Snow White and the Huntsman

[forgeforsaken]

Trailer looks good?

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/universal/snowwhiteandthehuntsman/

[Eilonwy]

I don't understand how Jason Mewes is supposed to be the fairest of them all.

[alexlitel]

How does this get greenlighted? I guess they didn't learn from that dreadful reinterpretation of Red Riding Hood.

[Kelly Wand]

Three Little Pigs would be an easy one to profitably CG feminize because the love triangle's right there in the title.

[Hugin]

How does this get greenlighted? I guess they didn't learn from that dreadful reinterpretation of Red Riding Hood.

You know, it's possible for two different movies to have superficial similarities yet be of vastly different quality.

[Woolen Horde]

How does this get greenlighted? I guess they didn't learn from that dreadful reinterpretation of Red Riding Hood.

You know what's crazier, though typical Hollywood? This is one of two Snow White movies we're getting.

Lilly Collins, spawn of Phil, is Snow White in Mirror, Mirror. This one has Julia Roberts as the evil queen and the Winklvii dude as the prince. Also, directed by Tarsem Singh. Go figure.

http://cdn.buzznet.com/media-cdn/jj1/headlines/2011/07/lily-collins-snow-white-first-look.jpg

[Rightbug]

I may be in the minority but I really like Chris Hemsworth.

[Lazy Shiftless Bastard]

I like Chris Hemsworth as long as he has a beard. Like Samson's hair, all his charisma is in his beard.

The trailer looked really cool as far as I'm concerned, except for one thing. Kristin Stewart is definately pretty (even though she totally looks like Jason Mewes), but I don't think she's a match for Charlize Theron. Like in both acting and hotness Stewart pales in comparison to Theron.

[Telefrog]

The trailer looked really cool as far as I'm concerned, except for one thing. Kristin Stewart is definately pretty (even though she totally looks like Jason Mewes), but I don't think she's a match for Charlize Theron. Like in both acting and hotness Stewart pales in comparison to Theron.

Agreed.

Also, why does the soundtrack sound like Tron?

[HarryEquador]

Where are the dwarves? I didn't see one yet alone seven.

Dissapointed. :(

[RyanMichael]

I don't understand how Jason Mewes is supposed to be the fairest of them all.

I lol'd so hard.

[Kaigen]

Where are the dwarves? I didn't see one yet alone seven.

Dissapointed. :(

Actually, the dwarves are going to be the real reason to see the movie. They gathered an almost impossibly awesome ensemble of actors to play the dwarves: Ian McShane, Ray Winstone, Bob Hoskins, Toby Jones, Nick Frost and Eddie Marsan being the major highlights.

[Relayer71]

Where are the dwarves? I didn't see one yet alone seven.

Dissapointed. :(

Look again, they're in two shots in the trailer, just very short (the shots, hee, hee).

[spiffy]

Yeah, I dunno. The imagery is cool enough for an action fantasy but this might as well be a generic swords n scorcery flick than a Snow White interpretation. The images on IMDB of "Mirror Mirror" evoke a much more quirky and interesting feel and might actual complement the source material rather than bastardize it. Also, twilight girl is a laugh for the role.

[Aszurom]

I think this is still the best Snow White interpretation...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIBeYoP9Wi0

[Jora]

Speaking of reimagined fairy tales, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters is in the works. Directed by the guy who did the Norwegian Evil Dead homage Dead Snow:

"15 years after their traumatic gingerbread-house incident, siblings Hansel and Gretel have become a formidable team of bounty hunters who track and kill witches all over the world."

Stars:Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton and Peter Stormare

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1428538/

[Dufresne]

Stars:Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton and Peter Stormare

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1428538/

And Famke Janssen! Not mentioning her makes me angry at you.

[SpoofyChop]

Well I spent the last 12 years hating Natalie Portman only to realize that I had subconsciously directed all my anger over George Lucas' descration of Star Wars on her.

I've finally come to recognize that although Natalie Portman was, like everybody, horrible in the Star Wars prequels, that it's not fair to blame her for them.

Unfortunately I have almost the same reaction to Kristen Stewart. She's reasonably attractive and she may even be a good actress but I can't see her as anything other than the stupid heroine of the execrable Twilight mess.

