FEATURE

SNOW WHITE AND THE FAIRY TALE WARS

BY DALE BARNETT

There seems to be a battle going on in Hollywood of late. Heavyweight fighter Universal Pictures is sparring with independent distribution company Relativity media in a race to release their new films before their competitors. The conflict being that both studios have chosen to commission glittering big screen re-makes of the fairy-tale classic Snow White, in the very same year. Ouch!

According to Deadline: ‘Universal and Relativity Media have been playing a game of can you top this in terms of release dates.’ With an initial release date in late 2012, Universal reacted to the news of their opposing production being scheduled for the same year by moving the date of their aptly titled Snow White and the Huntsman to June 1^st, a month ahead of Relativity’s formerly titled The Brothers Grimm: Snow White, which will be directed by Tarsem Singh (The Fall, The Cell). Relativity retaliated by setting its now confirmed March 16^th release, securing their position in first place on the cinematic calendar.

Both parties certainly have cause for concern, presenting to a rather skeptical public not one, but two fairy tale remakes in extremely quick succession. There is a danger of a despondent public judging the films long before they make their theatrical debut, grouping them under a collective umbrella of ‘fairy tale remakes’ that have proven less than exemplary at the box office this year. The two features will arrive shortly after the release of Catherine Hardwicke’s Red Riding Hood; a gothic adaptation of the European folk tale made famous by The Brother’s Grimm, which was met by rather mixed reviews to say the least. Similarly, Lionsgate’s attempt at a modern take on Beauty and the Beast came this year in the form of teen romance Beastly which proved somewhat twee and insubstantial, falling victim to harsh criticism from the press.

The direct competition between the two Snow Whites will prove palpable with audiences who will no doubt compare one film with the other. At the risk of further confusion, we’re going to break it down for you.

So let’s deal with this chronologically… Tarsem Singh’s offering is currently residing under the temporarily indecisive title of Untitled Snow White Project. The previous and not so tentatively named Brothers Grimm addition suggested an homage and possible throwback to the classic lore from the story-telling siblings. It seemed Singh was learning from the mistakes of preceding titles that have tried to modernise an inherently antiquated story. However, the decision to ditch this in favour of a presently unrevealed title, leaves us a little in the lurch. With a bumped up release date the clock is certainly ticking, thus a decision like this can only be seen as a strategic one. Being billed as ‘the one with no name’ gives a definite air of mystery to Singh’s re-imagining, whilst surely serving to irritate Universal by leaving them in the dark with the rest of us.

Singh and his crew have just started principal photography in picturesque Montreal. In a press release leaked by Collider.com, it appears Relativity are not straying too far from the original plotline. You’ll see an evil queen ruling over a helpless kingdom, and an exiled princess who meets the acquaintance of seven small yet resourceful friends who will work to help her reclaim her rightful place in the palace, yada yada yada. However, the hook being that this time, they are going for a ‘spirited adventure comedy filled with jealousy, romance and betrayal’. This change of genre, could give Untitled a slight edge; leaning more towards the humorous side could actually work to give an extra-ordinary piece of fiction some validity with today’s audience. When working with magical or melodramatic subject matter such as this, presenting the events in a tongue-in-cheek manner, allowing the actors to almost make fun of themselves and letting the audience in on the joke in the process may prove a very wise move.

So what of the cast? The undoubtedly raven-haired and ruby-lipped princess will be played by porcelain-skinned newcomer, Lily Collins. (The Blind Side, Priest) Oscar winner Julia Roberts will play the evil enchantress, whilst Armie Hammer (The Social Network) plays the object of their affection and Prince Charming substitute, ‘Prince Andrew Alcott’. The film also stars Nathan Lane (The Birdcage) as a clumsy and doting servant to the Queen.

The seven dwarves are all there, but not as we know them. Coming Soon reports: “Each of the film’s seven dwarfs features a distinctive look and seems to be nicknamed by their costume. “Cowboy” wears a cowboy hat, “Wolf” is draped in animal skin and another wears a crooked top hat.”

Is anyone else picturing some very awkward auditions involving actors scrambling around on their knees in full pantomime attire making Shakespearian proclamations in teeny tiny soprano? Let’s hope I’m wrong.

According to the site, the most noticeable departure from the primary account lies in the characterization:

“Snow White herself…will be portrayed as a bit of a fighter, allowing for multiple action sequences…she’s actively trying to win back her rightful throne and combines a blue dress with black, leather armour.” Interesting, I wonder if we’ll have a new entry for our Style Spy pages…

Firmly determined to stay one step ahead in this medieval duel against industry giant Universal, Relativity Media released the first promotional teaser images for the film The photos reveal a very stylized design, “including a very Indian-looking palace and several masquerade designs reminiscent of Mardi Gras and old storybook illustrations.” (Coming Soon) Both projects have now revealed character posters (below). As you can see, Relativity are sticking very closely to the story’s magical roots. Collins told Entertainment Weekly: "I keep saying to everyone I feel like I'm walking into a snow globe, a fairy tale, every single day”. Contrarily, Universal’s artwork portrays a very battle orientated theme, particularly with the protagonist, which is a surprising step away from its competitor.

