Monday, June 4, 2012

Snow White and the Huntsman - 2 1/2 stars

Snow White and the Huntsman isn't a bad movie, but it isn't very good either.  It's one of those movies that's kind of right in the middle, and those are the hardest to review.  It's easy to review a movie I loved or hated, but this is just kind of meh.

In the second Snow White movie of 2012, Snow White's mother dies when Snow is very young.  Her father, the king, meets a beautiful woman named Ravenna (Charlize Theron).  He falls under her spell and marries her the next day.  That night, Ravenna kills the king and brings her own army into the castle to ensure her takeover of the kingdom.  Snow White is locked in the dungeons.

Years pass and Snow White is now played by Kristen Stewart.  When evil queen Ravenna asks her magic mirror who the fairest one of all is, well, you know the rest.  Snow White escapes, a hunter (Chris Hemsworth) is sent to bring her back, he falls in love with her, they meet 8 dwarfs (not 7), they get an army together to take back the kingdom, and so on. 

Charlize Theron is a good actress, but she isn't right for this role.  And her acting is so over the top that I was laughing at her when she yelled at her subjects.  Kristen Stewart does a fine British accent, and Chris Hemsworth isn't bad.  I thought the movie dragged in a few places, but I don't think I was ever bored. 

But wow, this movie really wants to be Lord of the Rings.  There are many shots that are exactly the same, like the shot of the Snow White, the Huntsman, and the dwarfs walking across the countryside and over mountains.  That shot looked exactly like the Fellowship heading to Mordor.  A scene of the evil queen standing on the castle parapet watching the army approach looks just like Saurumon with Wormtoungue standing at his shoulder.  There is even a scene near the end where Snow White has to give a rousing speech to her army.

This isn't a movie you need to avoid, but there really isn't any reason to see it. 

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