#schneewittchen 1961

[wendyius666]

A list of movies/shows based on the 'Snow white' fairytale! Part 1

(I haven't seen all the movies/shows so i apologize in advance if there is something inappropriate)

Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)

Snow White (1987)

Schneewittchen (1961)

Snow White (1995)

Snow White: The Fairest of Them All (2001)

Snow White: A Tale of Terror (1997)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

Snow White (1990)

Happily Ever After (1989)

Blanche Neige (2009)

Snow White (1916)

Grimm's Snow White (2012)

Snow White: The Mysterious Father (2015)

Snow White and the Three Stooges (1961)

Schneewittchen und die sieben Zwerge (1955)

Mirror Mirror (2012)

I sette nani alla riscossa (1951)

Skazka o myortvoy tsarevne i o semi bogatyryakh (1951)

The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962)

Osenniye kolokola (1979)

The Charmings (1987–1988)

The Magic Riddle (1991)

Schneewittchen und das Geheimnis der Zwerge (1992)

The Legend of Snow White (1994–1995)

Willa: An American Snow White (1998)

In Dreams (1999)

The 10th Kingdom (2000)

Pretear (2001–2003)

7 Zwerge (2004)

7 Zwerge - Der Wald ist nicht genug (2006)

[princesssarisa]

Live action Snow Whites of past years (not a complete list, but almost)

*Hélène Du Montel, 1910 French silent film

*Marguerite Clark, 1916 Famous Players silent film

*Aimee Ehrlich, 1916 Educational Films silent film

*Elke Arendt, 1955 German film

*Inge Kanzler, 1959 German film

*Carol Heiss, Snow White and the Three Stooges, 1961

*Doris Weikow, 1961 German film

*Zeynep Değirmencioğlu, 1971 Turkish film

*Maresa Hörbiger, 1971 German short

*Mary Jo Salerno, Snow White Live at Radio City Music Hall, 1980

*Elizabeth McGovern, Faerie Tale Theatre, 1984

*Sarah Patterson, Cannon Movie Tales, 1987

*Natalie Minko, Schneewittchen und das Geheimnis der Zwerge, 1992

*Monica Keena, Snow White: A Tale of Terror, 1997

*Camryn Manheim, The 10th Kingdom, 2000

*Kristin Kreuk, Snow White: The Fairest of Them All, 2001

*Laura Berlin, Sechs auf einen Streich, 2009

*Ginnifer Goodwin, Once Upon a Time, 2011

*Lily Collins, Mirror, Mirror, 2012

*Kirsten Stewart, Snow White and the Huntsman, 2012

*Tijan Marei, Märchenperlen, 2019

@ariel-seagull-wings, @thealmightyemprex, @themousefromfantasyland, @the-blue-fairie, @the-dark-storybook-prince

[u-mspcoll]

Get Those Books Moving : Part 4

Summer 2023 Cathleen A. Baker Fellow Katarina Stiller worked on treatments for pop-up books from the William A. Gosling Pop-up and Movable Books Collection --- part of our Children's Literature Collection.

Here are Schneewittchen (1961) and Rotkäppchen (1960) --- both illustrated by Vojtěch Kubašta and published by Carlsen Verlag GMBH --- before and after treatment!

After treatment! Schneewittchen (1961)

After treatment! Rotkäppchen (1960)

[fairytalemovies]

Schneewittchen, 1961

[ariel-seagull-wings]

TOP 12 WICKED QUEEN PORTRAYALS

@sunlit-music​ @mademoiselle-princesse​ @princesssarisa​ @superkingofpriderock​ @metropolitan-mutant-of-ark​ @amalthea9​ @theancientvaleofsoulmaking​ @astrangechoiceoffavourites​ @giuliettaluce​ 

Alongside the Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella’s Stepmother, The Giant from Jack and The Beanstalk, The Witch from Hansel and Gretel and Bluebeard, The Wicked Queen from Snow White is one of the most iconic fairy tale villains of all time. A lot of people come to consider her the real protagonist of the fairy tale, since is her desire to be considered the Fairest of All and her actions to keep that title what puts the narrative in motion. And today, i will rank my favorite portrayals of this fascinatingly nasty foe.

12º Miranda Richardson as Queen Elspeth in Snow White: The Fairest of Them All (2001)

Talk about being typecast: before that turn as Snow White’s Evil Queen, Richardson had portrayed an Evil Sorceress Queen and Stepmother in Jim Henson’s The Storyteller (’The Three Ravens’ episode) and she was a wicked Sorceress Stepmother in Tim Burton’s Sleep Hollow. So it was neat for her to be called for the role of the most famous Evil Sorceress Queen and Stepmother in this Hallmark TV Movie. Elspeth is the sister of a strange, mysteryous creature known as the Granter of Wishes. Having been recently released from his freezing prison, the Granter of Wishes makes a spell to make her look beautifull for human standards, and marries her to the newly crowned and widowed King John. At first she looks content with the prospect, but as time passes, she grows more and more unsatisfied. Her source of joy is the Magic Mirror that praises her beauty, and casting spells to turn gnomes into garden statues. But when the Magic Mirror says that Snow White’s beauty surpasses hers, the unsatisfaction gets mixed with paranoia, and Elspeth slowly abuses her power in constantly harming other people, until there is no magic enough...

