'Snow White' is a Sour Apple
Disney does it again. By that, I mean they produced another mediocre live-action remake of one of their classic cartoons. 2025's Snow White is a meddling remake that doesn't need to be remade. No matter what the reviews say, Disney will still probably make a profit off the flick. They've been remaking their animated films since 1994, starting with The Jungle Book. It wasn't until 2015's Cinderella that Disney decided to remake all of their cartoon classics. Most of them stink. Snow White might not be as stinky as some of them, but it's still a mixed bag of results. It's not as disastrous as 2022's Pinocchio, but it lacks motivation. Compared to Pinocchio, there's a lot more enthusiasm brought to the screen. Sadly, that's not saying much.
The main issue with these remakes is that the audience already knows what's going to happen. What made the original films so special is that their plots weren't regurgitated from a previous work it's trying to emulate. Therefore, audiences don't know the story beat for beat. The animation was impressive at the time. In fact, the cartoons still hold up. You just can't beat the effort that goes into frame-by-frame, hand-drawnings.
Fortunately, Snow White (2025) has impressive production design. The Queen's kingdom in the film looks like something you'd see straight out of Disney World without looking plastic or fake. Even more impressive is the Evil Queen's (Gal Gadot) fortress. The scenery is lavishly bathed in contrasty reds and gold, making the palace pop on screen.
Another plus of the film is Snow White's (Rachel Zegler) ability to sing her lungs out. Zegler has proven she has an amazing voice with her work on Steven Spielberg's remake of West Side Story. Her performance in Snow White is a continuation of a superb resume. Even with some impressive aesthetics and a strong lead performance, it's not enough to keep the remake flowing. Snow White is mostly a drag that doesn't need a live-action remake, along with many other Disney nostalgia cash-grab films. The charm that made the original so memorable is missing because some major elements from a cartoon don't translate very well on screen.
Let's face the truth. Peter Dinklage wasn't entirely wrong when he said Snow White is "a backward story of seven dwarfs living in a cave together." Its depiction of little people is generally insulting. Even worse, the movie doesn't cast dwarves; it simply makes CGI versions of them to avoid controversy. The movie states that the Dwarves are not humans. Well, that's just rude. If Disney thinks that making CGI characters instead of using actors makes everything okay, it doesn't. Dinklage is right, but it doesn't mean you should take work away from actual Dwarves. Sadly, Dwarves have been manipulatively used since the history of cinema. They're either Ewoks or the Seven Dwarves.
The computer-generated little people in this film look like they came from somebody's nightmare. At any moment, I was expecting them to kill Sleeping Beauty during her naptime. My lack of engagement is exacerbated when the movie cuts to Gal Gadot playing the Evil Queen.
The Evil Queen is one of Gal Gadot's better roles which isn't saying much. She thrives on other people's suffering. Gadot carries a "Do you know who I am?" vibe. The Queen is a different role for Gadot that minimally works. Gadot is usually emotionless in her line delivery in other films. Here, she steps it up a notch, shouting commands at people. Surprisingly, Gal Gadot wasn't as dry as she usually is. She must have taken a five hour energy drink to not sound bored. As for her singing voice, it's obvious some digital tinkering was used to enhance her voice that couldn't hit certain notes that only a professional singer can.
Musicals are often used wall-to-wall tunes. Most films have uninspired numbers that are mostly forgettable. Can anyone name one song from Mufasa: The Lion King? Aside from the old tunes like hé-ho, the new numbers from Snow White don't do much other than padding out the length of the picture. When musicals have too much music, it becomes a hindrance to the narrative. Take Les Misérables. It's a two-and-a-half-hour movie loaded with actors singing almost every line of dialogue, making it insufferable. Snow White isn't as bad, but there's still too much music that unnecessarily drags the film's length.
If I were to wish upon a star, it would be to have these live-action animated films of beloved classics disappear. Movies like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves are old but lovely. It was part of Disney during their golden era of original ideas. This newer version of Snow White is an entertaining watch for the kids. As an adult, it feels like you're watching a cover band instead of the real thing. On another note, it can be unusually crass for a kid's film. There's a scene where one Dwarf is telling the other that he's going to stick a brush "where the sun doesn't shy." What happens when little Johnny asks Daddy in the car on the way home what that means?
Snow White is beautiful to look at until the Dwarves arrive. It's a mildly entertaining film that tries really hard but fails due to an overabundance of music, creepy CGI, and a dull performance from Gal Gadot. When will Disney make something that's original? Judging by the strong box office returns and upcoming remakes of films like Lilo & Stich, the answer to that is not anytime soon. Don't waste all your time and money driving through traffic and paying for parking. Wait until this flick drops on Disney Plus, where it belongs.
