Blancanieves (2012)

Pablo Berger has done a fantastic job of bringing a bygone era to our doorstep.The lighting, photography and script is easily one of the best I have seen this decade.

The film soars like a phoenix into a clear blue sky, out of the filth of mediocrity. Excellent acting skills by all the actors; the director somehow managed to keep the movie flowing effortlessly from one scene to the next. I was sick and tired of watching Hollywood and British movies with its crappy dialogues, horrible acting and mediocre script.

Its a relief to see a movie devoid of talk and watch the actors coping with facial and body expression to the best of their abilities, breathing life to the movie.

Make sure you don't miss this movie; its sure to light up even the darkest days of your life.

Fmovies: Laden with awards; entered as Best Foreign Language Film for the 2013 Oscars; it seems rather churlish to criticize Pablo Berger's silent retelling of the Snow White myth, bearing strong visual and stylistic parallels to Michel Hazanavicius's THE ARTIST (2011).

And yet the film's overall impact is reduced by an uncertainty of tone. There are sequences of quite graphic violence - notably at the beginning, when bull-fighter Antonio Villalta (Daniel Giménez Cacho) is gored by the bull; or when the infant Carmencita (Sofía Oria) is force-fed roast chicken by the evil Doña Concha (Ángela Molina), the remains of her once-faithful pet Pepe. Such moments exist uneasily with the comedy of the adolescent Carmen (Macarena García) as she joins up with the bull-fighting dwarfs, who tour the country with a specialty act. Then there is the problem of the ending which is positively necrophiliac in tone. Perhaps director Berger wants to make a veiled comment on the ways in which innocence is at once cherished yet abused in contemporary societies, but the sudden shifts of tone prove uneasy.

On the other hand, BLANCANIEVES contains some stunning individual sequences, attesting to the director's abilities as a filmmaker; for example, the use of dissolves unifying past with the present, as the dead Antonio continues to affect Carmen's life, even after he has been thrown down the stairs by Doña Concha; or the moment when Doña Concha meets a grisly end at the bull-fighting venue, gored to death by an angry bull. The use of shadows to suggest violence in this latter sequence is memorable.

As a piece of silent movie-making, BLANCANIEVES is hard to fault. Berger understands how one image is worth a hundred words, and keeps the dialogue to a minimum. Rather he relies on the gestural versatility of his cast to communicate emotions - a task they embrace with relish. Add to that the snappy editing, with a plot that positively zips by, and one can see why this remake of Snow White proves so diverting. If it wasn't for those tonal shifts ...

Snow White with flamenco and bulls.

The outdoor, hilltop venue undoubtedly added to the allure. The screen was hung on the castle wall on Barcelona's Montjuic and the orchestra was live. The flamenco songs were performed by a singer with a soaring voice standing under the screen. But this was just extras and Blancanieve is well worth watching without it. The music is transporting and the stunning B&W photography alone makes it worth while.

Wonderful entertainment and deeply satisfying.

Just go see it.

Blancanieves fmovies. Beautifully shot , memorable roles and wonderful cinematography mark this special adaptation ¨Snow White¨ , being realized in ¨The artist¨ style . It is set in 1920s Seville . On the day Carmen was born , her father named Antonio Villalta (Daniel Gimenez Cacho) suffered a Toreo accident, and her mummy named Carmen De Triana died (Imma Cuesta) in childbirth . Her dad bullfighter quickly remarries a nurse , Encarna , (Maribel Verdú came aboard in 2006 after a conversation with Berger and stuck with it) , but the little girl is rejected by her father . Raised by her grandmother (Angela Molina) during her early years, Carmen went to live with Encarna while a teenager , but her Stepmom treated her as a slave . Many years later , the daughter meets her wheel-chaired and disabled daddy . The Stepmom/Stepdauther battle increases and the unbalanced and wrathful Stepmom orders her lover (Pere Ponce) Carmen's death . Carmen (Macarena Garcia) escapes and a group of bullfighting dwarfs save the life of young girl with amnesia . Only she's rescued by seven outcast dwarfs living in a carriage and acting by means of bullfighting spectacles .