11º Herta Kravina in Schneewitchen (1971)

This german TV Movie is the most faithfull adaptation of the Grimm’s tale original edition, not only keeping the three murder attempts by ribbon/lace/corset, hair comb and apple, but also being the only one to show the Queen dancing to death with hot iron shoes in Snow White’s wedding. This is enough to make it worth a checkout. The other reason i find this version interesting is how the Queen comunicates with the Magic Mirror: they sing to each other. And Kravina has a really good voice (no wonder she was a voice actress for Peggy Lee in the first german/dutch dub of Disney’s Lady and The Tramp). Sometimes that is enough to get a spot in a ranking.

10º Mari Yokoo/Caterina Rochiara/Regina Reagan/Carol Jacobanis as Queen Crystal in The Legend of Snow White (1994)

From the outside, Queen Chrystal appears to be calm, regal, and sophisticated, but in reality, this collected and stately facade hides an extremely sadistic, hateful, cold and sinister person. She is ruthless, jealous and obsessive and wants nothing more than to be the fairest in the land. She also has an extreme vanity that made her utterly intolerant of rivals. Being solely focused on the idea of becoming the fairest of all, Queen Chrystal does not appear to be significantly involved in governing her husband's kingdom, though the skeletal remains of prisoners in her dungeon point to her being a villainous ruler. In the end, her mad vanity and jealousy of her stepdaughter Snow White drove her to murderous insanity. Later is revealed that Queen Chrystal is not unredeamably evil as everyone thins, but an actually kind and gentle person who is possessed by an Evil Spirit. 

09º Diana Rigg as the Queen in Canon Movie Tales: Snow White (1987)

This lady is the personification of paranoia multiplied by the double. Why? Because the Magic Mirror didn’t needed to say that the little child Snow White was the fairest, this queen just feared so much that the princess’s beauty would outgrow hers that she ordered the huntsman to kill her. Basically: run, she is bad news.

08º Jeri Arredondo as Sly Fox in Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child (1995)

Sly Fox... What a cunning diva. People try to counsel to not use alone a Magic Mirror that is a portal to the spirit world, but who says she listens? She is just there to hear the singing of her praises, and will try to eliminate anyone who gets on her way. She even goes so far as taking the appearance of the kind hearted nurse Sage Flower to lure her stepdaughter White Snow to eat the poisoned appled. What is not to love about that bastard?

07º Kazue Komiya/Arlene Banas as the Queen in Grimm’s Fairy Tale Classics (1989)

Interestingly this encarnation starts naturally cold, calm and collected, ocasionally at the princess Snow White to see if she can ever grow more beautifull than her, and dismissing the girl with contempt. It is years later that she lets go of acting calm and collected, because after hearing some gossips in the palace, she asks Snow White if she thinks of herself as more beautifull than the Queen, and her stepdaughter reacts by exclaiming that the Queen is vain and cruel, and to her eyes that makes her ugly. So besides the desire of being considered the most beautifull, you get the feeling that this Queen pursues Snow White as a way to shut a person that dares to rebell against her, wich ads new interesting dimentions to their antagonism.

06º Dorothy Cumming as Queen Brangomar in Snow White (1916)

Brangomar was once a lady in waiting of the palace. But one day, she met the powerfull Witch Rex, who offered to give Brangomar anything she wanted. And what Brangomar wanted was to become a beautifull Queen. Wich was achieved by a faustian deal where Witch Rex would cast a spell that killed Imogene, the previous Queen, while in return Brangomar would have to find a way of getting Snow White’s heart for the Witch. Years have passed, and now Brangomar  must kill the princess to pay her debt, or else everything she got will be lost. Hey, here is a way of making a villain tragic, almost simpathetic and complex while keeping clear that she is still a villain!

05º Vanessa Redgrave as the Queen in Faerie Tale Theatre (1984)

The most loud and bombastic portrayal of the Wicked Queen ever put on screen. Bringing to television her sperience from stage, that allows some more over the top emotional reactions, Redgrave had the time of her life in that role, indulging in twirling, preening and screening as much as she could, and his Queen is all the most fun for it.

