Snow White survives the discourse – Catholic World Report

After months of online uproar branding the new Snow White everything from “woke heresy” to “committee-made mush,” I braced for impact.

So imagine my surprise when I found myself… enjoying it. Is it perfect? No. But is it a mess? Also no. It’s a visual spectacle with just enough heart to earn its happily-ever-after status.

The Mouse hasn’t exactly been a friend of tradition over the last decade or so, often reimagining its classics in ways that stir more debate than nostalgia. But with a story like Snow White, the heart of it—beauty, envy, danger, rescue, love—still shines through. It’s almost like God can draw straight, even with a quirky group of studio avant-garden types. No matter the update, the true love survives.

The new Snow White drags in the early scenes. There is a slow build before the story hits its stride. But once it does, the magic kicks in. Rachel Zegler may have stumbled (or worse) through the press tour, but on screen, she is Snow White. She brings sincerity and spark to the role, somehow making a line like “a place of fairness for all” feel like more than a Twitter—er, X—debate.

Beyond her star power, what makes this live-action version so appealing is the way it pays homage to the original 1937 animated cels—not just in story, but in visual echoes. The watching eyes carved into the dwarves’ staircase, the shadows they cast as they march off to “Heigh Ho”—these details recall the hand-drawn artistry that defined the thrill of early Disney.

That craftsmanship feels all the more fitting here, as the studio finally gives the live-action treatment to its signal classic—the one that started the entire enterprise (the original 1937 film was, for 55 years, the highest-grossing animated film).

The new songs by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul blend in well, adding a dash of wit while respecting the vintage score. Especially given the online umbrage, I thought I’d miss the excising of “Someday My Prince Will Come.” I didn’t. The new material feels right at home, striking a balance between nostalgia and update.

Gal Gadot’s Evil Queen is dry but imposing, and delivers statuesque, campy fun with a sweeping gown, scary tiara, and talons to shame Edward Scissorhands. And despite early rumors that the prince had been written out, Andrew Burnap makes for a strong male lead who comes across as genuinely princely when he wakes Snow White with a kiss. For all the apparent efforts to recast the story, it’s still a male savior who takes an arrow for her at the climax. Say what you will: deep down, Snow needs a man.

Sure, Disney makes some odd calls. The seven dwarves, rendered as CGI, are a problem. At one point, Grumpy even barks, “If you don’t hush, I’ll take this brush and shove it where the sun don’t shine”—a crass moment in what’s otherwise G-rated escapism. Then there’s “Good Things Grow,” the opening number that leans more socialist parable than fantasy musical.

As for the ensemble, it’s a classic case of diversity-by-committee. But in this stylized setting, it mostly works. The “merry band of rebels” is introduced as, yes, out-of-work actors, so it’s no surprise if a bit of West Coast messaging sneaks into the subtext of a fairy tale that is 109 minutes long.

But enough carping already. When Zegler twirls through the classic “Whistle While You Work,” and when confetti rains down in a finale that looks like a Disney princess threw a pop-up wedding in a West Elm showroom, even skeptics may catch themselves smiling.

The new Snow White may not be the fairest of them all. But it’s no poisoned apple either.

It’s fun, strange, and earnest—all while exuding that all-but-lost commodity: charm. Don’t be Bashful. It’s okay to go see it.