Sensitive silent film full of good feeling , haunting mood-pieces , wonderful scenes and sense of wonder . This is a special adaptation of the Grimm Brothers fairy tale about the fairest them all . A twist on the Snow White fairy tale that and centered on a female bullfighter and definitely puts the grim in the Grimm Brothers version of the fairy tale . Colorful picture though filmed in Black and White , including marvelous frames , being mostly filmed at Sevilla, Andalucía, Aranjuez, Madrid, Pedraza , Segovia, Vilanova i la Geltrú, , Mataro , Barcelona, Catalonia , including sunny outdoor scenes . This extraordinary flick spells through intricate patterns of images , sets , sound and photography . In addition , a magnificent main cast as Maribel Verdu , Daniel Gimenez Cacho , Macarena Garcia and splendid support cast of known and prestigious players as Pere Ponce , Imma Cuesta , Ramon Barea , Angela Molina , among others . Splendid , luxurious photography with juicy atmosphere by Kiko De La Rica , it was shot on color film stock and desaturated to black & white in post-production . Moving and emotive musical score by Alfonso De Vilallonga who replaced Alberto Iglesias when he proved unavailable due to prior commitments.

There are other versions about this marvelous tale , as the classic animated rendition was ¨Snow White¨ (1937) , being the definitive rendition by Walt Disney ; ¨Snow White¨(1989) by Michael Berz with Diana Rigg , Billy Barty and Sarah Patterson , plus ¨Snow White a tale of terror¨ (1997) by Michael Cohn with Sigourney Weaver , Sam Neill and Monica Keena . The best adaptations result to be ¨Snow White¨ by Walt Disney and this ¨Blancanieves¨ or Snow White by Pablo Berger .

This touching picture will appeal to Spanish films buffs ; being deservedly the official submission of Spain to the Best Foreign Language Film of the 85th Academy Awards 2013, and won European Film Award , Best Costume Designer to Paco Delgado and several Gaudí Awards . Furthermore , achieved Goya prizes as Won Goya : Best Actress , Maribel Verdú , Best New Actress , Macarena García , Best Costume Design , Best Cinematography , Kiko De La Rica , Best Original Score , Alfonso de Vilallonga , Best Screenplay , Pablo Berger , Best Original Song , Best Make-Up and Hairstyles , Best Production Design , Best New Actor, Emilio Gavira , Best Special Effects : Reyes Abades , F

Blanca Nieves, or Snow White, is a variation on the old fable, with bullfighting being a major thematic difference. A great matador is seen praying in front of a statue of the Virgin Mary, as he awaits is battle with el toro. He enters to a worshippig crowd, which includes his pregnant wife cheering him on. Of course, things go horribly wrong and he ends up in a wheelchair and his better half has a difficult childbirth. A daughter is born and she winds up at an estate with a wicked stepmother, as in the original tale. This is all in black and white and it is also a silent film. I was reluctant to watch it, but once I got used to the placards used for dialogue, I was carried along by the story. Carmen, the little girl, grows up and circumstances bring her to a group of; you guessed it, seven bullfighters. They are little people, in keeping tradition with Grimm's book. I won't give away the ending, but I was thoroughly entertained by Blanca Nieves. The cinematography is beautiful and the acting excellent throughout. Be open minded, as far as watching a silent movie is concerned, and you will not be disappointed.

Although The Artist, the first Best Picture winner I've agreed with in a long time, took the mainstream by storm of its silent film renaissance style, Blancanieves is a similar revivial, if not as self-referential, and is on par with The Artist. Silent cinema in the modern age feels like it offers a brand new way of expressive cinema and Blancanieves is oozing with expression. With textured black and white shots and energetic editing, it's a rush of raw inspiration, making full use of the frame. With such a timeless story, there's a risk of it being a complete retread, but Blancanieves tells it in such a refreshing and unpredictable way in which I was constantly looking for the famous plot points and then pleasantly surprised me when it's revealed which character is playing what role. It's a film with such a warmth for the characters and builds their relationships in a great archetypal way. With its great pace, it hits story beats efficiently and I was never bored and always caught off guard with its reinventions, with the bullfighting angle implemented seamlessly. The highlight is the fantastic score, which also rivals The Artist, with its variety of styles, the best parts being when it has flamenco influences. Blancanieves is a very entertaining and tragic rendition of a great story that avoids sentimentality all the way. Although it winds down a little in the last third where it's run out of steam too much to develop the seven dwarfs fairly, its highs are still strong. One of the best the year has to offer and rivals Disney's own Snow White.

9/10