Born from a drop of blood in a flutter of apple blossoms, and framed in ebony, a young girl named Snow White becomes the blessing of a loving peasant couple, John and Josephine. But with her birth comes a curse and the end of her mother's life. Left alone with an infant daughter, John braves a brutal winter in search of food for his starving angel. Salvation comes unexpectedly when the father's tears melt the frozen tomb of a bewitched creature, the Green-Eyed One. In thanks, the insinuating beast grants John three wishes: nourishment for Snow White, a kingdom in which to raise his family and a queen by his side. But John's cause for celebration is short-lived. For the Green-Eyed One has devious plans for the well-being of his own family. Owing his loathsome spellcasting daughter, Elspeth, a long-awaited wish, he encourages her desires for appointment to the throne. A kingdom to rule is hers for the waiting, the new King John is hers for the belittling and a luscious little stepdaughter named Snow White, is hers to toy with and destroy at will. The castle awaits. A looking glass is calling. And a fairy tale like no other begins...
Don't expect to plunk your 4-year-old in front of Hallmark's Snow White and have her come away whistling "Heigh Ho"--it's not that kind of movie. Substitute a kingdom of woeful and broody characters (the fairest-of-them-all contenders and their king, plus a green and warty undead guy) for Sleepy, Sneezy, and company, and the picture, a bleak one, becomes clearer. Call it Snow White noir, but don't call it dull. The actors, including Miranda Richardson and Tom Irwin, suck you into their saga of lust and greed by making despair their specialty, and the visuals crackle with a creepy gorgeousness. Writer-director Caroline Thompson sheared this Brothers Grimm adaptation into shape using the same jagged-edged prettiness she brought to the script for Edward Scissorhands; a similar audience--one that can handle a little less light in its darkness--should stick around for Snow White.