Plot: What’s it about?
You’ve got to love the media, don’t you? Well ok, probably not. And if your name is Kristen Stewart, you most likely hate them. I’ll go ahead and address the elephant in the proverbial room right here and now. Whatever you’ve heard or read about Miss Stewart is most likely true. Her Twilight co-star, Robert Pattinson was shocked to find out that Stewart had been having an affair with the director of the movie in question: Snow White and the Huntsman. Was it true? Sure. Why not. Do I personally care? No, not really. But for those out there that wanted to connect the dots, it was Stewart’s role in this movie that led to her infidelity. Well, actually it was something inside Stewart that led to her infidelity as the other cast members seemed to be able to keep their libidos in check throughout the shoot. At any rate, this isn’t a blog on what star/starlet is cheating on who, it’s an attempt to review a very different version of the Disney classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. That was the first full-length animated film and has gone onto become one of the most beloved classics that Disney has ever put on screen (and that’s saying something). And now, 85 years later we’ve got a very avant garde version. How’s it stack up?
This doesn’t deter too much from the original tale, though as mentioned it’s a bit on the dark side. We meet Ravenna (Charlize Theron), who is set to marry King Magnus (Noah Huntley), but is killed on his wedding night. Ravenna, now in control of the entire kingdom manages to capture Snow White (Kristen Stewart, played as a child by Raffey Cassidy). Years pass and once that Ravenna learns (via the Magic Mirror) that by consuming Snow White’s heart, it will make her immortal and truly the “fairest one of them all.” Snow White manages to escape into the dark forest, however, she’s being pursued by Eric the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) under the guise that his deceased wife will be brought back to life. We know that the huntsman and Snow White are destined for one another and it doesn’t take too long for him to figure out that Ravenna has no intention of fulfilling her part of the bargain. Snow White is then tricked into eating a poisoned apple and we’ll just say the rest is history.
Video: How does it look?
Snow White and the Huntsman is brought to Blu-ray by Universal and the video presentation is, simply put, outstanding. I got a real Lord of the Rings feeling when watching this film as it incorporates a lot of the same scene structure and visual design that Peter Jackson used for his trilogy. The woods are dark and gloomy, yet oddly defined by this 2.40:1 AVC HD transfer. Detail is stunning, we can see the *gasp* wrinkles on Charlize Theron’s forehead, the scrapes and scratches on the huntsman and the little intricacies on the dwarf’s outfits. Truly this is a top-notch effort and one that won’t disappoint.
Audio: How does it sound?
Equally as impressive as the video is the audio quality. The DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack has a full 7.1 channels and the result is an immersive mix that puts you right in the middle of the action (that’s the point, right)! Vocals are rich and full, the front stage is active and handles a lot of the action with hardly any effort and the surrounds are extremely active as well. The LFE are heavily involved in several of the ending battle scenes. The clash of the swords, the sound of hooves and everything in between is so engaging, I was literally turning my head to try and decipher what sound was coming from where. It’s an amazing mix and one of the better ones I’ve heard this on Blu-ray.
Supplements: What are the extras?
Universal has loaded down this film with a plethora of supplements, so without further ado, let’s get started. First, there are two different versions of the movie on the Blu-ray, a 127 minute theatrical cut and the 131 minute extended version. Director Rupert Sanders offers up a commentary track with some of the technical team and gives a decent commentary track. It’s more on the technical side, which I liked, though there’s plenty of information to be gleamed from the discussion. Universal’s “U-Control” is also present with a picture-in-picture feature that’s interesting. If you’ve seen it before, this is more of the same with segments from the featurettes that pop up in the corner of the screen. One thing I’ve wanted to try since my acquisition of an iPad was the Second Screen Experience. This movie features that and if you’ve got your iPad (or other tablet) and you can scroll through the timeline of the film watching various little features throughout. It’s neat, but it’s also something you can watch afterwards. Just make sure you’ve got enough space as the content downloaded takes up room. We’re also treated to a virtual tour of the “kingdom” and some of the key sets throughout. It’s a neat little feature that shows how lifelike they made it look. “A New Legend is Born” is more of a history lesson than anything. Producer Joe Roth and director Rupert Sanders give us some explanation of the story, the production in general and the new approach to making a new version of such a timeless classic. “Reinventing the Fairy Tale” takes a look at the film’s use of the different elements within to tell the story. “Citizens of the Kingdom” is really four short featurettes: “Fairest of them All: Snow White, “ “Deliciously Evil: Queen Ravenna,” “The Huntsman,” and “Motley Crew: The Dwarves.” Each of these expands a bit and shows on the theme and gives us a glimpse into the different elements contained within. Finally we have “The Magic of Snow White and the Huntsman” with some visual effects for the tech in you, some concept art, animatics and some other various visual effects brought to life. There’s also an Ultraviolet copy as well as a DVD of the film as well.