04º Gudrun Landgrebe as the Queen in Schneewittchen (1992)

What i live about Landgrebe’s Queen is her range: at first she acts all humble, discreet, cold and mysteryous. Then her husband leaves to fight in a Crusade, and she trows the white veil and gray clothing of humility to show a diva red hair and orange dress, as to say “Hey, the King leaved, i have all the power here now and you must do as i say”. Later, a knight comes, offering a magical crystal ball that connected to a mirror says all the truth, and the Queen takes posession of it to ask about her beauty. When Mirror says that the most beautifull woman in the kingdom is Snow White, she gets infuriated, than goes to carefully plan ways to eliminate the princess once and for all. The highlight is when she takes the disguise of a russian male doctor to offer the apple (where she injects poison into with her ring) to Snow White.

03º Maria Antonieta de Las Nieves in El Chapulin Colorado: Blancanieves y los Siete Churín Churín Fun Flais (1978)

This three part episode of the mexican comedy superheroe show is a loving parody of the Disney version, that stands out as an enjoyable retelling of the classic fairy tale in its own right. Interestingly, while most of the comedy in the episode is delivered in the form of over the top slapistick, de Las Nieves’s delivers a straight faced, contained performance. Wich makes her answers to the absurd situations in the story all the more funny.

02º Patricia Medina as the Queen in Snow White And The Three Stooges (1961)

This lady was a hell of a foe: she not only antagonizes Snow White for the title of the Most Beautifull, going so far as to lock the princess in a dungeon for no crime at all, but also, alongside her partner in crime Count Oga, ordered a murder attempt aggainst Prince Charming when he was a child, to prevent him from marrying Snow White, and this way she could become ruller of the kingdoms of Fortunia and Bravuria. Troughout the film, you think that she could win, since she has powerfull magic, spy and a mighty army at her comand, wich makes the viewer get all the more excited on the seat, that is how enjoyable Medina’s Queen is.

And my Number One Portrayal of the Wicked Queen is...

01º Lucille La Verne as the Queen in Disney’s Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (1937)

The first encarnation of the character that i ever saw in my childhood, and the one that still sends chills/shivers to my spine. As a young Queen, she rarely smiles, acting cold and calculating, intidimidating who is subordinate to her with the expression of her eyes and highbrows. And as a Crone, she lowdly indulges in her cruelty, offering the poisoned apple to her pet raven to scare him, and mocking the dead skeleton of a prisoner inside the castle’s dungeons. That balance between cold calculism and loud cruelty, where both are equally unsetling and scary, is something very hard to achieve, but i think this encarnation did a very good job in achieving that balance, that every other  portrayal that camed tried to draw influence from it ever since. And that’s why Disney’s Wicked Queen is my Number One portrayal.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Addi Adamets in Schneewittchen (1955), Marianne Christina Schiling in Schneewittchen (1961) and Sonja Kirchberger in Sechs Auf Einen Streich (2009)

[fairytaleslive]

Hello! Thank you for your answer about my Rapunzel question. I never knew the movie about Johanka. It's great. I didn't think Rapunzel wasn't popular in Czech Republic bc in Europe & USA is one of the most popular fairytale. I read your post about SleepingBeauty and SnowWhite or their variant stories. I love both fairytales. Is there more SnowWhite adaptation from Czech Republic? and about SleepingBeauty? I'm too curious. I know there's also a finnish (or Russian) movie about Sleeping Beauty.

Hi again!

You are right, for a country that has made LITERALLY hundreds of fairytale films, it's weird that Rapunzel has never been so beloved/so well-known here. Of course, the presence of American films/series is strong here, so e.g. since I was a child I vaguely knew that a fairytale about long-haired Rapunzel existed because I've seen references to it in American media. I believe that the first Rapunzel adaptation I've ever seen was a Rapunzel episode in Wolves, Witches and Giants cartoon that I've watched in the 90's :).

Now, regarding Snow White and Sleeping Beauty:

SNOW WHITE No, I am afraid there are no more Czech Snow White adaptations aside from the 1992 version by Ludvík Ráža (which was done in Czechoslovakian/German co-production). I wonder why is that, but maybe it's because Disney's Snow White has always been very well-known here, so there was no need to make our own adaptation when such a legendary film was already here and so popular.

However, if you are a fan of Snow White, you might want to check out German adaptations – because there are plenty of them! For example:

1955: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ("Schneewittchen und die sieben Zwerge", on YouTube here)

1961: Snow White ("Schneewittchen", on YouTube here)

1971: Snow White ("Schneewittchen", on YouTube here)

2009: Snow White ("Schneewittchen", a part of 6 auf einen Streich series, available on Das Erste website for streaming)

2019: Snow White and the Magic of the Dwarfs ("Schneewittchen und der Zauber der Zwerge", a part of Märchenperlen series, available on ZDF website for streaming)

SLEEPING BEAUTY There are several Czech adaptations, the best of them being How to Wake a Sleeping Beauty which I mentioned before. But to be more comprehensive, here are all the Czech adaptations of Sleeping Beauty:

1977: How to Wake a Sleeping Beauty (”Jak se budí princezny”, on a google drive here with ENG subs, credit goes to Magdalena for making it available).

