankabros.com/blogs/btp/2012/06/01/snow-white-and-the-huntsman-review/
personnally I’d say this is the best fantasy movie since labrynith, legend and the dark crystal!!!
Wow, Kofi, thank-you, that is a powerful and incredibly well-written review.
I suspect I’ll have no trouble getting past the deficiencies you listed, I tend to have a relatively forgiving streak when I go to the movies.
Surprised. This is just falling by the day on Rotten Tomatoes. Down to 46%, I think it was 52% yesterday. I wasn’t sure about it due to Stewart as I have not liked one thing she is in and generally is not a good actress. Blu-Ray rental at best is what I have gathered, probably hitting MIB3 tonight instead.
“MIB3″ wasn’t exactly stunning either. It was mildly entertaining, but Shrek4 did the whole “oops, the hero is missing…what changed?” story MUCH better.
Just a heads-up…
As for SWATH, that is a shame, but I DO want to enjoy the visual spectacle, so I’ll likely see it next week.
I was thinking of going to see this in theaters based on the trailers, but the reviews have sort of scared me off. I’ll go see the Avengers again and pray Prometheus is better.
Still want to see it. I would watch Charlize Theron reading a book, sitting on a chair in sweats and a t-shirt.
.
.
.
.
.
And no … I haven’t been stalking her.
Charlize made Hancock rewatchable, so I’ll most likely see this simply because of her
You’ll enjoy Young Adult then.
She does everything you just said but instead of reading a book she writes one.
It’s actually pretty good to…
After re-reading my own review and doing some reflecting… I’m dropping this down to 3 stars.
I don’t think Kristen was bad in this role, I think she was miscast… But then again there were so many more interesting characters like the dwarves and the huntsman and the evil queen, even her childhood friend William was more interesting!! ( I think they should of just said His Robin Hood lol) maybe the movie just had to be a little less Snow White and more of them.
Kristen came off a bit hesitant, not really a fierce strong warrior woman as was described in all the marketing, but she did have a good performance though.
they could have just done this movie with the Evil Queen and the Huntsman and it would have been great… better than with snow white in it.
@ Kofi
Wow! I don’t remember that being done here at Screen Rant.
I know it’s only half a star but going from 3 1/2 to 3 can be a big difference.
I was gonna see it today, but things didn’t work out that way.
And after reading Kofi’s review I gotta say, I still want to see it!
I was never expecting a 4 star movie, so it’s not really like I have high expectations, but I’m sure I won’t be disappointed with the final product either.
It’ll be really interesting to see what this does in the box-office this weekend (not that BO numbers in anyway reflects upon the quality of course… I’m just sayin’)
Sooo, go see the avengers again?
I thought it was a pretty good movie, with somewhat of a love tale thrown in there for good measures.
Kristen Stewart = not getting my money
JUST AN FYI, VIN DIESEL VOICES THE MIRROR. MIB3 WAS A BIT SLOW TO ME COMPARED TO THE LAST TWO. IT SEEMS THEY DAYDREAM A LOT EVERY END OF THE SCEEN. LOL! ITS STILL AN OKAY FILM THOUGH..
no it isn’t, it’s Christopher Obi Ogugua
I’ll watch this when it comes out on Netflix…might be mildly fun. In the meantime, did you notice that one of the dwarves in the picture above looks like a slightly younger version of Larry from the 3 Stooges?
Hahaha! Good catch, it DOES look like Larry!
“(There will also be those who crack wise about how there is no question of ‘who is fairest’ when comparing Stewart to Theron.)”
There is no comparison. Charlize Theron is one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood. Kristen Stewart looks like she’s stoned or high on something most of the time. I will probably see this film, but only after it’s out on Blu-Ray.
I think Kofi’s review is pretty much spot on. I especially liked the location scenery. Charlize was lovely as usual and pretty effective when she displayed the queen’s evil dark side. What I found interesting was similarities to parts of Game of Thrones. Black magic, a dwarf (seven to be exact), setting, and a vague incestuous relationship between Ravenna and her brother (like Jaime and Cersei Lannister) all seemed like some screenwriter had spent a lot of time watching the HBO series.
It was fun watching Bob Hoskins and Ian McShane as dwarves.
I thought the movie was pretty mediocre if not bordline bad. It was visually stunning yes, but the story was terrible and the accents from the actors were all over the place. Kristen stewart was decent she had moments were she was cringe worthy tho, and hemsworth did pretty well besides his accent fading at times. As for charlize theron i thought she was very over dramatic and she seemed to over emphisize almost every word. There was one moment in the story where i was actually pleased at the direction it was going… then it was gone. (that was the love aspect) 2/5 for me.
I go yet again to a movie i’ve been waitting to see only to come out wishing I went to see Avengers again.
{Spoilerish below}
By the way did anyone else think about Princess Mononoke during a certain scene.
Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle, Game of Thrones, LOTR, Neverending Story ( I swear to god someone yelled “Swamp of Sadness! ARTEX!!!” in the cinema), Narnia (now I was screaming “Aslan?”).
It was such a wasted potential of a movie. Good acting from Charlize and Chris but the script fails them countless times. I would have wanted to see more of the huntsman’s arc(in flashbacks). Kristen seems stuck in Bella mode for the most part and her character never really wins the audience to her side (again the fault of the writers). You get a sense that her victory is unearned.
so you guys should just go see Avengers again (which I did and loved).
I couldn’t agree more with Kofi’s review…SWATH is a good movie but every bit of the movie feels like its missing something to make it really good, or a near 4 star movie
The only think that’s wrong with this movie is that it has an underwhelming climax.Other than that,it’s pretty good.The visuals are first rate,set and creature designs are great,the costume design is very good,the story is actually a pretty decent adaptation of the source material,and Kristen Stewart is more than tolerable in this movie.