Also: she's not even close to being as talented as Charlize Theron and also not even close to being as attractive. So the mirror on the wall is going to have to go the the shop to get a new motherboard because if it thinks that Charlize is going to be better looking by inhaling Kristen Stewart then there has to be something wrong with it.

Interesting concept but I don't think I'll be watching it.

[nordhus]

Why does Snow White have the white three of Gondor on her shield?



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/nordhus/Whitethree.jpg

[jeansberg]

Why does Snow White have a shield?

[gmonkey]

Why is Snow White not particularly attractive?

[Rory Stewart]

The images on IMDB of "Mirror Mirror" evoke a much more quirky and interesting feel and might actual complement the source material rather than bastardize it. Also, twilight girl is a laugh for the role.

You forgot that Tarsem Singh is a terrible motion picture director though. Also the "source" material is various different versions of a story told over hundreds of years. One can tell it badly but it's pretty far beyond the purity of the first telling.

Huntsman is Rupert Sanders' first feature but at least the few commercials he's directed were okay.

Kristen Stewart isn't great. I like Charlize Theron though.

[Hryme]

I don't think Kirsten Stewart is that terrible an actress. Even Meryl Steep would have been bad if she played in the Twilight movies so it is a bit unfair to hold her performance in those movies against Stewart. I thought she was decent in The Runaways.

Though I agree that Charlize Theron has a more striking appearance.

Edit: Oh and I thought the trailer looked good. Going to go watch this movie. Mindless fantasy fun.

[Dave Markell]

Without Kristen Stewart, I'd be in line for this on release day. With her? May not see it at all. Notice how she doesn't say a word in the trailer? The Mirror, Charlize Theron's Witch, and Chris Hemsworth all get lines. She's just...there, which perfectly summarizes her acting abilities.

(Note: the above opinion of her acting abilities is based on seeing Adventureland and nothing else. I've never watched the Twilight films, and won't)

[Telefrog]

I don't think Stewart is terrible, but I've never been especially impressed with her either. I just find the idea of her being more beautiful than Theron to be pretty laughable.

[Destarius]

I don't think Stewart is terrible, but I've never been especially impressed with her either. I just find the idea of her being more beautiful than Theron to be pretty laughable.

Pretty much this.

"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?"

"There's this girl called Sno- no, you're still the fairest by far, my Queen."

Roll credits.

[Scuzz]

We can all thank Gregory Maguire and the success of Wicked for all these movies. He also has a book "Mirror Mirror" which I am guessing was the original story for that movie. It looks to be more of a comedy that the "Huntsman" version. So it could be comedy vs drama Snow Whites.

[Srethron]

Why is Lara Croft an extra on the Game of Thrones set?

[Kemper Boyd]

We can all thank Gregory Maguire and the success of Wicked for all these movies. He also has a book "Mirror Mirror" which I am guessing was the original story for that movie. It looks to be more of a comedy that the "Huntsman" version. So it could be comedy vs drama Snow Whites.
Personally, I think we can more rightfully thank the person who adapted his book to the stage. Maguire's books are anyhting but approachable and opinions are pretty evenly spread over at Amazon. I mostly liked the books and have read most of them, but they are not exactly mainstream. People (including my family and myself) love that musical, though!

[Scuzz]

Personally, I think we can more rightfully thank the person who adapted his book to the stage. Maguire's books are anyhting but approachable and opinions are pretty evenly spread over at Amazon. I mostly liked the books and have read most of them, but they are not exactly mainstream. People (including my family and myself) love that musical, though!

They sure fed on each other though. I have seen very young kids buying Maguire's Wicked books, no doubt because of the influence of the musical. But from my understanding the books are anything but kids books. I have seen the musical three times though. :)

[Joe O'Malley]

Hmm. All this talk of Wicked makes me wonder...Wicked, the musical movie! Woo!

[lordkosc]

Isn't there another snow white movie coming out this month? With Julia Roberts?

Why do studios release 2 movies using the same story , almost every year.

[marxeil]

Isn't there another snow white movie coming out this month? With Julia Roberts?

Why do studios release 2 movies using the same story , almost every year.

To make more confusion possible.

[CLWheeljack]

Isn't there another snow white movie coming out this month? With Julia Roberts?

Why do studios release 2 movies using the same story , almost every year.

Admittedly, these movies could not be more different, unless they chose to make one watchable.

