Snow White and the Huntsman

It's fairly commonly accepted that when someone makes a re-imagining of a fairy tale, what you tend to get is a bit of a beige nothing of a movie which is destined to spent eternity trapped on ITV Saturday afternoon tv slots. Then on the other hand, you have what happens if you try to go too far into a re-imagining...trying too hard to go all Tim Burton or deep and dark, until what you're left with is drivel far too akin to the Twilight mess. So keeping in mind that the title role of this movie is a certain Kristen Stewart and you might understandably have low hopes for this one, the newly imagined, definitely darker Snow White and the Huntsman.

It's a classic story, and anyone who doesn't know it is either too young to be able to watch a DVD without pooping themselves, or too old to remember if they've pooped themselves. But of course, there's a new perspective on this one: the evil Queen Ravenna tricks the recently widowed King Magnus (father of Snow White) into marriage, only to murder him in the marriage bed and assume control of his kingdom. Our Princess is then locked in the highest tower for fifteen years, whilst the youth obsessed Queen literally drains the life out of all young attractive women she can get her hands on. When the famed Magic Mirror reveals that the newly adult Snow White is fairer than the Queen, she sends her brother to kill Snow White, only for the Princess to escape to the Dark Forest. Cue the hiring of Eric the Huntsman to find her, only to have a charge of heart about whether to hand her over or not, and he helps her on her quest to overthrow the evil Queen. Simple? Yeah it's pretty standard stuff, but that's basically all the story needs.

If you're expecting ground breaking performances, you're probably in the wrong place though. Stewart's Snow White a strong-willed but gentle and innocent character, and while you certainly get that impression from the actress, I (and several other punters who left the cinema) simply cannot get over the fact that she barely ever changes her facial expression; so much so that when she does smile, I found it slightly disturbing in unfamiliarity. Not to mention a ridiculously over-the-top English accent to boot. She's not that bad, but she is basically just Kristen Stewart wearing armour and speaking with a daft accent. Chris Hemsworth channels his best Thor accent mixed with a bit of a Braveheart feel as the Huntsman, and he's a character you do feel a little sympathy for, but his history is rushed hastily into the plot, and while you like him, you get the impression it's only because of Hemsworth, and not for what the character has experienced. Charlize Theron is quite probably the most impressive of the cast, as she's simply too many flew over the cuckoo nest as Queen Ravenna; utterly mental but in an intimidating manner, pretty much all that is asked of the role. Kudos too must go to Sam Spruell as Finn, the maniacal, completely detestable brother of the Queen.

Of course, what would a Snow White movie be without the dwarves? Indeed they do show up, and are fairly Lord Of The Rings-y (but we'll be coming back to that) in appearance. Unfortunately, whilst the dwarves add a sense of mischief and are an easy source of comedy for the film, they sway the darkness of the picture almost too much out of focus. Similarly to the Huntsmen, you feel that their backstory is simply a side-issue to the all-important Princess, not to mention it's a bit of a tired one (things were prosperous, Queen arrived, things aren't prosperous any more). There are genuinely enjoyable moments with the dwarves, but the most fun I got out of them was working out who plays them; amongst them we have Bob Hoskins, Ian McShane, Johnny Harris, Toby Jones, Nick Frost, Eddie Marsan, Brian Gleeson and Ray Winstone, who plays Ray Winstone, but this time in dwarf form.

One thing that this film is extremely guilty of, I must say, is that it seems to take a little too much inspiration from fellow fantasy movies. As previously mentioned, there is a lot of Lord Of The Rings in the appearance of the dwarves, not to mention a near carbon copy shot of small people trekking up mountainous terrain as seen from a helicopter. Another that really stood out was a glaringly similar take from The Never Ending Story, involving a horse and a swamp...tissues at the ready.. And there's more than a little bit of a Willow feel to the later interactions between Snow White, the dwarves and mother nature herself, though it's still fun enough if a little cheesy.

The strength of the film is definitely with the special effects. If you have a scene with Queen Ravenna in it, prepare for something spectacular. The movie goes all out to impress with weird and wonderful magic for the Queen, whether that is in the form of her phantom army and soldiers made entirely from shards of glass; whether it's the manner in which she transforms herself to and from a conspiracy of ravens; or if it is simply the way in which her physical age changes back and forth rapidly throughout the movie. It genuinely surprises me that they didn't attempt to release the movie in 3D, as the effects are already impressive, you can only imagine how much more impressive it may have looked with that bonus lovely dimension.

2/5  - It's enjoyable, and the all round feeling we got was "it's alright". It's better than most fairy tale imaginings, yes, and it's probably not going to be an ITV classic. However, the back stories are all rushed, other than Snow White herself, who is simply not interesting enough. Although it is extremely shiny and fun to look at.

Prometheus

As far as highly-anticipated movie releases go, this year has them by the boat-load. We've seen The Avengers storm box offices, The Hunger Games open up a new franchise, The Muppets made a long awaited comeback, not to mention The Dark Knight Rises and The Amazing Spider-Man and the first part of The Hobbit all due for release later in the year. But the announcement of the first return to science fiction for Sir Ridley Scott since his 1982 masterpiece Blade Runner. We are, of course, talking about Prometheus.

