Snow White and The Huntsman

[Impact]

Review, Discuss and Have Fun!

[BK007]

Saw it today. It sucked.Screwing BSG. Motherfucker.Anyway, some of the early word was true. Charlize Theron and her "brother" whoever the actor was, overact so much it's cringeworthy. I don't know who thought it would make a good performance, if I am angry, I must shout at the top of my voice. Ugh.Kirsten Stewart is no better, certainly she seems less wooden than Twilight and its sequels but for a supposedly multi-faceted and dimensional character, she plays it one-note and uninteresting. The script is pretty much awful and things just happen for the sake of it without explanation or development. If it's possible to comprehend Chris Hemsworth is wasted and feels underused despite being there for almost the entire thing which should tell you something.The movie looks beautiful and you can see greatness was within its grasp but ultimately it fails in multiple places. The director should shoulder some of the blame since Theron and brother could certainly still be used and the direction of the movie and flow should have been corrected despite the shit script. Universal should take all the blame for casting Kirsten Stewart, in what could've been a standout role for an unknown or underrated actress we get a woeful addition to the growing number of stars marketed to us as such instead of truly being stars.C+

[Heretic]

I thought it was fairly good, I was half expecting it to be awful after that early buzz. But as a whole, I liked it.

If you go in expecting some sort of masterpiece, you will definitely be disappointed. And there's a reason they didn't show any dialogue in the trailers. It's because there hardly is any in the film itself. Lacklustre script to say the least. And god yes, Charlize does over-act in some scenes. There's one particular scene where she's literally howling the entire time. It seemed forced at the best of times.

As for Kristen, she hardly had any lines in the film, and, as expected, she's petty emotionless throughout. I did actually like her 'speech' at the end though. When she started to speak, I fully expected a disgusting cringe moment, but it turned out alright, thankfully. Hemsworth's 'accent' was simply awful. It alternated with every word, and in some cases, it wasn't there at all. The relationship between him and K-stew never really developed at all, which was rather disappointing.

The production was absolutely fantastic though, great scenery, special effects, and some very impressive action sequences. It was a fun film, but pretty forgettable. The score was actually decent. It fit the film, but again, there's nothing memorable to it. The dwarfs were probably one of the highlights for me. Funny little things.

B

[BK007]

I found it hilarious that MacShane and Frost were dwarfs since I didn't see the casting.I must say though, sound mixing was quite terrible, or maybe I'm using the wrong terminology. Half the time you had people speaking over each other or mumbling that I couldn't make out anything at all. Or maybe it was just the awful Odeon sound system.

[ddddeeee]

Not good.Charlize's performance is delicious and her dominance at the start of the film easily makes for the best section. Unfortunately she starts disappearing for 20 minute intervals and the movie is unbearably bland in her absense. Stewart is fine, though a bit bland and her St. Crispians Day speech is an utter cringefest. Hemsworth has his moments but his accent is every bit as horrible as reported. Chaflin's character has no importance whatsoever, he could have easily been completely omitted and the story wouldn't have suffered one bit, fishnets is going to have a field day with one particular fail at badassery. Even the titular Huntsman has little significance by the end of the film, and the director seems to know this as there's the odd shot of him thrown in just to remind us that he's around. The dwarves are ok, the one that can see into the future was beyond annoying though, and it falls into the AIW trap of telling us the end of the movie near the very beginning, so naturally there's no tension.The movie fares much better technically. Atwood's costumes are, as always, outstanding. JNH's score is quite good with a memorable theme. Special effects are top notch. But the action scenes are much more 'The Last Legion' than LOTR and they feel cheap.Ultimately it's a bland movie that I suspect I'll have forgotten by tomorrow morning. 5/10

Edited May 30, 2012 by ddddeeee

[BK007]

I actually am sick of the narrated openings that most fantasy flicks seem to trap themselves into. I don't need the whole damn backstory in images unless it actually adds something to the film. Prince of Persia and the Sorcerer's Apprentice I remember back in 2010 used it i know for sure, what else? Take a gander at any non-Potter fantasy flick and there's a 50% chance it's used.I think LOTR did it well, with just a couple minutes and then just left it.

