"Snow White And The Huntsman" : The Evil Queen Saves The Day

Here we have yet another adaptation of the classic fairytale. The film, directed by Rupert Sanders, includes all the expected characters as in the original story. We have our princess, the evil queen, a huntsman (of course), dwarfs, and the occasional monster. The fact that all the cliches are here is not the problem, one goes into a film like this with some preconceptions of what it is about to be shown. However, the point of a "reinvention" is in fact to bring something new to the classic, to create a new and interesting approach using the limitations of such story. At this, the film fails miserably.

 Probably a summary of the plot is unnecessary here but I will make as short as possible. In a medieval kingdom there was once a great king and queen. They had a beautiful daughter (Snow White), then the queen dies. When the kingdom is under siege a mysterious woman (Charlize Theron)  appears, she kills the king and takes over the land. She locks up the princess for years, when she finally gets the chance, she escapes. She embarks into journey to find the soldiers and allies her father once had, along the way she encounters an array of characters. In the midst of this, Snow White (Kristen Stewart) kind of falls for the huntsman (Chris Hemsworth)  that originally wanted to kill her. Then they save the kingdom. The End. Sounded boring, generic and like something you have seen before? Well it is.

 Over 2 hours long, the film attempts to survive relying on the star power of Stewart (thanks to her "Twilight" role) and Hemsworth (the beloved Thor), but this two are not big enough to carry the kingdom on their shoulders. Stewart acting is very similar to... well, anything she has ever done. She is inexpressive and never really seems to present herself as likable, charming or human. Everyone else in the cast is efficient at performing roles that really don't add much to the story, except for giving some repetitive obstacles to the heroine. On the bright side, and this is what saves the film, in my opinion, from a worse grade, Charlize Theron really pulls it off as Queen Ravenna.

Her character is the most engaging part of this film. She has a back story full of sadness, and a reason to be this evil: a curse that marked her destiny. In a way she is the rags to riches underdog. Theron really takes the character to another level. A mix of maniacal and desperate behavior trying to save herself from the real evil in the film: the lack of BEAUTY. This performance really makes you sort of rule for her, wishing that the film was actually more about her story. Her entire persona, from the very detailed dresses and crowns she wears to her extravagant baths, help the film not sink into the dark forest.

The production of the film is proficient, as would be expected in a project with a gigantic budget, even in that regard, there are some incongruousness. The CGI is at best weird,some of the creatures and animals seem too cartoon-like and don't really blend well with the live action elements of the film. There is also a couple of weird jokes in there that never seem to find their right tone. The action sequences are limited,and there is this pseudo-Lord of The Rings vibe that never even gets close to the real deal. If you still want to see this, maybe at least for Charlize Theron, the film is now out in Blu-ray/DVD. Grade C- (Ms. Theron save it from a "D")