SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN is a beautiful gothic visual fantasy.   Ravenna and the huntsman are the two most developed characters in the film.  You feel the most for the tragic turns each of their lives took while William (the boy that was separated from Snow White) and Snow White are less fleshed out.  William and Snow White feel more like distant untouchable characters- you never quite feel connected to either of them.  Meanwhile, I cared more for the hate Ravenna feels for men as her heart was turned cold by the men who took advantage of her as she destroys all men and becomes obsessed with staying beautiful (and in fear of the fairest blood will break the spell).   Also the mirror she talks to could be just a delusion- a madness brought on by her cold heart.   A scene hints that she is the only one who can see the figure that comes from the golden mirror.   She is also given an evil and faithful brother whose past is interweaved with the story of the other characters.    The brother is one of the bad guys you love to hate. 

SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN is more interested in the visuals, the battles, and the tragic things that happen to people than developing Snow White into a heroine you can love.  She is more of a symbol than a person- someone so remote that you can hardly are given someone to care for.   The writers and the director should have developed Snow White more into a person you can care for instead of a character who has bad things happen to her and bad things happen around her.  She is a symbol that people look to for hope to bring light to destroy the darkness of Ravenna’s empire.

The film begins with Snow White being born and giving a quick tale of how she lost her mother and then her father (who was murdered after marrying Ravenna).    The film switches to years later with Snow as a prisoner and she escapes with the first chance she is given.  She wanders into the Dark Forest and soon Ravenna hires the Huntsman (with the promise of bringing his dead wife back to life- a MacGuffian that lasts less than 15 minutes and it leads to a rather unexciting journey to the Duke’s castle except the usual being chased by the bad guys bits).  Snow is supposed to be pure of heart only to have a character who feels like a cold fish and Ravenna has more emotion than Snow in this entire movie.   One reviewer of this movie noted they should have made the movie more about Ravenna and I agree since this film’s Snow White tends to be a little boring at times.  They even don’t give the seven dwarves a lot of screen time- they sometimes feel like an afterthought in this jumbled tale.   It is a toss up on whether you should go see this movie in theaters or wait for Blu-ray (or DVD).   It is a mixed bag they should have written a better story or shifted the focus more to the more interested character of Ravenna.

This movie review is (c)6-3-2012 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com