Why my favorite film resonates with me

¶ … White

Favorite Film

"Snow White and the Huntsman"

One of my favorite stories from childhood is that of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," and this story has recently been made into a full length feature film called "Snow White and the Huntsman," starring Kristin Stewart, Charlene Theron, and Chris Hemsworth. For most the story of Snow White has been characterized by the Disney movie, but I am also quite familiar with the original fairy tale published by the Grimm brothers. That is why I have been so enchanted by the newest version of this traditional Bavarian fairy tale.

"Snow White and the Huntsman" contains almost all of the elements of the original Grimm story including the death of Snow White's mother, the evil step-mother, the huntsman who refuses to kill her, the seven dwarves, a poisoned apple, and even a princely figure. For the most part the story follows the original, with a few exceptions, but those exceptions help maintain the story's continuity. For example, in the film Snow White's father finds Ravenna a prisoner of a phantom army and immediately falls in love with her; which helps to explain the quickness of his marriage.

Another is the fact that in the original it is a prince who finds a seemingly dead Snow White and when moving her dislodges the poisoned apple from her throat. In the Disney film, it is a kiss from the prince that reawakens her but in the new film the huntsman is the one who kisses her. Since the film has the son of a Duke instead of a prince, and he is a secondary character, there is no reason to have him reawaken Snow White. Instead the huntsman, who has developed a relationship with her over the course of the movie, is the one who reawakens her.

One of my favorite aspects of the story involves the seven Dwarves and in the new film they are fully represented. However, they are not the happy dwarves of the Disney film, these are based on the original story and are a group of dejected and hopeless ex-miners. However, the new dwarves do maintain a certain sense of humor which harkens back to the jolly fellows I remember from childhood and acts as a conduit between the traditional view of the dwarves and this new, darker version.