Snow White and the Huntsman

The trailer for this movie really got me excited for it and that is the first step in hooking me. The talented cast is the thing that gets me hook, line, and sinker every time though. This movie has a seriously impressive cast comprised of Charlize Theron, Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Stewart, Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, NIck Frost, Ray Winstone, Toby Jones, and Eddie Marsan. That is one hell of a talented cast if you ask me and I was really looking forward to what they could do with the retelling of the Snow White story. 

Snow White and the Huntsman is a retelling of the classic children's story but is more in the vein of the Grimm's fairy tale version. Kristen Stewart stars as the titular character and she oddly does not disappoint in the role. Her character in this movie is basically the opposite of Bella from Twilight and it is a giant fucking relief to not have to see her pout on screen every five seconds. She transitions from prisoner to a powerful young woman over the course and Stewart does an excellent job in actually conveying emotion in this movie and she is solid in the action scenes as well. Hopefully she starts to transition into more of these roles in the future and shy away from shitty emotionless roles like the one she has in the Twilight series.

Hemsworth and Theron more than hold their own in the movie and actually for the most part carry the movie on their backs. Hemsworth is going to be a bankable star and this was his first shot at proving that and succeeded in every way. His character, the Huntsman, is not just a stock hero stereotype instead he is a layered hero that evolves over the course of the movie. The transformation from anti-hero to full blown hero is an interesting one for the character given his back-story that is described in the movie. Also to follow up on a previous point, I know Hemsworth headlined Thor but this is the first non-comic mainstream release where he is playing a primary character. He has about a dozen movies in development and he is playing a major role in each, so I wish him the best of luck.

Got a little off track in the last paragraph, but now we are on to Charlize Theron. She plays the Queen in this movie and absolutely CRUSHES it. Theron is perfect for this role because you need someone who is literally one of the most beautiful people in the world and you also need an actress with the acting ability to play this deeply disturbed character. The scenes with the Queen and the mirror are creepy due to the fact that she needs constant validation that she is the "fairest of them all", even when she has complete power over the surrounding kingdoms. She steals every scene she is in because she commands your attention with the way she carries herself on screen. Theron has has a hell of a year with Young Adult, Prometheus, and Snow White and the Huntsman.

The movie itself is extremely solid and as you can tell from the rest of the review I really liked the acting in the movie. The effects were well done and the story, while a classic, did not feel stale at any point and moved at a brisk pace. I wish more movies that came out this summer would have been this quality. This is a movie that is well worth your time and you should pick it up on DVD/Blu Ray as soon as possible.