First, let's dispel the first rumour about this movie: it is not a prequel to Scott's other sci-fi great Alien, in the strictest sense of the word. However, it clearly takes place in the same universe as the Alien franchise, and indeed, many references and nods are made to those films, and indeed, I believe this proves to be an original story for the Xenomorph species, however, that is not the focus of this movie. This movie is about the scientific and spiritual pursuit of the origin of mankind - where we come from, and if there is somewhere we go once we're gone - therefore, it is key that you consider we don't actually have those answers before you get frustrated with this film, because otherwise, you might be left a little underwhelmed.

Let's have a quick round-up of the plot, before I try to get all deep and meaningful. A team of archaeologists discover the same pictogram across Earth, thousands of years in age difference, where no communication could have possibly taken place, of humans worshipping alien beings pointing to a specific star. The team interpret this as an invitation to a planet of creators, or Engineers of the human race, and that's where they travel to. After being woken from hyper-sleep by David the android, the team arrive on their destination moon and begin exploring the seemingly abandoned alien structures in search of proof of their makers.

The title of the picture is imperative also, as it refers to the eponymous Greek God, who stole from Zeus in order to aid mortal men - the creation of life. Scott is presenting to us a fantastical perspective of what could have started our existence. The theme runs thickly throughout the movie, whether through the obvious of the creation of the human race on Earth, the sterility of Dr Elizabeth Shaw, the inevitable ageing of Peter Weyland or the android perspective on existence of David. The philosophical aspect of the plot is sheer brilliance, but it can be considered flawed, as, understandably or not, no questions asked by the film are directly answered. Yet consider this; it is while we have nothing but theories on our existence that things remain calm and controlled in the movie, but the moment Dr Shaw's team begin to unravel the mysteries of their creation that everything descends into chaos - the universe makes perfect sense whilst simultaneously being completely insane - there are no simple answers to a simple question.

The cast is pretty superb, and the lack of A-Listers in the key roles immerses you into the crew of Prometheus without instantly knowing who is going to have a gets-the-girl predictable story. Noomi Rapace stars as Dr Shaw, and although I don't particularly want to do it, it's inevitable that this is the first of many mirrors of Alien, as she is the strong, defiant female presence on the ship, a hell of a lot like a certain Miss Ripley. The supporting members of the crew each fill their role perfectly too, whether that's through Logan Marshall-Green's Dr Charlie Holloway or Sean Harris' Fifield, you become somewhat engaged with each who have prominent speaking roles in such a manner that you truly care for what happens to them. Charlize Theron provides a suitably disliked figure of corporate authority as Meredith Vickers, the apparent face of the Weyland Corporation aboard the ship. He's extremely good for his tiny part on screen, but you'll do well to immediately recognise Guy Pearce as Peter Weyland. But if there was a show stealer amongst the cast, it was definitely the consistently impressive Michael Fassbender as David. Even without the prior knowledge of how untrustworthy spaceship androids can be from the Alien franchise, David is both a bizarrely likeable and yet utterly unsettling and sneaky character, particularly for one who is apparently without emotion. Whether it's his uncanny impersonation of Peter O'Toole in Lawrence Of Arabia or his relentless pushing beyond the chain of command in opening pretty much any door he finds in the alien structure, I for one am now entirely convinced that Fassbender is in fact a robot, possibly the first one purpose built for acting.

Visually, the film is absolutely stunning, and whilst I am usually sceptical of the need for 3D cinema releases, Prometheus certainly puts it to amazingly good use. The appearance of the ship (inside and out), the alien buildings, the futuristic technology and even the landscapes are kept extremely simple, but with what I can only call a bit of a space-y feel to them, nothing too ridiculously over the top. And yes, again, the workings of the Prometheus do indeed have more of than a bit of a look of the Nostromo to them. Basically, this is science fiction imagery done correctly.

If I had to pick fault with the film, it is simply that, despite realising that we cannot possibly hope to find out each and every one of the mysteries of our own existence through a film (and that is sort of the point), very few questions really are answered. Not only this, but the frustrating confrontation between the team and the surviving Engineer is a little underwhelming, largely due to the fact that we don't know why he is so determined to wipe out the Earth. However, the ending pretty much screams a sequel, and there is apparently already word that Scott is working on the preliminary procedures for a second film, so you never know. Having said that, and as I stated before, it might be infuriating that you don't get the answers you wanted, but surely that's the point of the film, unless Sir Scott does actually know that we were put here by a race of alien versions of ourselves, of course.

4/5 - Very much enjoyable, deeply unsettling in places and visually spectacular. It might drive you insane, but it's a great ride whilst doing so. The movie stands strongly by itself, but features a great deal of references to the Alien franchise, which fans will love. Disappointing only in that it left me wanting to see more, which I suppose is also sort of a good thing. Go see it!

P.S.

You barely have to wait for it, but stick around after the final fade to black...