Goldencat Freelancing

What I liked: -You could follow the storyline, even though it departed from the modern versions of Snow White. - The characters were distinct and not overly stereotypical - The cinematography was really good, and the use of color was engaging and overall tasteful. (Specifically, the outfits and jewelry on the evil queen and the rendering of the dwarves and their home, and especially when they were in their mind and lighted it up, and it kind of resembled the dwarf city in Lord of the rings) - It has a happy ending, thankfully, but not entirely satisfying for a number of reasons I will address below. - I appreciate there was no rude humor or gore in the presentation which so many “modern “cartoons or live animation remake insert such as the new Lilo and stitch movie that’s coming out… And I don’t plan to see it because of crude humor, and occasional mean spiritedness that was not in the original cartoon. There is more unpleasantness in this version of Snow White than in the original Disney cartoon. Viewers should be aware of that, and that there is a description in the credit saying that the grim fairy tale’s version was also used as a resource. Did not like: - The “inclusive “ - Motivated changes to the characters and the storyline. I was very uncomfortable with the dwarf Dopey being presented as someone with an autistic spectrum disorder, making him mute and self-conscious. I don’t think that that’s really teaching kids positive values about including others. Although it does get resolved Nicely we should remember Inclusiveness is complex and very situational. In my opinion as a counselor, that’s just not something you drop on kids that are third grade and younger. (Just looking at developmental stages of typical children. You should be learning by example from your parents and other role models) - I did not like the addition of Robin Hood style bandits helping the princess. - Did not like most of the songs except the traditional ones like “hi ho hi ho” and the ever-popular “whistle while you work “. - I’m glad they didn’t make it “gray “ Storytelling (Blurring the lines of good and evil ) And try to sow sympathy for the evil stepmother! - It lacked a powerful climax. It was just a dull ending with a relatively wimpy queen and unsatisfying confrontation between her and Snow White. - we really don’t know what happens to the evil queen after she runs back into the castle when her guards side with Snow White. - Did not care for the role of the animals in the story which were more animatronic than realistic . I think a remake in a cartoon version would’ve handled this better. I don’t understand why people have reviewed it so badly but it’s definitely not what I expected as a musical! The music is nowhere of the caliber of the songs in the lion King, for example. They’re not the kind you want to sing along with and play in the car. And there’s really nothing memorable about any of The characters. Mediocre but not terrible. It doesn’t insult your IQ or glorify bad morality, or humor at the expense of others. So I think that puts it ahead of most of the offerings in the theaters right now.

Liked pretty much everything. It is true to the Chinese culture that underlies the story both in characters and scenery. Timeless story about growing up and following your true talents while honoring your family and responsibilities. That is something American cartoons are woefully short on these days. (Honor and traditional values/and family duty) The protagonist is never disrespectful toward his father even though he disagrees with the strict demands of protecting the sheep as his life goal. The father realistically struggles with his love for his son and desire for happiness for his son but the need for a new protector for the village when he retires. He represents the Chinese father figure very well. The scenes with the wolf gangsters are also realistic similar to Mafia. There is no blood or wanton violence like you tend to see in anime. Hooray for that! The other characters although modeled after some famous people are engaging humorous and add to the story. If you are familiar with the celebrity tours in Hollywood you will understand a lot of the built-in jokes. For example security around the rock stars mansion. No nudity no cussing no blood no gratuitous violence and no hidden agendas by the makers of the film that I could tell. There is no sexual innuendo either. The characters do not get killed off. That also puts it above many of the newer cartoon movies in America. It has a positive ending and no tragedy. I consider it a must for the home video library or a good donation to your library.