Walt Whimsy

Let us begin at the beginning, for that is the way of things:

Snow White & The Seven Dwarves (1937) [Special Guest Viewer Steve]

So, to explain briefly how we do things: we're going to have five categories that we rank, and then weight those scores in our secret Gravi-room (Patent Pending) to come up with the final score. Each film will also include a paragraph from the respective auteurs, and thoughts from any guest viewers. Allons y!

Soundtrack/Score/Music: 6.5 (out of 10)

Story/Screenplay/Narrative: 5.5

Characters/Characterization + Voice Acting: 9

Art Direction/Design: 10

Themes, Archetypes and Artistic Interpretation: 8.5

From RM:

I've always been under the impression that this movie has always been given unfair love because it was the Progenitor, the Creator/God, the All-Father of Disney film. All I really remembered of the film was that, the dwarves as a concept, and the grating, shrill soprano of S-Dubs herself.
I was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. Yes, Snow White's voice is grating, but not unbearable. And the animation deserves credit as not only impressive for the times, but there are water effects that are breath-taking by contemporary, CG standards. The Art Design and detail is impressive, and the Dwarves are a master's course in Commedia Dell'Arte.
That being said, despite a catchy tune or two, the score is not particularly memorable, and the plot (or what there is of it) is bunched together in ten minute clumps at the beginning and the end, with an hour and change of fluff (very enjoyable fluff, but fluff nonetheless) in the middle.
The Witch "as Lady Macbeth" is an interesting comparison, as well as the morality of the film being obvious but not oppressive. Overall, the film is well worth the hype, and a fine entry into the elite echelon of Disney canon.


From Wiry:

Hey, remember Enchanted? Apparently, the whole thing is basically the plot of Snow White parodied at great length. What's even more funner is to see the actual original thingimawhoosit itself, the Grand Poobah of the Disney canon. Ryan covered much of the general points above, and I don't really have much beef. Snow White's voice is indeed a terrifying force of nature, trumping even the lightning bolt that thoughtfully carbonates the Queen's potion before second-guessing itself and offing her on the rocky cliff.
I appreciate the darkness all over this film, from the cute little heart box the Queen just so happens to have ("You know, I found this thing at a garage sale but never quite knew what to put in it!") to the rapeforest (which turns out to all be in Snow White's head! They're cute animal friends, not doers of ill!) to the buzzards who swoop down to chow on the Queen carpaccio, the film definitely brings to the table the necessary Grimm elements that I think make a good fairy tale. Add on to that the fact that it opens and ends with a live-action book, which invites us to journey from the world of text to moving pictures, and you've got a great example of fairy-tale as full-length film. Really, we can't overstate enough the brains that went into creating this work of art. I mean, there's a reason certain images (the apple, the witch's eyes, and so forth) have stuck around so long.

Final Grade: B+

Final Rank:
1.) Snow White & The Seven Dwarves (duh.)

Next Week:
The Lion King (1994) &
Fun and Fancy Free (1947)