Snow White: A Tale of Terror

One word of warning, this isn't the Disney film of "Snow White" and it would be wise to think twice before letting the children watch it.

The tensions between "Snow White", here named Lilli Hoffman (Played by Taryn Davis as a child and then by Monica Keener as a teenager) and her step-mother Claudia (Sigourney Weaver) are quite well-drawn. Claudia is not completely unsympathetic and Lilli is not quite as innocent as in some versions of the story. Also the dwarfs are presented as a group of scarred, bitter outlaws.

The film sustains a wonderful medieval atmosphere and has some very good performances, particularly from Sigourney Weaver. However it suffers a lot from an unevenness of tone. It's far too dark and violent for children, but then it's not quite scary enough for adults.

That being said, horror and fantasy fans may find it quite enjoyable.

A wealthy man (Sam Neill) remarries years after his first wife dies during childbirth. However, the new wife (Sigourney Weaver) despises her stepchild and the daughter (played by the lovely Monica Keena) is forced to flee into the woods where she befriends seven miners (not dwarfs). Will the stepmother get away with her wickedness? My friend Jason had been suggesting we watch this film for a while and I couldn't bring myself to do it. With the movie being based on Snow White and the silly cover photograph, this just didn't seem like a decent horror film. And I know Sam Neill makes some decent horror appearances, but Sigourney Weaver? Come on! Then when I saw Monica Keena was in it (who I know from "Dawson's Creek" but many horror fans will know her from "Freddy vs. Jason") I couldn't get the DVD in the slot fast enough.

This film comes from director Michael Cohn, whom I've never heard of and I suspect neither have you. And despite his relative obscurity (ten years later and I still haven't seen anything else he's done) he can weave a very well-visualized tale. The man has a knack for the realm of fantasy.

This really is the film's strength. We are treated to a land of fantasy with witches and magic mirrors, but there is no silliness about it. This is not a kid's tale like "Labrynth" or "The Dark Crystal", but something much more adult and terrifying. There is even a scene where -- dare I say it -- we get hints of rape.

All the acting is strong, which should come as no surprise. Keena is great, and Sam Neill really cannot do a bad job acting even if he wanted to as far as I can tell. The effects were fine, the music was alright, and there was a scene where a horse did a back-flip, which was pretty intense. Don't be discouraged like I was about the title, this is a horror film worth seeing and a nice change of pace from the usual modern-day fare.

When I picked this up, I wasn't sure I wanted to see it. I thought it looked kind of interesting, and I guess for five bucks in Wal-Mart, why not? I tend to like bad B movies, so what's the harm?

And despite my initial misgivings, I thought it was excellent.

The story wavered from the Grimm's version, but that's part of what makes it original. The portrayal of the era wasn't perfect, but then that didn't hurt the story much either. I thought the acting was done pretty well, especially Sigourney Weaver. She worked well with a character that was pretty weirdly written. I loved her as the old woman in the forest and in the final scene. Very eerie. Very cool.

The scenes with Lilliana and the dwarfs were a bit choppy in parts--first Will threatened her, then he saved her, then he yelled at her, then...yadda yadda yadda--but Monica Keena played the sheltered damsel well and Gil Bellows was good at the whole "tortured but sincere" act. I was definitely left imagining what the screenwriters should have put in the holes, but all in all I thought that storyline was sweet.

Definitely not a movie for children, but then the title and rating suggest so. Again, some of the story needed to be filled out and explained more, but in total, I loved it. Creepy and cool and fun.

Here's something to check out if you're not too into the "Disneyfied" version of the classic Grimm brothers fairy tale. While the Disney adaptation wasn't free from dark and spooky elements itself, this one takes those elements and runs with them, all the way. It's definitely a Snow White for the adults in the family, presented as a 1990s update of a Hammer type Gothic horror film.

Monica Keena is Lilli Hoffman, a young woman whose mother died in childbirth (after a bad roadside accident). Her father Frederick (ever reliable Sam Neill) ultimately remarries, to the seemingly well meaning Lady Claudia (a vampy Sigourney Weaver). When the Lady miscarries the child that she would have born Frederick, she decides that Lilli, who never really warmed up to her, is responsible, and vows to destroy her. When the first attempt fails, Lilli is soon lost in the wilderness of the Black Forest, where she encounters a sextet of scruffy characters.

People should know right up front what they're getting into. Hell, it's right there in the title: this is NOT a movie for kiddies, with a decent amount of gore and the playing up of some sexual elements. It's appropriately moody, and gloomy, with vivid on location filming in the Czech Republic, a passable effort at emulating the period, and cinematography by Mike Southon that is wise to never, ever get too bright or colorful.

People familiar with the animated take on the tale will be amused to note the differences in this version. For one thing, among the seven "dwarves" is only one actual little person.

The acting is mostly sturdy. Keena is fairly appealing. Neill is good as always, and Gil Bellows gives his part of Will some depth. Brian Glover is fun as Lars, another of the seven forest dwellers. Sigourney takes the opportunity to do some welcome - and not exactly inappropriate - scenery chewing.

Atmospheric and darkly humorous at times, "Snow White: A Tale of Terror" should be interesting entertainment for horror fans.

Seven out of 10.

This version of the what may be the Grimm's most famous fairy tale holds very true to the original story. There have been so many film adaptations of Snow White that, although unique and creative renditions, stray very far from the original. I was impressed with the minor details that they included from the Grimm's version, such as the "hair as black as ebony, skin white as snow, and lips as red as blood" and the fact that the heroine is choked by the apple and not put into a magical sleep (like Sleeping Beauty). The story is dark and ominous, which also holds true to the fairy tale, in contradiction to the popular belief that these stories were light-hearted and innocent (we have Walt Disney to blame for that). They did take some creative license with names, character traits, and certain plot elements, but I didn't find it terribly offensive. It served to make the story more realistic and deep. It kept my attention the whole way through and kept me wondering what was going to happen next despite the fact I knew the story. The thing that makes this movie good is the great attention to detail and the awareness of the material the film makers had. I was impressed. Do not be fooled though. This is not a movie for little children. Do not go into it thinking that, or you will completely miss what makes it so special. I would even suggest reading the actual fairy tale before watching it so you can truly appreciate the small but significant specific aspects the film artists obviously took so much care to preserve.