When Disney first announced the production of the live-action remake of Disney’s iconic Snow White, fans around the world were thrilled and optimistic. The heartwarming, original 1937 film is part of the foundation for animation in history as the first full-length animated feature. A remake of the movie had the potential to honor its legacy, yet ended up doing the complete opposite.
Snow White has significantly underperformed expectations, with a domestic opening weekend of $43 million and a global opening of $87 million. Compared with the original, it has not surpassed the box office success of the 1937 film, which grossed $184 million in 1937 (equivalent to $1.54 billion today). In addition, the film has a total Rotten Tomato critic score of 40%, making it the lowest-rated live-action remake among Disney’s princess-centered adaptations.
Not every classic story translates seamlessly into today’s world, and there is nothing wrong with a reinterpretation of old tales. Snow White has no character depth or development throughout the movie. She comes off as a flat and unremarkable character. In trying so hard to avoid the innocence and optimism of the original Snow White, this version strips away what made her unique and memorable in the first place.
One of the smaller yet more impactful issues of the movie is the dwarfs – or rather, the lack thereof. Instead of hiring professional actors with dwarfism, for some reason, Disney chose to use CGI to create Snow White’s seven dwarfs. Considering this, the dwarfs represented warmth, kindness, and loyalty in a world that had neglected her. So don’t worry–no dwarfs were harmed (or hired) in the making of this movie.
The performances in the movie were mediocre at best. Gal Gadot, as the Evil Queen was quite disappointing, as each line about murder and vanity was delivered with little passion. The Evil Queen is supposed to be theatrical and borderline insane, but Gadot simply reads her lines as though she was reading them off a cue card. This is unfortunate, as the Queen is one of the main characters in these live actions that should be over-the-top and excessive.
Rachel Zegler, on the other hand, has an incredible singing voice. However, her voice is extremely passionate and rich, the polar opposite of Snow White’s personality. In the original, Snow White was portrayed as gentle, sweet, and light – not belting the way Zegler did in “Waiting on a Wish”. This is especially unfortunate, as it is proven Rachel Zegler can sing in an operatic style (very well, in fact), during her role as Maria in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story.
When it came to visuals, this film both succeeded and failed. From Snow White’s cyan sleeves to her neon yellow skirt, the character is distanced from the classic image audiences know so well. The Evil Queen’s outfits were beautiful, however, and fitting for a character obsessed with being the “fairest of them all.” In the forest scenes, the movie leans into bright, bold colors that occasionally feel jarring.
This remake felt like a movie made by people who were too afraid of the original film’s flaws to embrace its strengths. It attempted to modernize the movie, without actually having a clear vision of what it wanted to say. While it wasn’t horrible, it fell short of the original’s standards. The heart and softness that made Snow White so timeless are largely missing here, replaced by a louder, brighter, but less meaningful version of the story.
