Live-action Snow White is a lacklustre update of a classic

Rachel Zegler shines in the title role, but Gal Gadot's evil stepmother falls flat

- John Lui

The story: In this live-action remake of the Disney classic Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937), Snow White (Rachel Zegler) is the beautiful princess loved by her people. Her father, the king, remarries the Evil Queen (Gal Gadot). The new queen, jealous of Snow White's beauty, orders the Huntsman (Ansu Kabia) to take her stepdaughter to the woods to kill her.

It is hard to think of a good reason for this remake to exist. While parts of the 1937 animation have aged poorly, this surface-level do-over does the bare minimum in fixes, while adding little in fresh artistic achievement or entertainment value.

Jabs thrown at previous Disney remakes apply here. The new film carries the narrative timidity of The Lion King (2019) and the uncanny-valley weirdness of The Little Mermaid (2023) while providing little by way of visual magic, aside from the costumes.