Overall Rating:
Score: 8.5/10
Grade: A
Family-Friendliness Scale: Level 4 (Great)
Kids ages 5+
In a time where animation was limited to just shorts, people thought it was impossible for animation to be feature films.
Disney's adaptation of the tale is just like the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, with Snow White (Adriana Casseloti) being banished to the forest due to the Queen's (Lucille La Verne) cruel jealousy. Snow seeks refuge at the Seven Dwarfs' (Doc, Sneezy, Sleepy, Grumpy, Dopey, Happy, and Bashful) house, and she keeps house for them. But it isn't long until the Queen finds out where Snow is, and decides to kill her herself by turning into an old hag and making Snow eat a poisoned apple.
Positive Notes
Snow White has a great message about the importance of kindness. The character of Snow encourages us to dream about the things we desire, for she believes they will come true. While they only have one encounter, the Prince shows total devotion towards the princess. On another side note, the Queen, while wicked and heartless, does give us an example on how greed and selfishness can lead to one's own downfall. We also see solid examples on self-sacrifice and bravery from the dwarfs.
The animation is wonderful. I have the latest DVD re-issue, and it looks like the film was made in the 70's, not 1937. The classic cels have been cleaned with precision. The songs are memorable, including "Whistle While You Work", "Heigh Ho", and "Someday My Prince Will Come". The voice cast does a remarkable job at illustrating the characters' emotions, including Casseloti, La Verne, and many others.
The music score is great and the film includes a bunch of funny parts with the animals and the dwarfs. The camerawork (Disney invented the multi-plane camera for this film) and backgrounds are all expertly done.
Negative Notes
While aimed at children, Snow White still features a few scenes that 3 and 4 year olds might find frightening. Magic is in the mix, and we see the Queen use ingredients from a spell book to change her into an old hag, and to poison an apple. In her secret room we also see books on black magic and sorcery.
Conclusion
In order to bring this to life, Walt Disney hired artists during the Great Depression to try and make an animated feature a reality. If Snow White was a disaster, the Disney studio would've no longer existed. Critics were already panning it early on in production, and nicknaming the project "Disney's folly".
Well, thank goodness it didn't fail, then. But there's much more to Snow White than just the many things it achieved.
What we get is a true-blue story that is indeed an excellent choice for the entire family. Unlike today's "children's films", there is no language, adult content, or extreme violence. And while the magic and perhaps a few frightening moments can't be excused, the strong values of kindness and bravery are stuff that we rarely see in today's movies.
On a technical note, Snow White may just be the crowning achievement of Disney's success stories. Against all odds it blew everyone away, and today's animators and animation studios all owe a great deal of gratitude to this one film.
And the best thing is, even 75 years and a few generations later, it still undoubtedly remains a classic.