If it weren’t for the ending,I would give it four stars,but I’ll bump is back to 3.5,and a strong one at that.
Tho i agree she was very tolerable the end of the movie is what ruined it for me (not exactly the climax)
.
.
.
.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!
the fact that she said she could never stab someone and the huntsman literly taught her a very small tip of how to stab someone. Then she is leading an army at the front line?! and she gets tackled up agianst the wall and beats the crap out of a dude… no way completely stupid if your gonna stick with your story stick with it. Shoulda just kept her surrounded by the people with no fighting till she faced the queen
So basically, Charlize Theron played….herself.
I went to see it because of all your positive comments. you all convinced me its good.
….personally, I enjoyed roger eberts review more than anyones. hes no big fan of twilight yet he still enjoyed it immensely.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120530/REVIEWS/120539992
….honestly, I never get why folks trash a movie cause they dont like an actor or actress or a movie genre.
…whatever…. I found the movie really good if not gr8.
i found it epic, well acted and magical cgi set pieces & battle scenes, with patches of humor thown here and their, best of the bunch being the wiley dwarves that also had several dramatic scenes that gave the movie xtra heart.
Universal just upped its North American box office estimates for Snow White And The Huntsman to $50M-$56M for this weekend.
$95.1M Global. Insiders now expect the movie’s international cume to ultimately earn $250M-$275M all-in.
cheers & enjoy and ignore the naysayers.
totally agree, best movie ever!
If that’s the case then we will most likely NOT get a sequel to this movie. Once you factor in the cost to produce (175mil) with the ever hidden marketing costs (easily 50 million), if your estimate is correct it will then just break even. Not exactly a recipe for risking another chunk of cash.
best movie ever!! way better than hunger games
this movie is to be watched for the visuals and badassery. and since it seems to be top notch on those fronts, i’m gonna watch it.
people need to learn to judge movies for what they are supposed to be, and not what their one ‘ideal film’ is.
To long with a disjointed plot that finds itself wallowing into nothing and you falling asleep half way through it. CGI is great, costumes are awesome, story on the other hand is lacking and they straight up steal whole scenes and concepts from other more successful and imaginative movies like Pan’s Labyrinth and Legend. At one point you feel as if you are watching a Lord of the Ring’s episode. They try humor with the Dwarves but don’t quite get it to work, you never connect emotionally with any of the characters and of course the end is left open for the inevitable sequel. This movie was on the tip of your tongue and then you tasted something like the Avengers and totally forgot this one ever existed.
This movie is a huge rip-off. It stole from:
Harry Potter: the creatures
Avatar: the plants and nature
Robin Hood: the beach fight scene
Pirates of the Carribean: frigging signing scene with the dwarves
Lord of the Rings: what didn’t it steal from this series???
Twilight: The boring girl hero
Hunger Games: hallucinogenic poison
I dare you to tell me that I’m wrong…
You’re Wrong.
Considering Snow White is a tale over 200 years old one can say that the movies you mentioned stole from it.
What movies don’t have moments that are similar to something that has been done before?
Harry Potter wasn’t the 1st film with creatures.
Robin Hood wasn’t the 1st film with a beach battle.
And so on, and so on…
The scene with the white animal is taken directly from Legend with Tom Cruise. People from the industry know when they are plagiarizing another company’s work.
No, I am not saying Snow White the story, stole from these movies, I am saying that this abomination which is trying to pass itself off as a good movie stole from the others.
No, I am not saying that these other movies were the first to do these things. That would be ridiculous.
What I am saying, is that if you’re going to steal from all these incredibly great films, (or film adaptions) you might as well TRY and make the movie good. I’m not asking for a lot, just a bit of effort.
The plot had more holes in it than swiss cheese! For example, Snow White, who was locked in a tower for years come out of it speaking eloquently and, get this, knowing how to rife a horse… If you didn’t know, learning how to ride a horse correctly takes quite a bit of practice; not anyone could just do it.
The attempt at a love triangle was done quite awkwardly. On one hand, you have William, a brave archer who Snow knew in her childhood. On the other, you have Thor the Huntsman, a hunk of a man who TRIES TO SELL HER TO THE QUEEN in the start of the movie. Obvious love choice there.
And now my biggest complain of all is… There were 8 frigging dwarves!!! Sure one of them was killed, but still, that’s just uncalled for. There should have been seven to begin with!
I’m the nostalgia critic, I remember it so you don’t have to!
*Storms off angrily*
Glad you said the Robin Hood beach scene as well. I was just telling my friend this earlier today. I was really disappointed with the movie for the same reasons. Story made no sense when you go back and look at it. Especially the whole I can’t stab someone thing. Then she comes up with inspiring speech when apparently she’s been locked up in a castle for 10+ years with no one to talk to. 3 stars is about spot on for the visuals. I also couldn’t ever get into Stewart’s character.
Theron did great for what she was given to work with. Hemsworth was the lone bright spot of the movie for me.
Me and my 2 boys just came from seeing it. I see Kofi dropped his rating from 3.5 to 3; I think that’s about right. Visually, the film was great but the rest is pretty forgettable. I think I actually fell asleep at one point.
Man I was fighting sleep during the middle of this movie, it passed my mind to get up, walk out, go home and go to bed. Where areas The Avengers kept me on the edge of my seat for quite a different reason!
I thought that movie wasn’t too bad compared to Mirror Mirror. Yes, the script was not the best but compared to Mirror Mirror I thought it was a little more entertaining. Did it live up to the hype? Not at all but I would agree with the original score of 3 1/2 stars, not great but not bad