Snow White and
The Huntsman

This isn't your momma's Snow White, so sit the little tykes in front of the TV and DVD player because, if you take them to this Snow White, they may have a stroke.

In a tale more Brothers Grimm than Walt Disney, Kristen Stewart stars as Snow White - an imprisoned princess who has seen her mother (The Queen) pass away, and her father (The King) become instantly captivated with a stunningly beautiful and youthful lost soul, Ravenna (Charlize Theron). Daddy immediately marries Ravenna, but, on their wedding night, she takes over control of the kingdom and puts Snow White into cell unbefitting of a princess (this is why stepmothers get a bad rap).

As you probably already know, according to her magical mirror on the wall, Ravenna is considered the fairest of them all (and I concur, she IS Charlize Theron after all), but she maintains her youth, beauty and power by stealing it from others, and, since Snow White is some sort of pure of heart wonder, stealing her youth, beauty and power will make Ravenna immortal (this kind of thing happens all around Hollywood, how do you think Julia Roberts still looks the way she does after all of these years).
br> Of course, Snow White escapes, so Ravenna has hired The Hunstman (Chris Hemsworth) to search for the deposed princess as she makes her way through the Dark Forrest.

Director Rupert Sanders makes Snow White and The Huntman into a visually stunning movie (almost as visually stunning as Charlize Theron), but the movie would have benefited from a better script with more for Snow White to do (and a Snow White with a bit more oomph in her acting).

As it is structured, Snow White and The Huntsman puts Snow White on a journey to reclaim her father's kingdom, and it is a great device to have her meet the various people who populate this fairy tale land. However, writers Evan Daugherty. John Lee Hancock and Hossein Amini never flesh it all out (or that stuff was cut from the movie).

Snow White goes from place to place, but we get very little explanation or showcasing of how she interacts with most of the people she meets along the way. Sure, we see glimpses, but very little depth to justify how she supposedly wins over the masses just by looking pretty and helping out a bit around the forest.

Plus, it's kind of hard to see Theron acting circles around everyone else on screen in what should be more of an ensemble piece. Some may find her portrayal of Ravenna too campy, but without her, this movie would be a loss. Stewart feels too monotone in her portrayal of Snow White, always delivering some slacker lethargy instead of fire and brimstone, or hot passion. Theron commands the screen, while Stewart always seems to be wishing she was hiding behind a tree (or enjoying some of those funky mushrooms you find in the Dark Forest).

And, I can't say enough about Theron. We know she is a great actress, but she has it all on display in Snow White and The Huntsman. Her moments of rage are frightening. Her devilish evil is chilling. Her selfishness and self-centeredness can only be exceeded by a Hollywood A-lister.

Sanders, in his first turn as director, makes a hauntingly beautiful and gothic looking movie, but he needs to thank Theron profusely for saving it from being as pretty and vacant as Paris Hilton.

Snow White and The Huntsman is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and brief sensuality.