[Hugin]

New extended trailer, Kristin Stewart actually talks in this one a bit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4lzNwUieuw

[Razgon]

wow - I actually like how this looks. Looking forward to it! It kinda looks like the Narnia movies on acid for adults and thats something Ive always wanted to see.

[Rightbug]

wow - I actually like how this looks. Looking forward to it! It kinda looks like the Narnia movies on acid for adults and thats something Ive always wanted to see.

Yeah, I was looking forward to this based on the first trailer and this one just makes me want to see it more.

[Clay]

I guess if they called it Snow White and the Seven Dwarves there would have been too many people who took their 5 year olds to see it without reading about it first.

[Sarkus]

Biggest opening of the weekend - $56m, bigger then MIB3 last weekend (which dropped to #2).

[Djscman]

Saw it, it was all right. Many callbacks, intentional or not, to other fantasy movies. The Black Riders chase Arwen, whose white horse turns into Artax dying in the Swamps of Sadness. Then at another point, after hiding in the lake village from Black Death, the dwarfs take the protagonists to meet Princess Mononoke.

It was better than Willow or Prince Caspian, not as good as Stardust or Return of the King. I cannot compare it to Mirror, Mirror.

And someone did take their five year old to see it. I don't think she lasted very long.

[corsair]

A properly bleak and grim version of the tale. Though, of course, as in virtually any rendition of the tale, the Queen is way hotter than Snow White. I suppose fairest does basically mean "palest" and not "prettiest".

Overall a thumbs up - beautiful cinematography and art direction. Theron sells the movie more than Hemsworth (respectable in his part), and Stewart pales in comparison (though I suppose that's in character). If I have a main criticism, it's that the movie lingers over scenery too much and I felt it needed to move the story on a bit quicker. But still, I loved the Dark Forest. Hoskins and McShane as dwarfs (as opposed to dwarves) were pretty cool.

[RedTide]

I liked it, but didn't love it. Cinematography was great, plot was grim, acting was solid, but it just seemed like the movie was not as good as its parts. It definitely took a little too long through the middle, and they could have shaved off some time. I didn't see a whole lot of cause for character development. The Huntsmen was suddenly noble, Snow White was suddenly a leader. I just did not quite buy the change.

But, with all that said I still definitely enjoyed it. Some really cool shots, I liked the image of Theron, covered in mud, crawling across the floor after she returns from the mountains and the dark forest was fantastic.

[corsair]

I liked it, but didn't love it. Cinematography was great, plot was grim, acting was solid, but it just seemed like the movie was not as good as its parts. It definitely took a little too long through the middle, and they could have shaved off some time. I didn't see a whole lot of cause for character development. The Huntsmen was suddenly noble, Snow White was suddenly a leader. I just did not quite buy the change.

But, with all that said I still definitely enjoyed it. Some really cool shots, I liked the image of Theron, covered in mud, crawling across the floor after she returns from the mountains and the dark forest was fantastic.

I concur with this on the whole, though I think the Huntsman was more bitter and depressed and his natural character rose back up rather than he was suddenly noble. Snow White - well, they just have to kludge a proactive character onto princesses these days.

[Tom Chick]

Overall, I loved this. Stellar visuals, with vivid cinematography and a unique production design. A mostly great cast, especially Charlize Theron and the dwarves. Heck, I didn't even know the dwarves were going to be in this, so what a wonderful surprise. I even liked Kristen Stewart through most of the movie. Even some decent stuff from Chris Pine, or whatever his name is. You know, Thor. I think he was trying to hide his Australian accent by attempting a Scottish accent. Pretty sneaky.

I really liked how it took all the Disney tropes and ran them through a Peter Jackson no-manicures-allowed filter. It all starts to unravel in the final third, partly because of Kristen Stewart. I don't think I've ever heard a less inspiring inspirational speech. But as far as fantasy movies go, this is as good as it gets without transcending the genre, like Lord of the Rings.

-Tom

[JD]

I too liked. Like Tom, I was suprised to actually see dwarves in there. And what a cast! Ian McShane, Eddie Marsan, Ray Winstone, Toby Jones, Nick Frost...

Still a bit puzzled as to why the William character had to be in there. It seems like you could cut him from them movie and you really wouldn't miss him at all. I'm really glad though that the script didn't erupt into a full-blown love with Snow White, Edw^H^H^H the Huntsman, and William.

