Disney’s Snow White is a fresh retelling of the 1937 classic – Just don’t expect a Wicked Queen.
You can’t mention ‘Snow White’ in 2025 without the title being shrouded by controversy (some more important than others), but the film itself is not what the media has made it out to be.
One of the main controversies surrounding the film, which I found totally unnecessary, was the idea that this was a changed ‘Snow White’ where the prince wouldn’t save the day. This idea had loyal fans up in arms about the prospect of the story being changed. Still, in reality, this wasn’t completely the truth. Rachel Zegler’s ‘Snow White’ is the leading lady of this story and has her own character arc and development, but the film does not dramatically stray from its source material; with every key plot point, people were concerned about still being in the film. With the only big change is that the prince is now the bandit ‘Jonathon’ played by Andrew Burnap, which hardly alters the story.
To be totally honest, while Disney’s live actions are becoming overdone, I do believe they always add little improvements to the old stories we know and love without completely ruining them, which continues these tales for new generations, and I personally don’t have a problem with that.
My main critique seems to be the same as what many critics are saying, and that’s Gal Gadot’s portrayal of ‘The Evil Queen, ‘ which dragged the adaptation down from being great to good. I’ve always been a sucker for a good villain, i think its important that the audience feels as strongly about the villain as the characters did in the film, but it was hard to feel anything at all with Gadot’s Evil Queen. Unfortunately, there was zero emotion in any of her scenes, making her a deeply unserious and boring villain in an otherwise colourful story. Most of the cast were great, so this completely dragged the film and its reputation down.
Speaking of casting, I have to say how wonderful Rachel Zegler is in this role. I have been championing her for about 6 years now, and she is incredible in every film she does. Her vocals were incredible, and she gave a truly worthwhile performance alongside the supporting cast. I just need to see her in a musical movie where she truly gets to shine.
Finally, the music written by Pasek and Paul, who are known for their work on ‘The Greatest Showman, ‘ were catchy tunes. While this isn’t exactly the same as the music in the original, Zegler performed them beautifully and honestly; it’s an honour to hear her sing anything. If you were letting the idea of changes from the source material stop you from seeing it, I would recommend just going and experiencing it for yourself because, as far as Disney live-action adaptions go, this one isn’t bad.
Watch the Trailer here:
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