Let me say up front that for one reason or another I never
got around to seeing the previous film that ties into this, SNOW WHITE AND THE
HUNTSMAN. When I heard that this film was supposed to be a prequel to that one
I was glad knowing that I hadn’t lost anything from one film to the next.
Except that this film is not only a prequel but a sequel as well. The first 30
minutes or so sets the stage for what would be the first film but then moves to
events that transpire afterwards. In the end it doesn’t matter, nothing is lost
and the film can be enjoyed or not on its own terms.
The film opens with the tale of two sisters, one the evil
princess Ravenna (Charlize Theron) who poisons the king and then takes his
throne. Nearby is her sister Queen Freya (Emily Blunt), who takes on a lover
and bears a child. Ravenna bewitches the man into killing the child because of
a premonition provided her by her magic mirror. Freya is distraught, killing
the man and condemning herself to a life without love, something she intends to
eliminate from her entire kingdom.
Bound with her cold heart are her powers over cold as well.
She has her guards go out and capture children to serves as her special forces,
raised to be without love and as cold and calculating killers as she is herself.
But as the children grow love will surely find a way to some of them and it
does in the form of Eric (Chris Hemsworth), the Huntsman of the first film, and
Sara (Jessica Chastain), the two best members of the elite force Freya has
assembled. When word of their betrayal reaches her she orders them to run the
gauntlet of the group. Being the best there is they survive but Freya
interferes and raises a wall of ice between them, letting each see their worst
nightmares in the other before her guards take down Eric and toss him into a
nearby river. So ends the prequel.
Years later, and after the first film, the magic mirror once
used by Ravenna is being transported to a vault for safekeeping. Unfortunately
it is uncovered and those guarding it kill one another. Snow White sends word
to Eric via two of her dwarves to assist in recovering it which he eventually
comes around to doing, especially when he learns that Freya has her eye set on
the mirror to gain power.
The trio set out and are eventually attacked by Freya’s men.
Their salvation arrives in the form of Sara, still alive and filled with fury
for Eric abandoning her. Or so she thought. While his vision of her was her
death, the one Freya provided Sara was Eric abandoning her to save himself. As
they carry on to recover the mirror they go about trying to set things
straight. Along the way they meet two female dwarves who join in the adventure.
Several escapades, adventures and mishaps later the mirror
is recovered. Unfortunately Freya is nearby and takes control of the prized
possession. Captured and escorted to her castle along with the mirror, the real
magic involved in it is revealed and a battle for this world soon follows.
Crosses and double crosses occur, true feelings are on display and an end to
the long time battle follows involving all parties with the exception of the
missing Snow White (I’m guessing Kristen Stewart didn’t want to be involved).
Will true love win the day?
So the fact is there is plenty of story here to work with.
At times perhaps too much. What does work well, surprisingly, is the
combination of prequel/sequel. You never feel like you’re missing a part of the
story. Enough information is inserted to make it all plausible. But then there
are moments when you feel like okay, enough already, let’s move forward.
The film provides plenty of action mixed with decent doses
of humor making for a fun film. But in the end when all is said and done it
doesn’t feel like a great movie. It feels just sort of there, as if it was made
with good intentions but not a lasting quality that will make you want to watch
it more than once. Yes, I enjoyed it but will I want to revisit it again? I’m
not so sure I will. The performances are fine, the direction is fine and the
photography is well done. But the movie falls prey to one of the worst things
possible that seems to be a growing trend. It relies far too much of CGI
effects to the point where several items on display take forever to finish.
Trust me, a long flowing robe of liquid that solidifies into a character is not
exciting to watch, not done well enough to make it feel real and boring when
you get down to it. So why make it last seemingly forever.
Having grown up with the classic films of Ray Harryhausen I
am a great lover of all things special effects. But even Harryhausen knew not
to overuse them. And sequences that did used them and then move forward rather
than take forever for them to develop. The film makers here could have used
that sense of enough of a good thing. Rely on your actors, on your story and
less on the effects to tell your tale.
A good enough film, a solid evening’s entertainment, but as
for collecting this is one for fans of the stars and completest who want the
entire film collection on hand.
Click here to order.
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