[Tom Chick]

Still a bit puzzled as to why the William character had to be in there. It seems like you could cut him from them movie and you really wouldn't miss him at all. I'm really glad though that the script didn't erupt into a full-blown love with Snow White, Edw^H^H^H the Huntsman, and William.

I'm glad you mention this, because I wondered the same thing. But the answer should be obvious to guys like us! Every party needs a tank, a healer, and a DPS. Obviously Chris Pine is the tank, Snow White is the healer, and William was the DPS. I mean, duh.

BTW, I loved the troll scene. Snow White totally mezzed that troll!

But, yeah, it was a bit weird that poor William doesn't get the girl in the end, and he's hardly even in the running. I guess he did get a brief posthumous kiss. Is he the prince? Psyche! Sorry, William. Snow White and Chris Pine exchange their knowing looks during the coronation at the end and you can pretty much figure how that's going to go. I guess William is left to hang out with the surviving dwarfs so they can all nurse their unrequited crushes.

-Tom

"Do you need an archer?"

[Soma]

I don't think I've ever heard a less inspiring inspirational speech.

I see your Kristen Steward and raise you Keira Knightley in Pirates 3 rallying troops speech.

In terms of fairness, it is a proper fight only with Charlize Theron vs. Keira Knightley. Instead with Kristen Steward, Charlize Theron wins hands down.

[MrMach7]

i saw this for free and still feel like i paid too much

did anyone actually find one redeeming thing within this huge studio fart

[RedTide]

i saw this for free and still feel like i paid too much

did anyone actually find one redeeming thing within this huge studio fart

Well, considering the last 9 comments are talking about things people liked from it, I would say that people did find redeeming qualities from the movie.


As for William, it definitely felt like a love triangle was being set up, but then the director realized they just didn't have time to squeeze it in. I'll definitely take the incomplete triangle over one shoe-horned into the movie.

At least William had that cool scene when he took out the Queen's archer (though they somehow get another one after attacking the fishing village?).

[corsair]

I see your Kristen Steward and raise you Keira Knightley in Pirates 3 rallying troops speech.

Kristen isn't a Keira, in looks or in acting ability, though I suppose they are both skinny...

[Giaddon]

I really dug this. The key decision (that made the film work for me), was to make Ravenna sympathetic/human and Snow White (I love that they never said her name after the first 20 minutes) a cypher. They handled her death/rebirth really well, too -- I felt that "reborn" Snow White was a very different character, that basically she went from scared girl -> avatar of purity (and lost her humanity). She has almost no dialogue which is perfect (not a ding on Stewart, it just fit the character).

[corsair]

I really dug this. The key decision (that made the film work for me), was to make Ravenna sympathetic/human and Snow White (I love that they never said her name after the first 20 minutes) a cypher. They handled her death/rebirth really well, too -- I felt that "reborn" Snow White was a very different character, that basically she went from scared girl -> avatar of purity (and lost her humanity). She has almost no dialogue which is perfect (not a ding on Stewart, it just fit the character).

The queen was given depth of character, which is what I really liked about the film. She wasn't just a cardboard badass villainess. It gave something for Theron to work with and to understand the motivations of the character (though not to forgive her actions).

As to Snow White, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. German fairy tale, German philosopher - works for me. ;-)

[Nesrie]

i saw this for free and still feel like i paid too much

did anyone actually find one redeeming thing within this huge studio fart

It was an awful movie. Great visuals, good music, acting was... meh, the script and the fact people seem to run for an hour in an circle while action is taking place just to show up a hundred yards later... Pacing was all over the place. The concept of time a real challenge. There were a lot things done for convenience sake with no plausibility. it was so ridiculous.

[Hal9000]

The dialog nearly killed me, but Charlize Theron brought me back from the brink. Ok, I realize that it appeals to a lot of people, but it wasn't my cup o' tea.

I went and saw it with a girl and we both had to stifle laughs. Stewart wasn't that fair, with her underslung horse jaw and lack of any sort of charisma. I kept wanting Jennifer Lawrence to show up, slap Stewart, and declare, "She's an impostor, don't worry."

The visuals really irritated me a few times, especially the overhead shots of the forest, and panning up to look at the landmass, toward the ocean. Also, did the Duke's castle change locations? I wasn't sure, but it seemed like it did. I bet I'm wrong on that. I also thought I saw an archaeological dig site from Prometheus.