[Heretic]

Not good.Charlize's performance is delicious and her dominance at the start of the film easily makes for the best section. Unfortunately she starts disappearing for 20 minute intervals and the movie is unbearably bland in her absense. Stewart is fine, though a bit bland and her St. Crispians Day speech is an utter cringefest. Hemsworth has his moments but his accent is every bit as horrible as reported. Chaflin's character has no importance whatsoever, he could have easily been completely omitted and the story wouldn't have suffered one bit, fishnets is going to have a field day with one particular fail at badassery. Even the titular Huntsman has little significance by the end of the film, and the director seems to know this as there's the odd shot of him thrown in just to remind us that he's around. The dwarves are ok, the one that can see into the future was beyond annoying though, and it falls into the AIW trap of telling us the end of the movie near the very beginning, so naturally there's no tension.The movie fares much better technically. Atwood's costumes are, as always, outstanding. JNH's score is quite good with a memorable theme. Special effects are top notch. But the action scenes are much more 'The Last Legion' than LOTR and they feel cheap.Ultimately it's a bland movie that I suspect I'll have forgotten by tomorrow morning. 5/10

Wow, I thought the opposite on a lot of your points.The speech could have been MUCH worse, and I really don't think the score was memorable at all. I can't remember any distinct tune even now.The action scenes I really enjoyed though. Edited May 30, 2012 by Heretic

[fishstick]

Is the speech as bad as the nadir of St Crispians Day speeches KK in AWE? The awfulness of that shitfest was forever immortalized in Kermode iconic review. You could see actors biting their inner lips in attempts not to burst in laughter while she was going at it, full ADM phsycho tics mode and all.

[Heretic]

No, I didn't think so. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be when I realised in the first place she was making a speech. Had my hands ready and all in-case I had to face-palm.

[ddddeeee]

Is the speech as bad as the nadir of St Crispians Day speeches KK in AWE? The awfulness of that shitfest was forever immortalized in Kermode iconic review. You could see actors biting their inner lips in attempts not to burst in laughter while she was going at it, full ADM phsycho tics mode and all.

It's nowhere near that bad. Stewart tries her best but the whole thing feels so forced.

[fishstick]

No, I didn't think so. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be when I realised in the first place she was making a speech. Had my hands ready and all in-case I had to face-palm.

:rofl:

[CoolioD1]

Saw this earlier today and while it's nice to look at it's pretty boring. Near the end my mind trailed off, I was thinking about totally random things when I should've been concentrating on the film. Also I thought all of the leads were kinda sorta crappy.

[ddddeeee]

Saw this earlier today and while it's nice to look at it's pretty boring. Near the end my mind trailed off, I was thinking about totally random things when I should've been concentrating on the film. Also I thought all of the leads were kinda sorta crappy.

How did your audience react to Hemsworth's accent?

[CoolioD1]

How did your audience react to Hemsworth's accent?

Oh there were definitely some giggles from some when he started talking but I was disappointed as I expected a much bigger reaction. Though everyone must've noticed it - it's the #1 thing I overheard other people say when it finished.

[rockNrollaDIM]

