It’s official: Tarsem Singh has signed on to Relativity Media’s 3D (of course) version of The Brothers Gimms’ Snow White, scheduled to begin filming in March 2011. The news that Tarsem was offered the directorial job has been around for weeks, it just didn’t become official until The Wrap broke it yesterday.
As to how they’re going to adapt the classic story of poisoned apple eating, it’s been said it will be “an edgy, modernized re-imagining that will hew closely to the Grimms’ original German folk tale”.
Edgy is the right way to do this, if they’re wanting to stick close to the Grimm stories. The true non-Disney story is far more vicious than the animated classic most of us know, with such things as heated iron boots for the evil Queen’s punishment, heart eating and attempted child murder. Tarsem’s untitled film is still being aimed at a family audience (!), so how they’re going to keep that edgy, close-to-the-source angle will be interesting.
Also of note is that Relativity is wanting Natalie Portman for the Snow White role, while Tarsem is pushing more for an unknown – which may be the smartest route due to Portman’s schedule. Regardless of who they cast, a theoretically rougher 3D Snow White tale from a visually creative director might turn out to be a great thing after all.
11 comments
Yeah but isn't this the same sort of logic we had going in for Tim Burton's re-imagining of Alice in Wonderland? And we all saw how that one turned out…
Tarsem > Tim Burton.
Oh my god… I can't wait to see what he does with 3D! The Fall was so fucking gorgeous.
My interest in this film just went from 0-100 in one name. Tarsem is a visual genius!
Still trying to figure out what's so wrong with Burton's Alice…
#5: Try reading Carroll's Alice.
Yup. Have. But this movie is not an adaptation of Alice In Wonderland or Through The Looking Glass. It goes out of its way, more than once, to let you know that it's a continuation, or even a sequel to the events of those books. Yet people seem to be stuck on "that didn't happen!" and "why'd Burton change that?!" It's maddening.
The problem with the new ALICE is that while it goes it's "own" way, it also goes the same "way" as every other fantasy movie in the last ten years: a chosen one on another fucking quest to save another fucking kingdom. And it doesn't even do that basic plot very well! Tarsem will wipe the floor with Burton, if Relativity can stay out of his way.
Even though I liked The Cell myself, it's funny to see Tarsems name being equated with dog shit or Michael Bay to being lauded as a visual genius in the space of two films.
It's called the hero's journey, Velcro. Been around since humans could write. But I'm interested to hear exactly how you think it doesn't do it well. Also, I hadn't realized Tarsem & Burton were in competition with each other.
Yes, of course it's the hero's journey, but my points were these. (A) The hero's journey has been done to death in the last ten years, what with the rise of superhero and children's fantasy films. And (B) Burton's ALICE is a particularly flat and unimaginative and ugly take on the concept. That's all. Even if Tarsem's movie can't carry a plot, it'll at least be spectacular to look at.
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