White as Snow (8/10)

by Tony Medley

112 minutes.

R

We’ll sing in the sunshine

We’ll laugh every day

We’ll sing in the sunshine

Then I’ll be on my way

Gale Garnett 1964

If you were around in 1964, this is one of the songs you were singing. And the girl you envisioned as you sang this song was probably Claire (Lou de Laâge),  who stars in this film as the innocent, protected stepdaughter of Maud (Isabell Huppert).

It is difficult to write about this movie without giving away spoilers. And I don’t like to do that. I saw this movie from the outset without having any idea what it was about, and it is much more enjoyable that way. Because it is a highly entertaining movie, I will refrain from commenting on its content.

Directed and written (with Pascal Bonitzer) by Anne Fontaine, it is a fairy tale loosely (very) based on the Grimm Brothers’  Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

It is also a thriller with pervasive evil that is present every moment of the film. The acting is exceptional.  de Laâge is reminiscent of Brigette Bardot in her prime, although in this film she looks a lot younger than her 29 years. She is captivating, scintillating, hot, and sexy as she seduces one man after another reaching the eponymic number as she finds her sexual freedom and revels in it.

Huppert gives another of her masterful performances as Claire’s evil stepmother. The way the cinematography (Yves Angelo) captures the beautiful French countryside contributes immensely to the quality of the film.   This movie moved along seamlessly. Enough said.    In French.