Critics Say "Snow White" Is About Lefty Infighting
Critics—like Vulture's Alison Willmore—have surprising takes on the controversial live-action adaptation of Snow White.
Willmore’s take on the film is the ultimate plot twist. She believes that Snow White is an unintentional satire of leftist infighting. “The funny thing about [Rachel Zegler’s] take on the storybook standard,” she writes, “is that, in the context of the movie, the character is effectively a normie lib dithering about how to fight back against the fascist takeover of her kingdom by her stepmother.” That’s right—according to Willmore, Disney’s newest princess is less of an idealistic dreamer and more of a cautious institutionalist, paralyzed by indecision as the Evil Queen (played by Gal Gadot in what Willmore calls an “incredibly stilted” performance) consolidates power.
Snow White’s passivity, Willmore suggests, is the very thing the film hinges on. She’s a princess who doesn’t want to get her hands dirty, scolding her rebellious love interest Jonathan (Andrew Burnap) for stealing food while failing to offer any real solutions herself. It’s a far cry from the original 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, where the titular heroine’s kindness and unwavering optimism were her greatest strengths.
Snow White’s problems extend far beyond its clumsy political allegories. Even before a single frame was shown to the public, Rachel Zegler had already alienated a significant portion of the fanbase. Leftists say they hated Gal Gadot for her "Zionist" views and “poor” acting.
Zegler’s now-infamous comments and “bratty” attitude toward Snow White and how she dismissed the classic—calling the Prince a “guy who literally stalks her” and openly criticizing Snow White’s lack of agency—angered the internet.
A Snow White Who’s More Bossy Than Kind
In the 1937 original, Snow White’s kindness inspires woodland creatures to help her clean the dwarves’ cottage. It’s a moment of selfless service, reinforcing her innate goodness. In the remake, however, Snow White’s tone is clipped, her orders sharp. Even her singing style is different, rather than the soft, angelic soprano that Snow White gave us, Zegler sings with power. She sounds amazing, no doubt, but it’s reminiscent of the more recent Disney movies like Moana and Frozen.
Snow White, as a character, has always been defined by her femininity. She isn’t a warrior, a rebel, or a leader. Willmore touches on this when she calls the film “a product of a corporation that has for years been lumbering after its idea of the Zeitgeist with all the agility of an aging colossus.” In trying to modernize Snow White, Disney has stripped away the very thing that made her special in the first place.
Ultimately, Snow White serves as another cautionary tale about Hollywood’s obsession with reboots that miss the point of the originals, and Disney fans are tired.