The live-actionSnow Whiteremake is already earning a strong response from VFX artists. Continuing Disney’s trend of reimagining its classic animated hits, theupcomingSnow Whitemoviestars Rachel Zegler, Gal Gadot, Andrew Burnap, Ansu Kabia, and more. The movie reportedly has a budget of over $200 million, driven by costly reshoots and an expensive all-star cast. While it was originally going to feature live-action magical creatures instead of the seven dwarves, Disney recently revealed that the movie will instead feature CGI dwarves.
As part of their"VFX Artists React to Bad & Great CGi" series, theCorridor Crewtook to YouTube to share their reactions totheSnow Whitetrailer. They first examined the dwarves, which they described as “painterly” and “faithful to the cartoon at the sacrifice of being human”. The artists disagreed about the quality of the animation with one describing it as an uncanny valley effect, while another argued that the proportions make that impossible. In one full quote, they explained that the entire issue is completely controversial:
I feel like this movie would have been easier if Snow White herself was full CG, cause now they’re having to… It’s more complicated when you’re having to integrate all of these CG elements with a live-action plate. You’re locked to where that person is acting and they motion at the camera angles, all that stuff. Whereas, if everything was fully CG, there’s a lot more flexibility to make sure you get the shots correctly.
I mean, honestly, this doesn’t look bad from a visual standpoint, but like another thing that you know people will say that this is definitely uncanny valley, as far as like the dwarf faces go, but it’s like their proportions are super wild, so they’re never going to be able to get to that human level no matter what, without changing their proportions to be more human.
What The VFX Issues Mean For Disney’s Snow White
The controversialSnow Whiteremakehas already proven itself to be a divisive production. Peter Dinklage sparked much of the critique after explaining that Disney has portrayed itself as a progressive company, while also basing an entire franchise on magical dwarves. Disney attempted to replace the seven characters with magical creatures, but it faced criticism from other people with dwarfism, as the decision meant that they were unable to take a rare but available role. Disney was left struggling to respond to both sides of the divide and eventually elected to move to an entirely CGI appearance for the dwarves.
How Rachel Zegler’s Live-Action Snow White Costume Compares To Animation
Rachel Zegler’s live-action Snow White costume (from gown to wig) has been criticized, but here’s how it compares to her animated counterpart.
While the Corridor Crew did admit that the CGI is effective in mixing live-action elements with computer-generated characters in a faithful recreation, Disney did not escape the mounting criticism. The decision still left actors bereft of jobs, and Dinklage’s initial argument remains salient. Much likeWonka’s own casting controversy, Disney has no easy way to avoid alienating members of its audience. As incredible as the CGI appears to be, it will remain highly controversial.
Our Takes On Disney’s Snow White’s VFX Issues
The mounting criticism is a significant issue, butit is unlikely to be the root of the movie’s problems.Wonkahad a similar issue with its decision to cast Hugh Grant as an Oompa-Loompa, and that movie made $632 million at the box office on a $125 million budget. Still,Disney’s various live-action remakeshave received mixed receptions, ranging fromThe Lion King(2019)’s $1.67 million total toMulan(2020)’s $70 million:
$175 million
$967 million
$170 million
$300 million
Beauty and the Beast(2017)
$160 million
$1.3 billion
$70 million
$198 million
$353 million
$250 million
$1.67 billion
$186 million
$492 million
$183 million
$1.05 billion
$200 million
$100 million
$234 million
$240 million
$570 million
The divisive nature of this movie will undoubtedly convince some viewers to avoid the movie altogether, butWonkaproves that it is unlikely to play a significant role. The heavy dislikes againstDisney’s Snow Whitetrailer are a sign that there has been an extremely negative reception. Still, the movie promised to be faithful to the original, and the dwarves do appear to mimic the art style of the animated classic. That alone can save it. As long as the VFX avoids an uncanny effect, it could still see the success ofThe Little Mermaid(2023).
Snow White
Cast
A live-action adaptation of the classic fairy tale. The film follows Snow White as she escapes into the forest and seeks refuge with seven dwarfs to elude her jealous stepmother, the wicked Queen, who is threatened by Snow White’s surpassing beauty.
