Quick Movie Review: The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016)

If you're one of the people who thought there needed to be a sequel to a film that was already adding nothing really new to the lore of Snow White, then at least you saw the first film. If you didn't see the first film, then you're in luck because you don't have to in order to watch this one. This prequel/sequel is only cosmetically related to 2012's Snow White and the Huntsman.

I mean that in both a good way and a bad way. The two films share some of the same cast--Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Nick Frost--but feels weighed down by the fact that its predecessor wasn't at all as amazing as its trailer lead us to believe.

But let's, for a moment, judge this movie solely on its own being, and not based on how necessary it is or the demerits of its predecessor.

The first installment ends the same way all Snow White adaptations end, except for there being an ambiguous endearment between Snow White and Eric the Huntsman (Hemsworth).

Snow White isn't in this movie. She's mentioned and silhouetted, but basically omitted. Which is fine. She was probably the worst part of the first one anyway.

Even better, we get a couple of cool additions to the cast in Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain--both of whom do a superb job in their respective roles of the Snow Queen and Sara, the huntsman's wife.

When I say this installment acts as a prequel AND a sequel, it means that it shows the origins of how Eric becomes the huntsman and how he meets Sara, but then flashes forward 7 years after she dies (we know this from the first film).

The sequel portion of the story has the huntsman setting out on a journey to find the magic mirror, which Snow White sends away after it starts making her go crazy and homicidal. This is where the plot gets hairy. It's never clear why the mirror is making her mad, nor how she has the consciousness to send it away, nor why the huntsman needs to retrieve it even though Snow White wants it gone to begin with.

The magic mirror is a MacGuffin in the worst sense. Not only do we not need it as a plot device, but we're not even really sure why it's a plot device. There could've been a more sensible reason why Eric and the dwarves set out on their quest.

The action sequences are, at times, ridiculous and silly--over-saturated with shaky cam so you just accept what's happening. But the thing is, we would've been just as fine without the nausea.

There's plenty of levity from the dwarves, played by Frost and Rob Brydon. The jokes are a fairly even mixture of both hits and misses. But it's okay, at least it keeps the movie fun and not too self-aggrandizing. That is, until it wants to be self-aggrandizing. Jarring tonal shifts and an overly jokey Hemsworth all of a sudden make us confused about what feel we're supposed to be getting.

Truth is, I can't think of a good enough reason not to like this movie. I find it entertaining. There's a lot of meandering somewhere in the middle of the story. The journey to the mirror isn't half as exciting as it should be. Nonetheless, The Huntsman tops its predecessor, not on essentiality, but on a unique premise.

Twizard Rating: 79

Quick Movie Review: Into the Woods (2014)

With having no familiarity with the stage version of this musical, you will find no comparisons here.

The bulk of the enjoyment of this film lies within the first 2 acts. It's paced swiftly, it's really funny, and the cast is fun to watch. It may have been short on surprises and alarming conflicts, but it's enjoyable.

While ending on a satisfying note at the end of the 2nd act with a false victory, you begin thinking to yourself that it was almost too easy--there has to be more. There is.

This is where the film goes down hill a little. Although providing us with a lot more drama, the conflict doesn't really match up with the first part of the movie.

If the characters weren't already not set in stone in the first 2/3s of the film, it becomes confirmed in the 3rd act. Heading that opinion is the fact that the Baker's wife (who is 1/2 of the main protagonist) and Cinderella's husband have an affair with each other--a tidbit that Cinderella doesn't seem all that phased with. We grow to like their characters, only to have it all thrown out the window in one scene towards the end of the movie. Although many may think that frolicking around with someone other than your spouse is humorous, it tends to make me uncomfortable.

In fact, the whole film sort of revolves around and makes light of materialism and superficiality. Every character's motivation is driven by directly obtaining materialistic goods--except for the Baker, who just has to obtain materialistic goods in order for he and his wife to have a child. His wife, however, seems to enjoy the hunt more than the ultimate ends. These nuances are subliminal, but evident enough to question the film's motives.

Then something finally happens that leads me to believe that this film has some sort of conscience. The remaining characters discuss the idea of not actually killing the giant. But then they decided to do so anyway, when in fact the giants were never in the wrong at all. It would be like if some kid robbed my house and I went chasing after him while the town helped him kill me and my wife. Something's wrong with that.

After a bunch of characters die, you get to see how the film is probably going to conclude. And although I can appreciate the intent of the last 3 minutes of this movie, it is very jarringly uneven from the first half. The 3rd act just seems thrown together and scatterbrained, when it should have been more purposeful.

Another note: the Baker never finds out that Rapunzel is his sister. Weird.

Twizard Rating: 74