Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

Director:

David Hand

Writers:

Wilhelm Grimm (fairy tales) &
Jacob Grimm (fairy tales) ...

Release Date:

4 February 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Walt Disney's New characters in his first full-length production!

Plot:

Snow White, pursued by a jealous queen, hides with the Dwarfs; the queen feeds her a poison apple, but Prince Charming awakens her with a kiss.

Plot Keywords:

Dwarf | Queen | Apple | Prince | Poison

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 9 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Roy Atwell	...	Doc (voice) (uncredited)
Stuart Buchanan	...	Huntsman (voice) (uncredited)
Adriana Caselotti	...	Snow White (voice) (uncredited)
Eddie Collins	...	Dopey / Chipmunk & Squirrel sneezes (voice) (uncredited)
Pinto Colvig	...	Sleepy / Grumpy (voice) (uncredited)
Marion Darlington	...	Birds (voice) (uncredited)
Billy Gilbert	...	Sneezy (voice) (uncredited)
Otis Harlan	...	Happy (voice) (uncredited)
Lucille La Verne	...	Queen / Witch (voice) (uncredited)
James MacDonald	...	Yodeling Man (voice) (uncredited)
Scotty Mattraw	...	Bashful (voice) (uncredited)
Moroni Olsen	...	Magic Mirror (voice) (uncredited)
Purv Pullen	...	Birds (voice) (uncredited)
Harry Stockwell	...	Prince (voice) (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Blancanieves y los siete enanos (USA: Spanish title)
Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (USA) (poster title)

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor High Fidelity Sound System)

Certification:

Denmark:7 (DVD release) | Denmark:7 (video re-release) | Denmark:A (video premiere) | Iceland:L | Portugal:M/4 | UK:U (1938) (cut) | South Korea:All | New Zealand:G | West Germany:6 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Canada:G | Chile:TE | Finland:S | Germany:o.Al. | Norway:A | Peru:PT | Singapore:G | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | UK:U (re-rating) (1987) | USA:Approved (PCA #3870) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1975) | Brazil:Livre

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

The film came third in the UK's Ultimate Film, in which films were placed in order of how many seats they sold at cinemas

Goofs:

Continuity: Dopey breaks off the front door handle and seconds later, it reappears.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Queen: Slave in the magic mirror, come from the farthest space, through wind and darkness I summon thee. Speak! Let me see thy face.
Magic Mirror: What wouldst thou know, my Queen?
Queen: Magic mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?
Magic Mirror: Famed is thy beauty, Majesty. But hold, a lovely maid I see. Rags cannot hide her gentle grace. Alas, she is more fair than thee.
Queen: Alas for her! Reveal her name.
Magic Mirror: Lips red as the rose. Hair black as ebony. Skin white as snow.
Queen: Snow White!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Jacquot de Nantes (1991)

Soundtrack:

Bluddle-uddle-um-dum (Dwarfs' Washing and Yodel Song)

A Lasting Legacy!

There isn't much that hasn't already been said about "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", Walt Disney's first feature length animated film. Suffice it to say that it not only fulfilled the studio's hopes beyond their wildest dreams, it made possible the Disney films that followed it. From the famous Grimm fairy tale about a beautiful princess who flees her jealous stepmother and finds refuge with seven friendly dwarfs, Walt Disney created a cinematic milestone. At the time the film was in production until the day it was released, rival producers were referring to it as "Disney's Folly". The sneering stopped when it was embraced both by critics and audiences, grossing many times it's then record (for an animated film) $1.5 million budget. Eight successful reissues have kept the movie in the public consciousness now for over six decades, during which time the field of animation has grown by leaps and bounds. Still. despite the cinematic advances and the passage of time, "Snow White" stands alone. While the classic story is but a framework for the film (a fact which troubled me for years), "Snow White" can be fully enjoyed for the pioneer it truly is.

Along with a splendid cast of voices headed by Adriana Caselotti (Snow White) Harry Stockwell (father of Guy and Dean, as the Prince) and Lucille La Verne (The Queen), there are songs which can truly be called timeless: "Whistle While You Work", "Heigh Ho", "Some Day My Prince Will Come", etc.). Much time and effort went toward developing the characters of the Seven Dwarfs and giving each a distinct personality (absent in the original story) which went a long way in making audiences care for Snow White's plight. Interestingly enough, although the fairy tale was toned down considerably to make it more "family friendly", the overzealous way in which the film makers transformed the Wicked Queen into a hideous hag at the climax was the subject of an incredible amount of controversy at the time. In fact, it was under a partial ban in England which made it off-limits to children under 16 years of age! Nevertheless, it was the recipient of a special Academy Award in 1938.

To go on about the impact made by the film would be redundant. It simply must be seen to be appreciated. In 2001, it was released on DVD as the first of Disney's "Platinum Editions". And many months before it was in stores, there was great speculation about the content. All the anticipation was justified when the DVD hit the stores. Critics and consumers were overwhelmed (just like the audiences back in 1937) with both the content and the painstaking restoration (beyond that done for it's 50th anniversary reissue) and made it THE DVD for the subsequent holiday season. Without going into detail, it looks as if it were made yesterday, and sounds better than a film of this vintage could ever be expected to. But the streamlining has not diminished it's charm--only accentuated it. And when you think (before you are drawn into the story, and you ARE) that "Snow White", unlike today's computer-drawn animated features was entirely done by hand, that makes it even more of a miracle. Instead of listing the already well publicized bonus features, let me say that this "Platinum Edition" is like a self-contained history of the film, with hours worth of delights the most astounding being a pieced-together commentary by Walt Disney himself. Out of print for years, it is well worth the effort and expense to find. And although Disney made it a point to announce that they planned to go even further with their subsequent "Platinum Editions", they have yet to top this one. And I doubt they ever will.