Based on a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, this Disney feature animation is still regarded as one of the best examples of traditional animation. A great risk for Disney Studios, this animation, which could have been a commercial flop, was the one that cemented the studio as the leading practitioner of animation in the world. To this day it is looked upon animators and viewers alike as a master piece.
Though it stays mostly true to the fairy tale, a few differences can be seen:
- the absence of the biological mother; the film only depicts the stepmother - she serves as a contrast to Snow White : Good vs. Evil
The stepmother from "Snow White"
- the absence of the three gifts from the witch. Only the poisoned apple is use. This was because of o need to downgrade the importance of the dwarfs, who saved Snow White from the first two gifts in the fairy tale.
Apple scene in French.
- Snow white wakes up after the prince kisses her. In the original version, she wakes up when the piece is apple is dislodged from her throat. This scene was used to accentuate the idea of true love that never dies.
Kiss scene.
- the step mother's demise. In the fairy tale she is confronted by Snow White and made to wear deadly hot iron shoes. This was changed to her folling of a cliff in the movie. This change was put in use to downplay the violence of the original scene.
The animators that worked on the film were: Frank Thomas, Dick Lundy, Arthur Babbitt, Eric Larson, Milton Kahl, Robert Stokes, James Algar, Al Eugster, Cy Young, Joshua Meador, Ugo D'Orsi, George Rowley, Les Clark, Fred Spencer, Bill Roberts, Bernard Garbutt, Grim Natwick, Jack Campbell, Marvin Woodward, James Culhane, Stan Quackenbush, Ward Kimball, Woolie Reitherman, Robert Martsch.
Even though the film was a huge succes, Walt Disney had a hard time getting it of the ground. The initial budget of 250 000 $ ended up being 1, 488,422.75 $.
A lot of rewriting went in to the pre-production. The writers focused on gags for the dwarfs, tried to incorporate all the three gifts of the original story and the price originally would have been more of a stooge in the first drafts.
As far as cinematic influences go , films such as "Nosferatu", "The Cabinet of Dr. Calligari" and "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" were recommended by Disney to his staff.
"Nosferatu" -1922
Although a seemingly impossible task to undertake, the feature film was a huge commercial and critical succes, receiving a standing ovation form a star-studded audience and receiving an honorary "Academy Award".
This success led to Disney producing many other feature films that have pioneered animation and shaped it into what it is today, inspiring millions.
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