Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Live-Action)

[James]

if they never saw it before they hated it, then I'm not sure how compelling their case is.

And if they hate it now, then I just hope it's for the right reasons, meaning due to the film itself and not outside controversy.

I don't think there's any question that "haters", from Dinklage saying it was "backward" to cast small people as dwarves to people mocking the reveal of the "magical creatures" replacing the dwarves to "avoid reinforcing stereotypes", have made an impact on the story from almost the outset. In these two cases specifically, Disney actually responded to the criticism. So a lot of this is not just people blindly reacting. Whether those changes were for the better we'll have to wait and see.

Once the film is actually released, we'll see how many more changes may have been made. I'm curious if Zegler's suggestion that in this version Snow White's real wish isn't a "sexist' traditional romance plot" with a "stalker" but instead "becoming the leader she knows she can be" is there or was scrapped or toned down.

[Randall]

It doesn't sound like you're really talking about plot, though, only appearances at best. I'm not convinced many changes were made to the actual story, and certainly not because of Dinklage's bizarre and uninformed comments. Perhaps there were story changes during production (as is often the case in these big tentpole releases), but it seems like a lot of assumptions have been made, perhaps by those crowing about how "they" supposedly forced Disney to make changes. Didn't we still end up with CGI dwarfs in the end anyway, regardless of what we're calling them (more like Hobbits, perhaps, but really still dwarfs)? I certainly wouldn't say that was at all a "win" for any dwarf advocates. In fact, dwarf actors lost out the chance for work they may have even appreciated. (Not Dinklage, though, obviously.) Regardless, what was really changed, then?

I still don't understand Dinjklage's concerns, either, which I think have themselves been misrepresented. He found the actual original story "backwards", finding it somehow offensive that seven dwarfs would be portrayed as living in a cave together - which, of course, they certainly didn't/don't. (Never mind the fact that it's a fairy tale set hundreds of years ago, not a modern story of realistic persons.) By the sounds of it, he's never even seen Snow White, he just likes to be horribly offended. (Zegler falls into the same camp.) Notably, though, it wasn't that he didn't think dwarfs should be cast as dwarfs, per se, but rather that the story should not be re-told at all, without overhauling it altogether to rid itself of dwarfs. Dinklage doesn't want to be seen as a fairy tale creature, basically. That's his hang-up. One doubts he will approve of the final product.

[Ben]

Fun fact: the chip on Dinklage's shoulder is actually longer than he is tall.

[gaastra]

Dwarfs were the main heroes of that movie! They save the day at the end and are rich as heck with their own mine!

[gaastra]

Critic reviews are out, and they are--middle of the road average. "OK" not great not bad just "ok".

[Randall]

An Irish Times review:

"The most distracting flaws are rooted in the problematic re-creation of animated material... The permanent magic-hour lighting is hard to look at. Worst of all, the decision to “cartoonise” the dwarves alongside human actors is hugely problematic."

Yeah, turning human dwarfs into CGI caricatures may not have been the right solution to the sensitivity issue.

(Currently at 48% on RT, for what that's worth.)

[Farerb]

What did you think about this film?

Does anyone even care??

[Randall]

I care, but likely won't get to the theatre. That rarely happens anymore.

[gaastra]

It was fine. Fun little movie. Not the worst, not the best but not as awful as some wanted it to be who hated it. It's--fine.

Nieces loved it including my grade school niece who got excited at the snow white about to eat the apple and dwarfs run to the rescue scene. This really feels like a kids aimed movie this time. Dwarfs steal the movie. CG or not they are the best part. Snow white actress was good and can sing. Prince is now flyn from tangled. No really. They turned him into flyn! Acts just like him.

Him and the huntsman get bigger roles this time. Prince is a main character this time over 4 seconds after they meet snow white falls in love in the cartoon. Gal is weakest link but was fine for the vain queen to me. New songs are fine, but classics are still the best.

All in all, nieces had fun, and it wasn't a bad movie just not a pixar type movie also but more middle road. Worth a saturday matinee or a a-list ticket at amc. If you got kids, they will like it no matter when you go.

[James]

Funniest review I saw was something along the lines of "Disney Pictures budget, Disney Channel script".

[James]

Ouch! From Exhibitor Relations Co:

“Disney's SNOW WHITE couldn't survive the critical snowstorm as their latest live-action adaptation debuted with just $43M this weekend.

Yes, that's lower than DUMBO ($45.9M)”

[gaastra]

If you count the preview screening, it's just above but yeah same opening numbers as kung fu panda 4 and dumbo.

Panda 4 went on to be a smash hit. Dumbo on the other hand---

[Ben]

Hi-ho.

[Dacey]

Okay, so as I figured from a few years ago, that Daily Mail article with the “leaks” was false. Or at least misinformed.

Those people pictured weren’t playing the dwarfs. Or dwarf characters. They are a band of thieves because this movie is also a Robin Hood remake for some reason. So the dwarfs (CGI or otherwise) were never being “replaced.”

And outside of that one interview, Dinklage has always struck me as pretty gracious. My guess is he hasn’t even seen the film.

[Ben]

For our sins we looked at the four-minute "sneak" on D+ last night, and I’m still getting over the hilarity of Snowy singing "ECHO, ECHO, ECHO, ECHO" repeatedly, in a shot with an unforgiving lens that gives her a massive-looking cake-hole — and we don’t hear an echo!

We just have her singing "ECHO, ECHO, ECHO, ECHO" over and over, which is a pretty horrible and hard-sounding word to put in a song in the first place, when she’s right next to the well, on in a room with many bouncy, reverb-friendly walls and surfaces.

But, no. Rather than have the first "ECHO" softly reverberated in the air — kind of using the lyric and setting properly, creatively and cleverly — you have Snowy belting out "ECHO, ECHO, ECHO, ECHO" harshly, which just ends up sounding like the similar refrain in Never Enough from the Greatest Showman (from the same songwriters), but not as powerful, or nice.

It’s pretty basic stuff, folks.