Disney has outdone itself with another live action of a beloved classic. The new live action Snow White was released to theaters on March 21, 2025
By: Gianna Liantonio
I went to see the new Snow White movie and I was amazed. They kept the elements of the original story, but added so much more depth to the characters and overall story.
The movie starts when Snow White was born and her relationship with her parents. I was happy they showed Snow White’s mom since in the originals, we never see either parent or know what happened to them. The first musical number, “Good Things Grow,” was so beautifully done with the choreography and lyrics. It showed how united the kingdom and the village were with the kindness and generosity of the King and Queen, and how that shines in Snow White as well.
After the mother died, that is when the Evil Queen, played by Gal Gadot, came in and took over. She sent the father on a mission which was just a ploy to make him leave so she could be the only ruler. She kept Snow White trapped behind the palace gates and cut her long hair, essentially snipping away her freedom and spirit. She grew up isolated with no contact with anyone outside, causing the people in the village to assume the princess is no longer there.
I liked that we see more of Snow’s life before and how she grew up in the castle. With all the live actions such as Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, we see more of the story than what we have gotten in the originals.
We then see Snow White, played by Rachel Zegler, grown up and trying to find who she used to be before the Evil Queen reigned. She sings “Waiting on a Wish,” as she realizes she can not bring the kingdom back to how it was before, but her hope starts to break through again. Zegler is a phenomenal singer and brought so much emotion to the song. She has been hidden away with only the necklace her father gave her, but she believes that she can save everyone and restore the now dark kingdom to the one that shined bright before. Snow White was still kind, generous and always putting people first, but also has a fire burning bright inside her, bringing more to her character. She never gave up in the fight to get her kingdom back by still keeping her values.
Snow White gets taken into the forest and the huntsman ordered to kill her, spares her and tells her to run as far away as possible. The dark forest sequence was so well done, so hauntingly brilliant with the trees moving, branches grabbing her and every shadow stepping out. I always liked the idea that the forest looked this way because Snow White has never been out of the kingdom, so her first venture out would be terrifying.
I was surprised when the Evil Queen started to sing. I have never heard Gal Gadot sing, but she sang “All is Fair” beautifully. She had the right amount of sinister in her voice, showing that her character is strictly evil with only one goal: stay the fairest of them all.
I loved that they kept the iconic songs from the original such as “Whistle While You Work” and “Heigh ho”. The dwarves were CGI, but were so funny and had all the funny quirks that they have always had. The bond they formed was so beautiful, seeing how much the dwarves grew to care for Snow White, and how she grew to love them.
Jonathan, played by Andrew Burnap, was a bandit who said he worked for the king. Him and his group of bandits refuse to bow to the Evil Queen, hoping for things to go back to how they were. Snow White first met Jonathan in the castle when he was caught stealing. When the Evil Queen caught him, he was tied up, but Snow White set him free. They met once again in the forest and started to grow closer. It was interesting they made him a bandit and not a prince, but I still loved their relationship. They both were natural born leaders who fight for what they believe in. I liked his song “Princess Problems”. It was humorous and light hearted, while also expressing how they came from different worlds, but they realized how alike they are in their ambitions.
They shared a song at the cottage called, “A Hand Meets A Hand” which further showed their feelings blossoming for one another. Their voices blended so well together, and their eyes told everything with how they felt.
When Jonathan sets out to take down the queen, he gets captured and locked up in the dungeon. This is when the Evil Queen prepares her disguise and poisons the apple. You all know what happens next.
After Snow White bites the apple, she is found by the dwarves and then later by Jonathan who valiantly escapes. He kisses Snow White and she wakes up, showing what they have is true love. With Jonathan and the seven dwarves, they march back to the kingdom to take it back from evil reign. Snow White has a stand down with the queen and she wins, restoring the kingdom back to how it should be.
They sing a reprise of “Good Things Grow” showing how much happier everyone is now that Snow White is back and in control. I liked that they made them take back the kingdom rather than in the original where we just see Snow White go to the prince’s kingdom. I do love the original, but this was just as good.
Everything from beginning to end was amazing. I enjoyed every minute from the songs, choreography, characters and the beautiful setting. Everything was so colorful with the costumes as well. I had speculation on this movie from what people were saying, but this exceeded my expectations. They did this movie justice and added to the ever growing collection of live action movies.
I definitely recommend seeing this movie some time soon!
