Universal are releasing a dark re-telling of Snow White, and are looking to bring in Tom
Hardy [Inception]. According to The Playlist, big names have already been
connected with Snow White and the Huntsman.
They include Angelina
Jolie, who the studio wants to play the role of the evil queen. Director Rupert Sanders will be making his debut on this film. Principal
photography is planned to start in early 2011, and probably will need to stay
that way due to the high demand for Hardy.
Here’s a synopsis for the film:
“As evidenced by the title, this new take on the fairy
tale sees an expanded role for the Huntsman. In the original story, he is
ordered to take Snow White into the woods and kill her, but instead lets her
go. Here, the two are chained together for part of the movie as they make their
escape. The Huntsman is not a love interest (fear not, the prince is still in
the story) but acts more as a mentor, teaching the teen girl to fight and
survive”
This movie is one of many fairy tale re-imaginings that is
being produced, including Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant
Killer and Tim Burton’s Maleficent. The subject matter is quite interesting, contrary to what some may think, Snow White was not the
brainchild of Walt Disney or any of his colleagues. In fact, the original story
of Snow White is much older than America itself. The first known accounts of
the Snow White story come to us from the Brothers Grimm, who, during the early
years of the 19th century, collected and published a number of old
European folktales, many of which dated back to the Middle Ages [Snow White
possibly being one of them]. The original Snow White story [known in German as
Schneewittchen] has several different twists that make it unique from the
Disney tale we all know and love. Here are just a few:
In the
Grimm tale, Snow White is but a 16-year-old girl.
The
dwarfs (more than 7) DEMAND that Snow White work and cook for them in order for
her to have their protection.
The evil
queen step-mother actually tries to kill Snow White on three different
occasions. First she ties Snow White up and leaves her for dead, only to
discover that the dwarfs have freed her just in time. Second, she disguises
herself as a poor peddler and combs Snow White’s hair with a poisoned brush but
is again unsuccessful when the dwarfs come to save her. And finally, the part
we all recognize, Snow White is poisoned by an apple.
The “handsome
prince” does not meet Snow White prior to her fleeing into the woods. Instead,
he stumbles upon her in her coffin and pays the dwarfs to take her and he
coffin with him. While in route to his kingdom, the coffin shakes open and a
piece of the poisoned apple is released from Snow White’s throat causing her to
regain consciousness. The “handsome prince” and Snow White then (after vomiting
the apple, not embracing in a romantic kiss) ride off into the sunset to live “happily
ever after.”
The evil
queen stepmother, who is shocked to see Snow White alive at the wedding of her
and the prince, is hunted down by the dwarfs and is forced to dance for hours
on end while wearing a pair of heated iron shoes, which eventually burn her to
death.
This original version of the Snow White tale [which most
experts agree probably dates back to at least the 16th century] may
seem strange at first to those of us in the modern era, but it was a huge hit
for those who heard it first hand. In fact, the Snow White tale was not
confined to Germanic lands. In Italy, the tales of Bella Venezia and The
Young Slave contain many parallels, as does the Greek story of Myrsina
and the Scottish tale Gold-Tree and Silver-Tree However, the non-German
tales usually depict the dwarfs as rough thugs who steal, murder, plunder, etc.
but are eventually cured of their evil deeds upon seeing Snow White’s beauty [even though in an Albanian version the dwarfs basically gang rape her].
What is important to remember about these versions of the
Snow White tale is that they provide an interesting glimpse into the late
Middle Ages. With the rise of the Renaissance and Reformation, the role of
women faced a strict dichotomy: on the one hand, you had the beauty, purity and
ignorance of Snow White; on the other, you had the conspiring, vindictive and
hateful nature of the evil stepmother. Such was the case for women of this era.
Women were seen as unpredictable creatures who were in great need of “control”
and “stability” that only a male partner [the “handsome prince” and dwarfs] could provide. Women were to be as Snow White: pure, innocent and helpless. All
of this could, of course, be achieved by her acceptance of her new role in
society. Without such a system, women were sure to become like the evil
stepmother.
