Once upon a time in a land called Hollywood, two Snow White movies were released in the same year...but who came out the fairest of them all? The answer, is that it was not the one with the Huntsman.
Kristen Stewart stars as the princess with 'skin as white as snow' in Snow White and the Huntsman, but the real star of the film comes in the form of the deliciously evil queen played impeccably by Charlize Theron.
From the producers of last year's visually stunning Alice in Wonderland, the early promotional spots for Snow White looked fierce and intense. However, the epic battle sequences that were on full display in the trailers was unfortunately not what was packed in the 127 minutes seen on the big screen. Instead, what was seen was a darker take on a familiar tale with unbearably slow pacing. The first half hour of the movie was spent setting up the plot, and a drawn out segment halfway through the movie with the seven dwarves was unnecessary and slow.
Other than Charlize Theron, the cast of the film was rather muddled as well. Kristen Stewart is up to her same, dull Bella Swan acting tricks, showing little to no emotion as she struggled her way through playing the role of a strong heroine. Chris Hemsworth, who plays the Huntsman, delivers a performance that simply feels like a rehash of Thor only with darker hair and a dirtier face. His odd accent amidst a cast of British accents also did not help. British rising star Sam Claflin portrays Prince William, who while talented, was left with barely anything to do. The Seven Dwarves were also nothing special, and it felt like they were only thrown into the mix to stay true to the source material.
What would have been an action-packed and grittier take on the Snow White story failing to meet expectations. As a result, the final product was just a glossy piece of eye candy, with little to no substance to give the film a sustainable presence.
In a summer packed with big blockbuster action flicks, Snow White and the Huntsman was unfortunately not one of them, and as I predicted back in March after watching Mirror Mirror, the Lily Collins starring fairytale flick was much more enjoyable than this adaptation.
6/10
by Kyle
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Twitter: @kylefong
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