I love being surprised by movies, and that’s what happened last night! I’m starting today’s digest with a gushing review of The Death of Snow White, followed by a few slasher victims in birthdays, news about some upcoming movies, and more!
What I Watched Last Night
Today’s movie is The Death of Snow White. Ever since Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, I’ve been trying to keep up with all the new public domain children’s-story and fairy-tale horror movies. I’ve seen lots. Most aren’t great, but some are actually good. As for The Death of Snow White? It surprised me. I kind of loved it.
The story follows a rough outline of the original Snow White fairy tale. Details and relationships are altered to make the story more interesting as a movie, and to condense the action into a much shorter span of time (it all happens within about 24 hours). But all the recognizable aspects are there. The evil queen who is also a witch, the poison apple, the huntsman, the seven dwarfs, the glass coffin. All of it. The Death of Snow White is a mostly faithful adaptation of the original story. It just happens to have a sizable amount of violence and gore.
Sure, the original fairy tale has a grotesque bit where the queen wants to eat the liver and lungs of Snow White (she wants to eat Snow White’s heart in this story), but this movie goes a lot further. Fights include blood sprays, smashed heads, and exploding guts. Bodies are dismembered at the request of the queen. Someone is ripped in half by tree monsters. There’s a lot of blood in this movie, and that’s a big reason why I love it. The gore is done mostly with practical effects, and it looks quite good, especially for the budget. There are some CGI blood sprays I could’ve done without, but they are relatively few in number. The CGI magic is awesome though.
What I really love about The Death of Snow White is how genuine it is. It doesn’t try to subvert what makes fairy tales so timeless. It’s a bit cheesy at times, and sometimes a little silly, but it all works beautifully. I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s not some dark reimagining of Snow White for a jaded audience. This is a fun and heartwarming fairy tale, just with violence and gore. It reminded me of some of the low-budget, straight to video fantasy movies of the 1980s and 1990s, which I also thoroughly enjoy.
I haven’t seen the live-action Snow White that was also released this year, but I can safely say that The Death of Snow White is better. Yes, some scenes look like they were filmed at a renaissance festival, but that adds to its charm in my opinion. I’d recommend this movie to any fan of low-budget fantasy and horror. It’s available to rent on VOD platforms including Prime Video.
Birthdays
Today we start birthdays with a few slashers! First, born on this day in 1949 is Nancy Stephens. You may know her best as Marion Chambers from the Halloween franchise. Marion first appeared in Halloween (1978) as the nurse who accompanied Dr. Loomis on the car ride when they both found out that Michael had escaped from Smith’s Grove. As Marion, Nancy Stephens appeared in four total Halloween movies, including the first movie, Halloween II, Halloween H20, and Halloween Kills. Marion is also in the exclusive club of characters who have been killed by Michael Myers twice.
Moving over to another big slasher franchise, two of Jason’s victims were born on July 2nd. Born on this day in 1963, Jeffrey Rogers played Andy in Friday the 13th Part 3. He was the guy who got killed while doing a handstand. Also celebrating a birthday today is Jere Fields, born in 1959. Jere played Anita in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. She sang to Demon and shook the outhouse while he was doing his business after some bad enchiladas. Anita met her end by having her throat slashed off screen.
And finally, July 2nd, 1955 is the birthday of Andrew Divoff. He played the Djinn in Wishmaster (1997), Danson in Graveyard Shift (1990), and Doc in Neon Maniacs (1986). He had quite a few more roles in horror movies, with even more coming up in the future.
Events on This Day
On July 2nd, 2021, Fear Street 1994 began streaming on Netflix. It was the first part of a trilogy released over three consecutive Fridays. A little under four years later, we got Fear Street: Prom Queen which was pretty good, but the first movie is still the best.
Thirty-nine years ago today, on July 2nd, 1986, Psycho III was released in theaters. This entry in the series was directed by Anthony Perkins who also reprised his role in front of the camera as Norman Bates.
In the News
Kiyoshi Kurosawa, one of Japan’s most celebrated filmmakers, is back with a new dark thriller titled Cloud. The film follows an internet reseller who creates a substantial cash flow by taking advantage of the people he’s buying from and selling to. He begins disconnecting from the people around him, while at the same time suspecting that the people he’s wronged are plotting revenge against him. IndieWire reports that Cloud opens in US theaters July 18th.
Emily Bennett and Justin Brooks, the makers of the excellent psychological horror film Alone With You (2021), gave Variety a first look at their next project. Titled Blood Shine, it is a folk horror movie about a “religious zealot who worships light in lonely, sacred rituals.” Emily Bennett will star along with David Call, and they’re joined in the cast by Brendan Sexton III, Toby Poser, and Larry Fessenden. Blood Shine is expected later this year.
A teaser for Hell House LLC: Lineage was released yesterday. This will be the fifth movie in the franchise, and the first non-found-footage movie in the series. Stephen Cognetti returns to write and direct the film. The story will focus on the character of Vanessa Shepherd (Elizabeth Vermilyea) who was last seen in Hell House LLC III:Lake of Fire. Hell House LLC: Lineage opens in theaters August 20th via Iconic Events.
Thanks for reading! One of tonight’s movies is definitely going to be The Return of the Living Dead as I prepare for July 3rd. See you then!