The action shots and the wee little armies were also lackluster, and I got tired of them panning back to show me more of what I wasn't interested in. Speaking of which, what the crap was with the focus on Stewart a few times, with her looking uncomfortable and saying nothing? It was very wajah for me.

I liked the dwarves. Theron was good. William seemed entirely superfluous, and I had an uncomfortable moment where my mind wandered off track and suddenly I thought I was seeing a vaguely incestuous scene, before going, "Duke! That's right."

I think the movie could have benefited from use of the William Tell Overture.

[Enidigm]

Kristen Stewart is the unnamed love interest from an 80's music video pulled out of the archives and made into a real person. Her existence once consisted of standing around bemusedly ignoring the lead singer of said 80s band or walking away from said lead singer down the sidewalk while he caroons after her; and now they expect her to act.

[Destarius]

Charlize is the only reason why this show didn't tank. I thought she really gave the Queen depth, which was amazing especially given how little she actually had to work with.

The William character was really meaningless. As in you could have deleted him and nothing at all would have changed. He was as two-dimensional as characters go. There is a scene where if William had never existed and the Huntsman was used, it would have worked on so many more levels.

Also, the DPS, tank, healer comparison made me LOL.

[MrMach7]

Well, considering the last 9 comments are talking about things people liked from it, I would say that people did find redeeming qualities from the movie.
what i meant was that i can't believe people managed to find anything redeeming about snow white. it's trite, inconsistent, poorly written, poorly cast, and a giant blowjob for moviegoers easily distracted by pepsi commercial cgi

It was an awful movie. Great visuals, good music, acting was... meh, the script and the fact people seem to run for an hour in an circle while action is taking place just to show up a hundred yards later... Pacing was all over the place. The concept of time a real challenge. There were a lot things done for convenience sake with no plausibility. it was so ridiculous.
at least i don't feel crazy anymore. i completely agree that the story was all over the map; characters would pop in and out just to remind the audience they hadn't died or walked off set, and the dwarves felt entirely shoehorned in with a few familiar faces to trick audiences into forgetting that they served no purpose aside from a catch-all for recognition (which falls flat for anyone unfamiliar with that part of the cast)

this movie went from boring, to dull, and painful in the first five minutes. a girl who's been locked away for her entire life outruns and outwits every guard in the city? i'll have whatever tom was smoking, i guess

The action shots and the wee little armies were also lackluster, and I got tired of them panning back to show me more of what I wasn't interested in. Speaking of which, what the crap was with the focus on Stewart a few times, with her looking uncomfortable and saying nothing? It was very wajah for me.

I liked the dwarves. Theron was good. William seemed entirely superfluous, and I had an uncomfortable moment where my mind wandered off track and suddenly I thought I was seeing a vaguely incestuous scene, before going, "Duke! That's right."
they really milked that shot of her riding on the beach towards the castle, huh?

i still don't understand what was charming about the dwarves. maybe someone can explain to me what their personalities were, or what purpose they served except to have 8 more characters blatantly tell the audience what kristen stewart and the script couldn't convey. i didn't even care when gus died, because i was never given a reason to give a shit about him or any other dwarf. his funeral scene, however, was about where i walked out of the theater since i don't think i can take a hobbit trailer rip-off trying to elbow its way into an already-too-long movie


quick question did anyone else laugh out loud when the magic deer was killed? an henchman has the aim to hit it in the heart but not mark snow white or anyone around her who might help? at least he killed the mood

[Hal9000]

they really milked that shot of her riding on the beach towards the castle, huh?

i still don't understand what was charming about the dwarves. maybe someone can explain to me what their personalities were, or what purpose they served except to have 8 more characters blatantly tell the audience what kristen stewart and the script couldn't convey. i didn't even care when gus died, because i was never given a reason to give a shit about him or any other dwarf. his funeral scene, however, was about where i walked out of the theater since i don't think i can take a hobbit trailer rip-off trying to elbow its way into an already-too-long movie


quick question did anyone else laugh out loud when the magic deer was killed? an henchman has the aim to hit it in the heart but not mark snow white or anyone around her who might help? at least he killed the mood

The beach scene was particularly painful. I guess we already mentioned the horribly awkward ending, the Arwen horse scene lifted from the Fellowship of the Ring, the Spirit of the Forest scene from Princess Mononoke, and the fact that any time a military unit of any size moves anywhere, it does so at a full gallop--whee!