1983: Sleeping princess, briar roses and insulted fairy ("O spící princezně, šípkových růžích a uražené víle", on YouTube here) - not bad, not great, very low-budget

1990: Sleeping Beauty ("Šípková Růženka"/"Dornröschen", on YouTube here)

2006: Sleeping Beauty ("O Šípkové Růžence", on YouTube here) - this is a cringe-worthy film that I want to erase from my memory very badly; and the screenplay is in rhymes for some reason

2014: Three Brothers ("Tři bratři", on Netflix) - three brothers set out on a journey to find their fortune (and brides) and each one of them becomes a hero in a popular fairytale, the first one of them saves Sleeping Beauty; full of songs, light-hearted and intended even for small children, but it's actually pretty nice movie, I recommend! (screenshot of Sleeping Beauty and her saviour from Three Brothers movie below)

I've never heard about there being a Russian adaptation of Sleeping Beauty, as Russia mostly makes fairytale films based on their own folklore traditions; but Wikipedia does list a Finnish adaptation from 1949, here seems to be a sample of it.

Again, you might want to check out some German adaptations of Sleeping Beauty, e.g.:

Sleeping Beauty ("Dornröschen", 1971, on YouTube here)

Sleeping Beauty ("Dornröschen", 2008, a part of Märchenperlen series, available on ZDF website for streaming)

Sleeping Beauty ("Dornröschen", 2009, a part of 6 auf einen Streich series, available on Das Erste website for streaming)

Hope this helps! Take care!

[giraffenkuss]

The Ultimate Disney Song Collection

The Lion King / Der König der Löwen (1994)

Circle of Life /  Der ewige Kreis (english / german)

Be Prepared / Seid bereit (english / german)

Hakuna Matata (english / german)

I Just Can't Wait To Be King / Ich will jetzt gleich König sein (english / german)

Can You Feel The Love Tonight / Kann es wirklich Liebe sein (english / german)

Mary Poppins (1964)

Overture 

Sister Suffragette (english / xxx)

The life I lead / Ich bin voll Stolz – und bin zutiefst zufrieden (english / german)

The Perfect Nanny / Willst Du diese Stellung haben (english / german)

A Spoonful Of Sugar / Wenn ein Löffelchen voll Zucker (english / german)

Jolly Holiday / Ist das ein herrlicher Tag (english / german)

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious / Supercalifragilisticexpialigetisch (english / german)

Stay Awake (english / xxx)

I Love To Laugh / Ich lach so gern (english / german)

Feed The Birds / Täglich schon früh (Füttert die Vögelchen) (english / german)

Fidelity Fiduciary Bank / Willst du zwei Pennie sparen (english / german)

Chim Chim Cheree (english / german)

Step in Time / Schritt und Tritt (english / german)

Let’s Go Fly a Kite / Für zwei Pennie Papier schon genügt (english / german)

The Little Mermaid /  Arielle, die Meerjungfrau (1989)

Part of Your World /  Arielles Traum (Ein Mensch zu sein) (english / german)

Part of Your World (Reprise) /  In deiner Welt (Ein Mensch zu sein Reprise)  (english / german)

Under the Sea / Unter dem Meer (english / german)

Poor Unfortunate Souls / Die armen Seelen in Not (english / german)

Kiss the Girl /  Küss sie doch (english / german)

Beauty and the Beast / Die Schöne und das Biest (1991)

Belle (english / german)

Belle (Reprise) (english / german)

Be Our Guest / Sei hier Gast (english / german)

Gaston (english / german)

Something There / Wer hätt's gedacht (english / german)

Beauty and the Beast (Tale As Old As Time) /  Die Schöne und das Biest (english / german) 

Tarzan (1999)

Two Worlds / Zwei Welten (english / german)

You'll Be In My Heart / Dir gehört mein Herz (english / german)

Son Of Man / So ein Mann (english / german)

Strangers Like Me / Fremde wie ich (english / german)

Aladdin (1992)

Arabian nights / Arabische Nächte (english / german)

One Jump Ahead / Schnell Weg! (english / german)

Friend Like Me / Nur'n kleiner Freundschaftsdienst (english / german)

Prince Ali /  Prinz Ali (english / german)

A Whole New World / Ein Traum wird wahr (english / german)

Prince Ali (Reprise) /  Prinz Ali (Reprise) (english / german)

The Jungle Book / Das Dschungelbuch (1967)

The Bare Necessities / Probier's mal mit Gemütlichkeit (english / german)

I wanna be like you / Ich wäre gern wie du (english / german)

