Grimmer than Grimm
The cutesy Disney cartoon this ain't. Although the BASIC story structure remains, SNOW WHITE: A TALE OF TERROR is an interpretation that is much closer in tone and mood to the original somber tale by the Brothers Grimm, and in many ways it is actually even darker. Instead of a kiddie flick, then, what director Michael Cohn and crew serve up is a top-notch gothic horror film.
In this gloomier version of the famous fable, many of the familiar elements are wryly skewed. For example, the seven men who house the heroine (here called Lilliana, or Lilli, rather than Snow White) during her sojourn in the forest are not cutsie dwarves--although one is actually dwarfish--but are instead a bunch of grubby, ruffians who earn their living working mines. At first they want to use the girl to obtain a ransom from her wealthy father, but they soon develop a sort of fatherly affection for her. Another clever twist occurs when the hero revives Lilli after she has fallen comatose from eating the...
Mirror, Mirror... Who is the Scariest of All?
This version of the classic story stars Sigourney Weaver and Sam Neill and is far from the cheery animated version you may be familiar with..
Sam Neill plays Lillian's father. After the death of his wife he marries Sigourney Weaver. Things are fine at first but the aging Weaver begins to feel jealousy towards her step-daughter. She feels she is in competition for her husband's affections. With the help of her mysterious magic mirror (a frightening piece of furniture if I ever saw one) she begins making plans to be number one.
But as Weaver makes her plans she also begins to sink into deeper and deeper madness as she eliminates the servants, her step-daughter and even her brother. But Lillian manages to survive and meets a band of outlaw miner's hoping to find a rich strike. She manages to win their hearts in time and eventually returns to challenge her step-mother.
This is a very dark telling of the Snow White story. It is more tragic than many tellings in that the...
A visual masterpiece
This film is easily one of my top ten favorites. The whole movie is amazing, with brilliant cinematography, beautiful lighting, and breath-taking scenery and use of color. The costuming is excellent. The film follows the Grimms' Snow White fairytale, but the story is told from a much more sinister point of view. This film pulls no punches and has a very dark, gothic atmosphere. Not a cute little Disney fairy tale. Some really good acting from Sigourney Weaver, and Monica Keena makes an excellent Snow White. (She is absolutely gorgeous! ) Lots of scenes shot on location in Czech forests, castles, churches, etc. Takes place during the late Middle Ages. A very exciting film with superb visuals and a very chilling atmosphere. Don't miss it!
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