Oh, and the king's army was apparently completely lacking lances for their horsemen whose primary method of attack was to gallop up to their enemy and jump off their horses. : P

My partner leaned over during the white stag scene and whispered, "WHAT?" and started giggling. Afterward she said she couldn't even believe the hilarious deer.

Oh, and HOBBIT! YES! YES! I forgot about that. They even had the singing scene, just pathetically bad and uninspiring. The dwarves were a comic relief for me, but not in the intended way--they were just so silly, but I think the movie might have been treating them seriously. I couldn't tell if it was self-aware or not.

More power to the people that managed to enjoy it.

[Incendiary Lemon]

Loved it. Wow... really first rate.

[MrMach7]

More power to the people that managed to enjoy it.
they managed to do far more than you or i ever could

[Telefrog]

Arise for wacky gossip (http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/07/charlize-theron-furious-kristen-stewart-cheating-married-director-snow-white)!



Charlize Theron has blown a gasket over Kristen Stewart’s scandalous affair with married movie director Rupert Sanders...

Stewart issued a public apology to boyfriend Robert Pattinson on Wednesday where she called the illicit affair a "momentary indiscretion."

"I'm deeply sorry for the hurt and embarrassment I've caused to those close to me and everyone this has affected. This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob. I love him, I love him, I'm so sorry," Stewart said in a statement.

[malkav11]

Saw this in a second run theater today. I'm not sure what to think about it, honestly. It felt like they had some good ideas and some good scenes and couldn't quite bring them together into a coherent, functional whole. There were some interesting hints of depth to Ravenna and her brother, but for every bit of that, there was a scene of Theron chewing some major scenery and acting like a raving lunatic. Stewart was pretty inert. The dwarfs kind of oscillated between amusing and overplayed, but it was pretty awesome that they got so many excellent actors into those parts. I dunno. It could have been a lot more interesting than it wound up being.

[Razgon]

Just saw this with my teenage daugthers, and we all loved it. Charlize Theron is simply brilliant in this movie, and as someone mentioned earlier, its VERY cool how her character is handled. How do you make someone that evil semi likable? Good job!

Thor did a great action hero job as well, but as many others have noted William wasn't very important. I feel something has been left out about him, that perhaps we'll see in a sequel?

Anyways - I know I'm easy to please but if it wasn't for all the hate of Stewart and the "Its cool to dislike Twilight" vibe I get from various people (Not just here) I think the movie would have fared better with someone else in the lead. She did passable, but she's no Theron, thats for sure.

OH - before I forget...I'd have loved a slightly bigger army the next time. Its hard to take serious when the entire kingdom rides out to war in the beginning with around 30 guys :-D

Edit: The movie was kinda spooky as well, in all the right places, something for which I'm a sucker. The Queens magic was pretty cool and rather dark.

[unbongwah]

Saw it, liked it, didn't love it.

Good stuff: looks great (alternating beauty and horror in equal measure), moves at a good clip, Charlize made a fantastic Queen (sexy, evil, and sympathetic all at once is quite a hat trick), Chris "The Other Chris Not-Pine" Hemsworth does a solid job filling the Bioware trope (haunted warrior with dead wife), whoever cast Ian McShane and Nick Frost as dwarves is an effin' genius

Bad stuff: Kristen Stewart is a blank stare under a mat of brown hair, William is largely superfluous, the third act feels forced & rushed (as is often the case in this sort of fantasy film)

Even though I've never seen or read any Twilight, I can't help thinking of Snow as the anti-Bella: rather than passively sitting back and waiting for shit to happen (and bitching about how haaaard her life is), she escapes on her own, makes her way to her father's loyalists, convinces the dwarves & knights to help her (albeit with the least convincing motivational speeches ever), and launches the assault on the Queen's fortress (not sure how Snow learned to ride & fight locked up in the tower for a decade, but minor details). Also the potential love triangle is a total fake-out: this film isn't about finding true love for Snow (even if "love's first kiss" saves her life), it's about taking her own back - romance can take a backseat.

Basically, if I was a 15-year-old goth chick, I think I would've adored this film. As it is, I think I'll just settle for adoring Charlize Theron (again).