Moana / Vaiana – Das Paradies hat einen Haken (2016)

How Far I'll Go / Ich bin bereit (english / german)

You're Welcome / Voll gerne (english / german)

Shiny / Glänzend (english / german)

I Am Moana (Song of the Ancestors) / Ich bin Vaiana (english / german)

We Know the Way (Finale) / Wir kennen den Weg (english / german)

Pocahontas (1995)

Just Around the Riverbend / Was das nächste Ufer bringt (english / german)

Mine, Mine, Mine / Mein, mein, mein (english / german)

Colors of the Wind / Das Farbenspiel des Winds (english / german)

Frozen / Die Eiskönigin – Völlig unverfroren (2013)

Do You Want to Build a Snowman / Willst Du einen Schneemann bauen (english / german)

For the First Time in Forever / Zum ersten mal seit Ewigkeiten (english / german)

Love is an Open Door / Liebe sie öffnet Tür´n (english / german)

Let It Go / Lass jetzt los (english / german)

Reindeer(s) Are Better Than People / Rentiere sind besser als Menschen (english / german)

In Summer / Im Sommer (english / german)

Mulan (1998)

Honor to Us All / Ehre für das Haus (english / german)

Reflection / Wer bin ich? (english / german)

I'll Make A Man Out Of You / Sei ein Mann (english / german)

A Girl Worth Fighting For /  Die Frau, für die ein Kampf sich lohnt (english / german)

The Aristocats /  Aristocats (1970)

Scales and Arpeggios / Tonleitern und Arpeggios (english / german)

Thomas O'Malley (english / german)

Everybody Wants To Be A Cat / Katzen brauchen viel Musik (english / german)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs / Schneewittchen und die sieben Zwerge (1937)

With a Smile and a Song / Sei Vergnügt, Sing Ein Lied! (english / german)

Whistle While You Work / Wer bei der arbeit pfeift (english / german)

Heigh Ho / Heiho (english / german)

Bluddle-Uddle-Um-Dum (The Dwarfs' Washing Song) (english / xxx)

The Dwarfs' Yodel Song (The Silly Song) / Schrumm, Schrumm, Schrumm (english / german)

Someday My Prince Will Come / Kommt Erst Mein Prinz Zu Mir (english / german)

Cinderella /  Cinderella (Aschenputtel) 1950

A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes / Ich hab ihn im Traum gesehen (english / german)

Work song / Der Arbeits-Song (english / german)

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo (english / german)

One Hundred and One Dalmatians / 101  Dalmatiner (1961)

Cruella De Vil (english / german)

Kanine Krunchies (english / xxx)

The Hunchback of Notre Dame / Der Glöckner von Notre Dame (1996)

Out There / Einmal (english / german)

God Help the Outcasts / Gott, Deine Kinder (english / german)

Heaven's Light/Hellfire / Das Licht des Himmel/Das Feuer der Hölle(english / german)

A Guy Like You / Ein Kerl wie Du (english / german)

The Court of Miracles / Der Hof der Wunder (english / german)

Tangled /  Rapunzel – Neu verföhnt (2010)

When Will My Life Begin / Wann fängt das Leben an? (english / german)

Mother Knows Best / Mutter weiß mehr (english / german)

I've Got A Dream / Ich hab nen Traum (english / german)

I See The Light / Endlich sehe ich das Licht (english / german)

Toy Story (1995)

You've Got A Friend In Me / Du hast'n Freund in mir (english / german)

[abs-v-rde]

Sins of Sister Lucia (1978)

Sins of Sister Lucia (1978)

Rumiko is a misbehaving girl who got caught stealing the cash her father had at home for bribes. Father would not accuse her of that, but when he caught her having sex with her English teacher, he was justified in sending her to a monastery, where the nuns try to force her to become a good girl. However, after a few days in forced piety, Rumiko (now Sister Lucia) discovered that her sins were nothing in comparison with those of other Sisters, and Mother Superior's.

Try three more:

Schneewittchen (1961)

The Sixth Year (2013)

Virgin Lovers (1970)

[dancemacabre]

The Wyoming Bandit (1949)

The Wyoming Bandit (1949)

Wyoming Dan (Trevor Bardette) returns home after 20 years evading the law for a crime he didn't commit, only to find his son on his deathbed. Seeking revenge for his son's murder, Dan enlists the help of Rocky Lane (Allan Lane), who poses as an outlaw to try to uncover the truth. When the duo manage to track down the killer, they find him armed to the teeth.

Try six more:

Schneewittchen (1961)

One Girl Against the Mafia (1997)

Paddy McGuinness - Live (2006)

No One Can Hear You (2001)

Bush Christmas (1947)

Snowballs (2011)

[princesssarisa]

The Different Types of Evil Queen in "Snow White" Adaptations

Since @ariel-seagull-wings recently shared a list of the different types of Snow White characterizations in different adaptations of the fairy tale, I thought I would share a list of the different portrayals of Snow White's nemesis, the evil Queen.