I have been looking forward to this for months and I'm happy to say that, for me, it didn't disappoint. I know the cast is getting some grief but I thought they were all stellar sans Clafin (pretty boy with a bow, he was useless). Charlize Theron owns the screen and her vamping up the role was epic, every time the movie cut back to her it got better. Kristen Stewart more than holds her own though. Her accent was fine, and I don't think she looked bored or lifeless or any of the usually complaints. I think she carried the movie well and this is like the "anti Bella" role so good for her. Yes, Hems did have some accent malfunctions but he is still charismatic as hell and is leading man material. The guy deserves to be a superstar.Some parts of the movie felt a little long, and the script was muddled at points- for example the way they briefly delved into Ravenna's origins was a bit of a "wtf" because it looks like it was a really interesting story but they ended up only briefly alluding to it, in a "blink and you'll miss it" flashback scene. So I do wish they had trimmed up some of the forest scenes and gave the Queen more exposition. The film itself is gorgeous looking. Love the landscapes, the bleak atmosphere, wide aerial shots of the mountains were all really nice and I really liked how anytime a drop of blood is spilled the red just POPS. And I too thought the score was pretty good, it had some nice pieces that got your heart pumping for the war. Dwarves provided some nice comedy moments as well to lighten up the atmosphere- nothing side splitting but enough to give the audience a laugh. I was very happy with the "twist" on the original fairy tale, with the Huntsman's kiss being the one to awaken Snow White. Clafin is so bland and the William character so boring, it would have been a real let down had Snow White "lived happily ever after" with him. The battle sequences weren't particularly impressive or large scale, but the sorcery from Ravenna and showdown with Snow White was good. Very satisfying film.

[cozmeesah]

I quite liked this. The crowd seemed to agree with me.I thought KStew was fine, as was Hems (yes, bad accent but I don't think anyone cared. I certainly didn't focus on it.) Charlize wss awesome... once she stopped the OTT cheeseball screaming near the beginning.Loved the imagery, score & dwarves.Also, anyone else get a Neverending Story flashback when that white horse was stuck in the mud? My sister and I immediately looked at each other and were like "ARRRRTEXXX!!! Aiyeeeeeee!!"

[mattmav45]

Something needs to stop the mediocore onslaught, because thus far The Avengers is the only film this summer I have really enjoyed. Let's hope Prometheus changes that next week.

As for this film, it has a good score, and Charlize Theron was great. As others have said, the film was at its strongest whenever she was on screen. Unfortunately, most of the scenes with Kristen Stewart were pretty lame, and one has to wonder who thought she would be a good pick for Snow White. I just think it's amazing to see an actress who uses one face expression for every scene, emotion be damned. I will say while Chris Hemsworth's accent was awful, he does have a strong, undeniable onscreen presence, and the film would have benefited from more of his presence.

I did like some of the ideas it presented about the Dark Forest, and some of the action was surprisingly adequate. Unfortunately, I felt it either need to be darker and more violent, or it needed to have more fun with its re-imagining. As it was, it ended somewhere in the middle and as a result.....is a bit bland and slow at times. A different Snow White would have made a world of difference as well, IMO.

C+/C

[baumer]

The film is an absolute mess. I have no idea how or why some things happened and I feel like the writer spent a couple of evenings watching The Matrix, Robin Hood PoT and FOTR/TTT/ROTK and then wrote the script. I was actually waiting for Trinity and Neo to show up. There's actually a scene in here where she dies, comes back to life and no one bats an eye lash. I guess it's common in settings like this for people to die and then come back to life. And the speech she gives her people so they will help her kill the queen is one of the worst "rally the troops" speeches ever written in the history of film. Something about iron becoming embers and fire and tidal waves and maybe the lost ark of the covenant....maybe I imagined that part. Also, there is a scene where the queen comes and pretends she is William, only to then try and kill her. If she can find Bella anywhere, why the need to send an army after her? And if she can find her anywhere, why not just put a knife in her throat, instead of giving her a snack?Theron over acted, the Dwarves were boring and the only character i enjoyed was Thor. He was good. But other than Thor on horseback with an axe, I didn't care for any of it. It would have been better if Neo or Robin of Locksley or Aaragon would have showed up.4/10And how did the white horse just show up out of the blue when she needed one?

[CJohn]

I laughed when I saw the white horse. Such a random thing to happen, a white horse in a beach...

[baumer]

I laughed when I saw the white horse. Such a random thing to happen, a white horse in a beach...

There had to be a reason for it, but i think i missed it. And they show us that she can relate to beasts, but never tell us why. Why did the troll not attack her, why did the reindeer bow to her? I just don't understand the story. There were so man unexplained things that happened in the movie.