[Razgon]

Saw it, liked it, didn't love it.

Even though I've never seen or read any Twilight, I can't help thinking of Snow as the anti-Bella: rather than passively sitting back and waiting for shit to happen (and bitching about how haaaard her life is), she escapes on her own, makes her way to her father's loyalists,


It was the fairies, wasn't it, that helped her escape? Those that eh..lived inside the birds and also placed the horse?

A friend of mine saw the movie and was mad about the Deus Ex Machina that the horse was, but I'm pretty sure its the same force that placed the birds there that placed the horse - The reindeer god or whatever it was.

[unbongwah]

It was the fairies, wasn't it, that helped her escape? Those that eh..lived inside the birds and also placed the horse?
No, AFAICT, the horse was just...there. Loitering. All like, "Yo - you need ride?"

Seemed a bit awkward for Snow. But hey, maybe you were right and it was the forest spirit's doing.

Anyway, my point was: Kristen Stewart didn't make a particularly compelling Snow, but I like that she actually does shit, rather than sitting back and waiting for a rescue that never comes.

[Nesrie]

No, AFAICT, the horse was just...there. Loitering. All like, "Yo - you need ride?"

Seemed a bit awkward for Snow. But hey, maybe you were right and it was the forest spirit's doing.

Anyway, my point was: Kristen Stewart didn't make a particularly compelling Snow, but I like that she actually does shit, rather than sitting back and waiting for a rescue that never comes.

It's perfectly natural to have a white horse on a beach waiting there all tame and ready for some random person to bareback ride it across the beach, nothing at all strange happening there at all.

[Razgon]

Yeah, I must admit that the faiery explanation is the only one that really makes sense. The thing you have to remember is that it IS a fairy tale story, with magic in abundance, so whether one finds it a Deus Ex Machina or not, magic is a huge part of whats going on.

Hell, the nail she finds to stab the brother with was shown to her by a bird, which I'm pretty sure was also ridden a faery.

[Nesrie]

Yeah, I must admit that the faiery explanation is the only one that really makes sense. The thing you have to remember is that it IS a fairy tale story, with magic in abundance, so whether one finds it a Deus Ex Machina or not, magic is a huge part of whats going on.

Hell, the nail she finds to stab the brother with was shown to her by a bird, which I'm pretty sure was also ridden a faery.

I love fantasy and sci-fi. What I think Huntsman failed to do was sell the fantasy. You have to make your audience want to believe. There was something just... well that's convenient about the whole thing... i mean growing up in a tower like that, she sure seemed pretty fit, and suddenly able to ride bareback, forget the issues with the horse being there. I could be wrong because i will not be watching the movie again, but I think she has reins and saddles throughout the rest of the movie.

[Kaigen]

I think the movie worked better for people who don't normally buy into fantasy films. My girlfriend, for example, has never seen Star Wars and hated The Lord of the Rings movies (yes, this is a person that I am in a relationship with - sometimes I wonder how we've made it work for almost two years), but really enjoyed Snow White and the Huntsman. Her issue with the the LotR movies was the mythology, which she felt just bogged down the movie to the point that she just didn't enjoy it. She enjoyed the simple fantasy of Snow White and the Huntsman. "There's magic!" was pretty much the only explanation she needed. She didn't need to know and had no interest in knowing the history or the culture of the universe that the movie presented.

[CSL]

This movie would have been so much better without that blank canvas as Snow White. Anyone other than Kristen Stewart would have been better.

[Tom Chick]

This movie would have been so much better without that blank canvas as Snow White.

Maybe that was the point. Hmmm? Did you ever think of that?

That was my thinking for about 85% of the movie. Sort of "hey, she's pretty good as a girl who hasn't had much real-world interaction with people". Then she has to deliver a rousing speech to the troops and I had to sort of, well, reevaluate my thinking.

-Tom, Snow White and the Huntsman apologist

[Nesrie]

Maybe that was the point. Hmmm? Did you ever think of that?

That was my thinking for about 85% of the movie. Sort of "hey, she's pretty good as a girl who hasn't had much real-world interaction with people". Then she has to deliver a rousing speech to the troops and I had to sort of, well, reevaluate my thinking.

-Tom, Snow White and the Huntsman apologist

One of the weakest speeches I recall from a movie. I am pretty sure a chipmunk, any of the six, could have done a better job.