There tends to be more overlap between the different types of Queen than between the different types of Snow White: several portrayals belong to more than one category. But I was still able to narrow the various portrayals down to the five most popular "types."

This covers the Queen's true self only: to discuss the various portrayals of her disguises too would require a separate post.

The Grim Sorceress

This Queen is sinister at first sight. Her beauty is cold, and she contains it in severe styling and dress, wearing sleek, dark-colored gowns and with her hair in a tight updo or hidden by a medieval cowl. Nor does she bother to hide either her ruthlessness or her witchcraft. She's feared throughout the kingdom for her awesome magical powers and for her cruelty, and we see hints of just how she's earned that fear, with dark dungeons in her castle that contain skeletons and/or suffering prisoners. Her transformation into an old hag (or into some other creative form) is done with sinister magic, not just the makeup and prosthetics that other Queens use. Nor are her vanity or her temper ever played for laughs. This is a calm, stern Queen, who rarely smiles except in grim satisfaction when her plans succeed, and who never (or almost never) goes into hysterics over Snow White's superior beauty, but responds with hard, icy resolve to be rid of her. While she might occasionally use her beauty for seduction, she mainly seems to want to be the fairest for the sake of her own pride, as she's generally a solitary figure who uses magical brute force to get what she wants. The quintessential Queen of this type is the very first Disney villain, voiced by Lucille La Verne in 1937's immortal Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Other examples are Suna Selen's Queen in the 1971 Turkish Pamuk Prenses film, Queen Chrystal in the anime series The Legend of Snow White and Charlize Theron's Queen Ravenna in Snow White and the Huntsman... although she combines it with another type of portrayal, seen at the very bottom of this list.

The Venomous Lady

This is a more human Queen than the Grim Sorceress, although she shares much of the same dignity. She's not overtly evil at first, but wears the facade of a refined lady who seems kind and generous, if slightly cold and aloof. It's easy to see why Snow White's father trusted her and thought she would be a good wife. But beneath her amiable facade is deadly jealousy, rage, and cruelty. The phrase "silk hiding steel" comes to mind, describing a woman whose gentle, refined facade hides great strength, but instead of steel, this Queen's silk hides venom. When she reveals that venom to Snow White (for example, by imprisoning her, or by confronting her about her beauty and threatening to banish her), it's almost more horrifying than if it had come from a more blatantly evil Queen. This Queen is also less likely to know witchcraft herself and more likely to have a witch or wizard ally to supply her disguises and poisons. But if she is a witch herself, she's careful to let no one know it. Examples of this type of Queen include Patricia Medina in Snow White and the Three Stooges, the Queen in the anime Grimm's Fairy Tale Classics, and the Queens of the mid-century live-action German versions, Addi Adametz in 1955's Schneewittchen und die sieben Zwerge (although she skirts the line between this type and the Grim Sorceress), Marianne Christina Schilling in 1961's Schneewittchen, and Herta Kravina in the 1971 Schneewittchen short.

The Prima Donna

This Queen is usually – though not always – a more comic portrayal of the character. She's a glamorous overgrown "mean girl" who devotes her life to enhancing her beauty and showing it off. She typically wears lavish, eye-catching gowns and headdresses, sometimes laughable in their gaudiness, and receives luxuriant beauty baths and other cosmetic treatments in her chambers. If her hair isn't too lavishly styled, she'll be seen constantly brushing it as she gazes adoringly into her mirror and boasts to herself about her own beauty. And woe to any servant who doesn't perfectly cater to her thousand daily whims! Far from the calm, collected Grim Sorceress or Venomous Lady, this spoiled brat of a Queen typically bullies her castle staff and throws tantrums when she doesn't get her own way. She tends to be something of a woman-child... yet this doesn't stop her from being truly sinister, cunning, and dangerous when she wants to be. Examples include Queen Brangomar in the 1912 stage play and its 1916 silent film version where she's played by Dorothy Cumming, Vanessa Redgrave in the Snow White episode of Faerie Tale Theatre, Diana Rigg in the Cannon Movie Tales adaptation, the Queen in Luigi Zaninelli's opera adaptation (because of course an operatic soprano Queen should be a Prima Donna), and Sonja Kirschberger in Sechs auf einen Streich.

