Film Facts:
Date Released: 1937
List of Characters: Snow White, Prince Charming ( Ferdinand/ Florian ), Evil Queen, Dopey, Bashful, Doc, Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy and Happy
Raking in Animated Feature Films: #1. This was Disney's first ever full length animated feature film.
Interesting Trivia:
The "special" Academy Award granted to the picture consisted of one regular sized award and seven smaller sized awards
Snow White is the youngest Disney Princess at the age of 14.
Other named considered for the dwarfs included Busy, Crabby, Daffy, Dumpy, Flabby, Helpful, Lazy, Scrappy, Sniffy, Snoopy, Stubby, Thrifty, and Wheezy.
The film's production took nearly five years. It took at least 570 crew members (some sources say 750), most of them animators or water-color artists. As many as 2 million sketches and paintings were created, though only about 166,000 of them can be seen in the finished film.
Dopey was initially conceived as a speaking character, but when the casting team could find no suitable actor to play him, the character was rewritten as mute.
Disney had initially budgeted the film between $150,000 and $250,000, but the final cost came to nearly $1.5 million
Lillian Disney, Walt’s wife, thought the movie would bomb.
Lucille La Verne, the voice of the Wicked Queen, was able to achieve the raspy Old Hag’s voice by removing her dentures.
19-year-old Adriana Caselotti voiced Snow White. Walt wanted to keep Snow White’s voice special, so he held Adriana to a very strict contract and she was never allowed to perform on stage or film again.
A short film sequel, titled Snow White Returns was planned. It never left the preproduction stage and no reason is known why Walt decided against making it.
The movie was one of Hitler’s personal favourites; he owned a copy and screened it in his home movie theatre.
What I like about the film:
The music/ songs: I really enjoy the romanticism of the music in this film it's so reminiscent of the classic Era of Hollywood especially the scene where Snow White and the dwarfs dance. The three older princess films - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty- all have musical scores that are filled with romantic strings, twinkling musical motifs and smooth melodies. I think that Snow White's soundtrack is one that is often overlooked and ignored because it is not as groundbreaking and revolutionary in terms of harmony, melody and rhythm as some of the later work done by the likes of Alan Menken and Tim Rice. However I appreciate the classic and traditional nature of Snow White's music/ score because it endorses the timeless fairytale themes of the film.
The aesthetic- Snow White has a certain earthy and natural quality to the aesthetics and visuals. Disney pays homage to the traditional fairytale iconography with grand castles and magical forests. I just really like the aesthetic of this film- it may not be vibrant or unique but it is definitely classic.
Snow White- Now I am well aware of the problematic representation of femininity evident in Snow White's character but I am not going to go into that because at the heart of it Snow White is a kind, selfless and commendable female character. I think a lot can be learned from Snow White's attitudes and her mindset and honestly I think it's pretty damn impressive that even when her stepmother tries to kill her she does not dwell on it, get angry or even allow herself a good sob. I mean she may not be typically strong but you've got to appreciate her mental attitude.
The Dwarfs- I love how classically slapstick the dwarfs are especially during the washing scene. They bring a lovely comic relief to the story and their scenes are always so fun to watch for me. They are so sweet and shy around Snow White and it's really sweet especially Dopey ( who is my favourite! ).
What I dislike about the film:
The Prince ( or lack thereof ) : It is a known fact that in his early days animating Walt Disney found male characters hard to animate so in his first film there is very little interaction with our famous Prince Charming. It's hard for us , as an audience, to become attached to a character we see so little of, and it's kind of unbelievable to most how in love Snow White and the Prince are when they met only once! That said I do enjoy what we do see of the Prince and personally I think he was given a really great solo.
The representation of Snow White: It is no secret that the representation of women in this film is highly problematic. Powerful women such as the Evil Queen are villianised and Snow White is depicted as helpless, weak and submissive. I could write a whole post about the representation of women in this film- and in fact I have written a dissertation on this topic and other Disney films- but let's just agree that women in this film are exactly shown how we would like them to be.
Lack of narrative/ character: With this being Disney's first animated feature I wouldn't expect the story telling to be excellent and the characters to be dimensional and well-rounded but I would like a bit more if this is ever to be remade ( which it's rumoured to be!). The film consists of a lot of visual storytelling through song/ music and there are a lot of extended sequences with characters like the dwarfs either in the mines or washing up. I would prefer if more time was spend on the story of Snow White rather than pointless scenes including dancing/ cleaning.
My Favourites:
Song: "With a Smile and a Song"
Character: Dopey
Location: The Dwarfs cottage
Moment: Either the happy ending or when Dopey goes for a second kiss off Snow White- it's so sweet!
Quote: "There's no use in grumbling when raindrops come tumbling. Remember you're the one who can fill the world with sunshine"
Disney Ratings:
Humour: 6/10
Moving?: 5/10
Characters: 6/10
Songs: 7/10
Story: 4/10
Aesthetic: 7/10
Happy Ending Rating: 6/10
Overall Rating: 6/10
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