Movie review: ‘Snow White,’ a musical retelling
While not an exact portrayal of Disney’s classic film, the 2025 “Snow White” live-action remake offers viewers a thrilling and eye-catching musical experience with stellar vocals from Rachel Zegler and the rest of the cast.
Going into Disney’s “Snow White,” I was eager to see what Rachel Zegler and the rest of the cast brought to the live-action version of the first-ever Disney film. Aside from recently seeing Zegler portray the role of Juliet in her Broadway debut in “Romeo+Juliet” and thoroughly enjoying her voice, I had no expectations for this film. I had not seen any other projects containing the rest of its leading cast, but was looking forward to it as a long-time Disney fan. That said, when I was made aware that Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the songwriters who worked on “Dear Evan Hansen,” were attached, I had a strong feeling that I was going to enjoy it (from a musical perspective) — and I was right.
Photo by Jenna Clark
Within the first 30 seconds of experiencing “Waiting on a Wish” (one of the film’s original songs), my body was beaming with goosebumps, and tears of hope instantly filled my eyes. Zegler is an incredibly strong performer and vocalist, which is evident throughout the entire film. Although “Waiting on a Wish” was my favorite original song, I also liked the “Princess Problems” duet performed by Zegler and Andrew Burnap, who plays Jonathan. The classic songs are also good, but that’s to be expected.
Although I was looking forward to Gal Gadot’s performance, I was slightly underwhelmed by her musical number, “All is Fair.” While she has a strong voice, I kept wishing I was more engaged since it was such a visually captivating scene. All of that to say, she carries out an excellent portrayal of the Evil Queen in many of the other scenes and I appreciated her eye-catching wardrobe and accessories.
“Snow White” feels like a modern take on the original story with some nuances made from Disney’s 1937 animated film. One of the major changes is that Dopey talks. While I wasn’t expecting it, I like this choice for the contemporary version of the story. I also like that the seven magical creatures provide comedic relief and how each are a bit more active in showing audiences who they are with regard to their unique character traits. The emphasis on Grumpy to illustrate the impact of Snow White’s kindness is brilliant.
The only real downside to this film is its CGI (computer-generated imagery). While there’s no denying “Snow White” contains many vibrant and beautiful scenes (which I found to be very aesthetically and visually appealing), it almost looks too fake. It’s easy to tell when the scenes switch to being set in an actual forest. I prefer the cinematography of the on-location scenes, which look more authentic. I also felt more engaged when watching those scenes.
‘Snow White’ final thoughts
Although the theme of love is present throughout “Snow White,” I found it to be less of a film about love and one about having hope and courage while taking a stand for what is right. While I’m not sure I would see this film again (although I thoroughly enjoy it and think it’s especially worth the movie theater experience for Disney and musical theater fans), I know I will stream the soundtrack repeatedly for the next few months.
Score: 4/5
“Snow White” is rated PG and is in theaters March 21, 2025.
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