The Femme Fatale

This Queen is a sensual being. She wears brightly colored and/or revealing and provocative clothes, devotes her life to lavish parties full of admiring guests, and takes a narcissistic sensual delight in her own beauty. She also makes her beauty serve a purpose: manipulating men. Her specialty is seduction, whether subtle or overt, and her magic likely includes love potions or seductive hypnosis as well as poisons. In this way she captivates the likes of Snow White's father and the Huntsman, and typically she wants to captivate the Prince too. Whether for himself, for his kingdom's wealth, or both, she wants him, which enhances her jealousy of Snow White with romantic rivalry. It doesn't matter if he's twenty years her junior – I almost named this type of Queen "the Mrs. Robinson" before I realized that not every example targets the Prince. Examples (both those who target the Prince and those who don't) include Gudrun Landgrebe in Schneewittchen und das Geheimnis der Zwerge, Jeri Aredando's Sly Fox in Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child, Jane March's Queen Gwendolyn in Grimm's Snow White, Julia Roberts' Queen Clementianna in Mirror, Mirror (although she combines it with a more lighthearted Prima Donna portrayal), and Nadeshda Brennicke in Schneewittchen und der Zauber der Zwerge. Vanessa Redgrave in Faerie Tale Theatre and Miranda Richardson's Queen Elspeth in Snow White: The Fairest of Them All are partly this type of Queen too, although the former combines it with the Prima Donna, the latter with the Venomous Lady and with... see below.

The Spiraling Madwoman

This is more of a subtype than an individual type of Queen characterization, as it's usually combined with one of the above. But whether she starts out as a Grim Sorceress, a Venomous Lady, or a Femme Fatale, her defining feature is that as Snow White repeatedly survives her attempts to kill her, she becomes increasingly unhinged. She might be slightly unhinged from the start, showing anxiety each time she consults her magic mirror even before she gets an answer she dislikes. And the prospect of losing her status as the fairest in the land doesn't just make her jealous, but gradually sends her into a full-blown emotional and mental breakdown. She typically has a reason for this. Maybe she was born ugly, but made beautiful by magic, and is afraid of losing the beauty that was never really hers; maybe she has a traumatic backstory, which she only survived thanks to her beauty and resulting power over men; or maybe there's a prophecy that a woman more beautiful than she is will cause her death. But whatever the reason, this is the most pitiable version of the Queen. Without making her any less of a villain, her final scene – which typically inflicts both of her worst fears on her, the loss of her beauty as well as death – contains real pathos, as she swings from savage rage to collapsing in a weeping, whimpering heap. One Queen who partly embodies this type is Miranda Richardson's Queen Elspeth in Snow White: The Fairest of Them All (who combines it with the Venomous Lady and the Femme Fatale), but probably the ultimate Spiraling Madwoman is Charlize Theron's Queen Ravenna in Snow White and the Huntsman (who combines it with the Grim Sorceress).

Which type of Queen – or blend of types – is your favorite?

@ariel-seagull-wings, @superkingofpriderock, @themousefromfantasyland, @faintingheroine, @the-blue-fairie

[uniquebirddetective-blog]

Rats and Cats (2007)

Rats and Cats (2007)

Rats and cats is a dark, satirical comedy about a fallen star and broken dreams. It is about fame and our culture of obsession. Actor Darren McWarren (Jason Gann) starred in soap, mini-series and film before destroying his career with a series of indiscretions. Now McWarren is out of the industry and living in a small town in Western Victoria he can do whatever he wants. When a journalist decides to write a "Where are they now" profile on McWarren, he finds the former star has become a modern day Errol Flynn. The local girls want to fornicate with him and their fellas want to fight him. He mightn't have found love - but it's the next best thing.

Try five more:

Schneewittchen (1961)

Ghost Island 3 (2012)

The Golden Era (2014)

Jason Segel & Paul Rudd Meet Rush (2011)

Michael & Me (2004)

[dravenant-blog]

The Interceptor (2009)

The Interceptor (2009)

The film tells a story of an agent betrayed by his partner when transporting new psychic weapon. Believed to be dead, he escapes and takes new identity so he can live in peace far away. But later he is forced to return to Moscow to confront a secret organization, led by his former partner, that attempts to use the dangerous weapon in order to take control over the country. Now he is a key figure in the battle between forces of darkness and light.

Try three more:

We Are Poets (2012)

Schneewittchen (1961)

One in a million (2009)

[aelegantwerewolfbouquet-blog]

Deep Purple: Live In Verona (2014)

Deep Purple: Live In Verona (2014)

Filmed in the spectacular surroundings of the Arena di Verona, a Roman amphitheatre originally built in 30 AD, this concert from the summer of 2011 sees Deep Purple joined on stage by a full symphony orchestra for performances of all their classic tracks.

Try six more:

Schneewittchen (1961)

Mumbai Xpress (2005)

Provincia violenta (1978)

Ryan Adams - Live at Mercury Lounge (2016)

Fakers (2004)

Hombre acosado (1952)

[mistoffelees2017-blog]

Schneewittchen (1961)

Schneewittchen (1961)

No overview found.

