Movie Review: Snow White and The Huntsman

I am a fan of Charlize Theron (Aeon Flux, Hancock, Mighty Joe Young) and instantly decided I'd love to watch Snow White and The Huntsman when I first saw its trailer. I'm glad I did. Charlize was very impressive as the beautiful but evil Queen Ravenna who would do anything to keep her youth and beauty. She can be sweet when she wants to but can also be very scary when she's angry.

Kristen Stewart plays Snow White and, in fairness to her (despite the not-so-nice comments I've been hearing from fellow movie enthusiasts), she was able to portray a young girl who not only has a pure heart but also a strong will that was meant to deliver her kingdom from the queen's dark reign. She needs to appear in more movies and in meatier roles though to be able to prove herself to her detractors.

After watching Thor on the big screen twice (including The Avengers), I have also come to like Chris Hemsworth. Who wouldn't with those magnetic looks and cute smile? :p Unfortunately, I think there were a lot of us in the audience who were heard to jokingly say,  "Where's his hammer?" because we were still stuck with the image of Thor even after seeing Chris appear as the huntsman. His charming self wasn't also evident in this film but you will appreciate his capacity to express emotion during the scene when tears fell from his eyes.

I love the fantastic vistas the movie presented moviegoers with. The crashing waves on jagged rocks, the weird creatures in the forest, and the battle scenes were visually arresting. The costumes too, especially the queen's, were a treat for the eyes. In addition, I enjoyed being amazed at the smoothly-executed special effects particularly the scenes that involved the mirror on the wall,  the hallucinations in the forest, the numerous ravens, the queen climbing out of black muck, and the apple that rotted right before my eyes.

The film's plot was a far cry from the story of Snow White that we all became familiar with as children. This is definitely darker but more exciting to behold because of all those additional details that you won't find in any storybook.

If you ask me if this is a must-watch movie, I'd say yes because there are lots of reasons to.

*Snow White and the Huntsman is now showing in all theaters nationwide. It is released and distributed by United International Pictures through Solar Entertainment Corp.