With a behind the scenes line-up that have lent their collective filmmaking talent to the likes of The Fighter, 300 and Rush Hour, it seems the elusive tagline: “A Comedic Adventure Awaits”, which is displayed proudly above the promos, is a promise Relativity intend to keep.

In the blue corner, flying the flag for Universal is Rupert Sanders’ Snow White and the Huntsman.

Sanders is making his directorial debut here, but with help from Joe Roth, producer of Alice in Wonderland and Tears of the Sun who has had his own directorial turns in the past with hits such as America’s Sweethearts alongside writer Evan Spiliotopolous, who penned the screenplays for children’s favourites; The Jungle Book 2 and The Nutty professor, this is by no means an amateur outfit.

The appropriately named Snow White and the Huntsmen focuses on the relationship between a girl and the man who was sent to kill her. According to Universal: “In a twist to the fairytale, the Huntsman ordered to take Snow White into the woods to be killed winds up becoming her protector and mentor in a quest to vanquish the evil queen”. Is anyone else starting to feel a little sorry for the old broad?

 This film is slightly more traditional, in that it sounds like what you would expect from a Snow White born out of the Twilight generation. To begin with, it centres around a forbidden romance between Snow White and not Prince Charming, but the ‘why-did-you-even-bother-altering-the-name-so-trivially’ titled ‘Prince Charmant’, played by Sam Clafin (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides), from whom she was separated in their teen years by evil Queen ‘Ravenna’. It is certainly no accident, then, that the studio made the wildly calculated decision to cast Kristen Stewart as the lead. Yes OK, she is fair skinned and dark haired, but could they be more obvious? The second teen audiences catch a glimpse of Miss Stewart on a teaser trailer, well, there’s your one million plus young adult viewers right there.

Snow White and the Huntsman gives a more in-depth backstory to the compassionate woodsman of legends past. Chris Hemsworth (Thor) will star as the Queen’s henchman, devastated by the recent death of his wife, ‘Eric’ is determined to find the white wolf that killed her. When Eric discovers this wolf was acting under the instruction of queen Ravenna, he takes ‘the fairest of them all’ into the forest to prepare to get his revenge. I’m seeing a lot of training montages, with Kristen giving intense and pouty glares and Chris Hemsworth chopping wood…preferably without a shirt on.

Competing against Julia Roberts’ she-villain will be (also) Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron, who gained the part over Angelina Jolie and Winona Ryder and who pulled out of Clint Eastwood’s upcoming biopic J. Edgar to take the job. For those who remember her incredible character acting in Patty Jenkins harrowing masterpiece; Monster, Theron is a very clever pick, who will definitely stand up against her rom-com frequenting adversary.

However, aside from the fact that production seems well under way for Sanders who has a concrete cast and a confirmed title, the road to theatres is proving a bumpy one. Universal Pictures have reportedly asked Hossein Amini (Drive) to re-write parts of the script. It is unclear if this will be an entire re-working or just a slight tweak, but to the outside world, and to Relativity I’m sure, this suggests Universal and it’s crew are displaying a lack of confidence in their own work at this late stage in the game.

So prepare to pick a side. At this stage, ‘Team Kristen’ and ‘Team Lily’ T-shirts don’t seem out of the question. In the best case scenario, both films will be refreshing and innovative and do very well, then Relativity and Universal can put aside their differences and, for want of a better phrase, live happily ever after. This doesn’t seem likely. Instead, it seems the fairy tale wars have only just begun.

I hear on the entertainment grapevine that there are talks of a 2013 feature ‘Snow and the Seven’, as well as Disney commissioning yet another; Order of the Seven, which will no doubt be like a kid who turns up late to the party. Does this mark a whole-hearted appreciation of timeless classics, or are we simply running out of original ideas? With a finite amount of fairytales to tell, we are bound to get a little repetition from a competitive industry, keen to follow the trend. But is it too much to ask to space it out a little? The next few years will bear witness to a whole host of fairytale re-makes battling it out, with a Hansel and Gretel re-invention and numerous new Cinderellas, Jack and the Beanstalks, a Sleeping Beauty, multiple Pinnochios, countless Peter Pans and even a Tom Thumb in the pipeline, we should probably get used to Tinsletown getting a little Grimm.

 

Relativity Media

Universal Pictures