Try five more:

Lucrezia Borgia (2009)

Paridad (2014)

The Maid (2009)

Thunder Run (1986)

Mother (1990)

[princesssarisa]

Snow White Winter: "Schneewittchen" (1961 German film)

Here we find another mid-century German adaptation of Snow White, directed by Gottfried Kolditz. It's look and feel are similar to Erich Kobler's 1955 version, but it has its own identity too. Unfortunately, unlike the 1955 film, it doesn't seem to have had a US release, and no version with either English dubbing or English subtitles is available online. I've had to use my decent but not fluent knowledge of German and a translation of the German Wikipedia's synopsis of the film to follow along with the story.

Of all the adaptations so far, this is probably the most strictly faithful to the Grimms' tale, although it has a few embellishments too. A brief prologue has a narrator recount the story of Snow White's birth word-for-word from the Grimms' text, and then the story proper starts when Snow White is a young woman. From dialogue we learn that her father is dead, and while the Queen doesn't keep her locked up or force her to work as a maid, she still tends to exclude her from the court. Nonetheless, Snow White is a kind girl and on close terms with the castle servants. When a neighboring kingdom's young King (not just a prince in this version!) comes to visit, Snow White is forbidden to attend the banquet in his honor, but she helps the kitchen staff prepare the food, and when there aren't enough waiters to serve it all, she carries a dish into the banquet hall herself. The King is smitten at first sight and ask's the Queen for the princess's hand in marriage, much to the annoyance of the Queen, who had been delicately flirting with the younger man herself. This combined with the magic mirror's revelation that Snow White has become the fairest in the land drives her to command the Huntsman to kill Snow White and bring back her heart.

The seven dwarfs' names are Rumpelbold, Naseweis ("nosy"), Purzelbaum ("somersault"), Huckepack ("piggyback"), Pick, Packe and Puck. Unlike in the 1955 German film, they're not played by children, but by real men; not men with dwarfism, though, just short men, all about 5'2''. Their scenes feature gentle comic relief: for example, a running gag of Purzelbaum trying to live up to his name and turn a somersault but always failing, until finally he succeeds at the very end of the film. But they're less broadly comic than the dwarfs we've seen so far in American versions or in the 1955 film. The general atmosphere of this entire film is of gentle fairy tale enchantment, without the heights of either comedy or terror that other versions aim for.

All three of the Queen's attempts to kill Snow White from the Grimms' tale are included, though as in the 1955 film, the suffocating bodice lace is bowdlerized into a belt. Meanwhile, the banished Huntsman goes to the young King and tells him everything. They search the woods for Snow White, only to find her glass coffin, which the King asks to take home with him. But as the dwarfs carry it forth, Naseweis trips over a rock, the coffin falls and shatters, and of course the piece of apple is shaken from Snow White's throat. Soon afterward, the wicked Queen is invited to the young King's wedding, only to discover that Snow White is his bride. The King offers her an apple "in thanks" for the one she gave Snow White; this time Snow White will eat the white half, while the Queen will eat the red half. The Queen runs away in terror, and the King calls after her forbidding her to ever come back – then eats the perfectly normal, non-poisoned red half of the apple himself.

This is a very sweet, charming Snow White, but sometimes at the expense of the story's power. In general it comes across as a version meant for small children. Even though, unlike the 1955 film, it includes the command for the Huntsman to bring back Snow White's heart, and even shows him shooting a wild boar to use its heart as a substitute, and even though the dwarfs are less cutesy than the childlike dwarfs of the '55 version, as a whole the '55 film was more willing to engage with the story's dark side. Snow White's journey through the forest before she finds the dwarfs' cottage is pretty and serene, not frightening; after the Queen learns that the Huntsman tricked her, she doesn't imprison him, but only banishes him; Snow White's "death" inspires no display of deep grief from the dwarfs, only gentle, wistful regret; and the Queen is only given a scare and banished in the end, hardly the punishment she deserves.

Still, this is an enjoyable version. It's production values might not be Hollywood quality, but its colorful Old World fairy tale atmosphere has no shortage of charm, and the cast is good too. 20-year-old Doris Weikow is a pretty, lively and engaging Snow White, well supported by Marianne Christina Schilling as the Queen (the first blonde Queen we've seen so far – I'm surprised the character isn't portrayed as blonde more often to contrast with Snow White's ebony-black hair), Wolf-Dieter Panse as the young King, and an appropriately endearing band of dwarfs. As in so many versions, they sing a jaunty marching song as they head to and from their mine, which serves as something of a theme song for this otherwise non-musical production.

Overall, as far as German Snow White films go, I'd rank this one slightly below the 1955 version. But it's a charming film all the same and I'm definitely glad to have seen it.

@ariel-seagull-wings. @superkingofpriderock