Review of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1938) by Seán C — 05 Nov 2013

Ah, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first animated feature in color and in the US (NOT THE FIRST-EVER), a film that is still praised by millions. Let's see if this film lives up to it's praise in my eyes:

I don't think the overall plot is as grand as people claim to be. It is a touch outdated, but I credit that to the time it was released. Also, there are a few logical problems surrounding the main plot, let me give an example or two: 1. If the Queen wants to be the "Fairest in the Land", why did she disguise herself as an ugly old hag? 2. If the huntsman failed to kill Snow White, wouldn't the Queen send another to do the same task rather than attempt it herself? These are just the nitpicks of mine, but it's a Disney animated film and the film came out in the '30s, so I think it can get away with that a little bit.

The animation was very good, especially since it's Disney first attempt at a full-length feature. The designs are pretty good, but some characters are better designed than others (personally, I mostly love the designs of the 7 dwarfs, the Queen (as the Witch), and the Magic Mirror). The overall appearance of the film may seem light-hearted and bright at first glance, but as you watch the film more, the film can be dark and actually can get pretty scary at certain scenes (namely 3 that comes to my mind, but I'll get to that in a bit), and these dark bits really grips me (I remember being on the edge of my seat when Snow White was offered the Apple). If there is one thing that Disney has been good at, it's creating fitting emotional responses to their audience.

The characters themselves tend to be a "hit or miss" for me. Snow White herself is one of the weaker characters in the Disney Princesses line-up, her singing voice is mixed (half of her songs are cringe worthy, while others are very soothing to hear) and she's not very interesting. The dwarfs are a whole lot of fun to watch, every time they're on screen, it just delightful, they just crack me up. The Evil Queen is not that interesting as a villain, her motivation is pretty bland, plus her design isn't that eye-catching. Although, the Queen as the old hag is a lot more engaging as a design (plus very intimidating) and she's also more interesting because she displays more emotion than here normal self.

I have only a few memories of this film from when I was a kid, but they really do stand out for me, and that will be from 3 scenes from the movie (as stated earlier): 1. When the Queen demands her Huntsman to take Snow White into the forest, kill her, and place her heart in a chest, all I thought was "Geez man, this is a Disney flick?", that was when things got serious for me. 2. The scene when Snow White encounters these scary-looking trees, that made me pee my pants looking at these images (which were stuck in my head for a week after watching). 3 (and probably the biggest). The scene when the Queen transformed into the Witch, that scared the crap out of me when I was young (it actually gave me nightmares), I remember being left speechless and with wide-open eyes once the screen faded into black.

The music was amazing, the songs are also wonderful (my 2 favorites are "Heigh-Ho" and "Whistle While You Work"), it set the emotional responses perfectly. From happy, to sad, to just downright scary, the music in this film are very memorable and very pleasing to the ear. Disney has always had a grand score that drives various emotions from within the audience, and this film arguably is the one that masters it, this film is directly fueled on emotional simplicity and that is what makes this movie very fascinating.

Even though the movie itself had some "logical" problems that could problems with Disney films as a whole, Snow White's emotional presentation is enough to make us forget these problems. It might not be the most engaging film in the world, nor the most complex, but it's brilliant artwork, masterful score, and delightful characters is what makes this movie one of the best of not only animation, but also one of the best movies ever-made.